Bragging

We can't brag that all our cats are perfect, but they have all been shown with good results, in fact so good that they have all - almost - been Best in Show (BIS). 

International Premier
Bitsjkova
af Graenselandet

Especially Kirsten thinks that Bitsjka was a very beautiful cat, but - admitted - she didn't look exactly as the Russian Blue standard says a Russian Blue should look.
Bitsjka's strongest points were a lovely body-type and fine, high and slender legs, she had a wonderful strong chin, and her ear-setting was absolutely perfect. Her weakest point was the profile: her nose was far from straight - but it was a very sweet nose! Bitsjka is the model of our logo.   
                
We took Bitsjka to one show, before she was neutered, and at this show she got a CAC. As a neuter she took part in many shows, and she achieved the title International Premier. At one show she got the not so flattering judgement MG ("Very Good"), but the judge also thought that she was such a charming cat that he gave her a little special price. At other shows she got better results. She was nominated for Best in Show several times, and twice she was BOX - Best Opposite Sex. But she was never BIS.

Bitsjka also went to quite a few propaganda shows, where she "sold" many kittens. The visitors of the shows always thought she was a very lovely cat. They especially liked her intense and wonderful green eyes.

Bitsjka had one litter only, in 1987. The father of the kittens was DK Matrjoschka's Dombanos. We were very pleased with the looks of the kittens. We had the great pleasure that Marianne Stade, "The Grand Old Lady" of Russian Blues in Europe, saw two of the kittens, and she was quite enthusiastic about them. 
The two females of the litter, Odile and our own Ofelia, both had brilliant show careers, and they both had kittens themselves.

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Champion and
European Premier
Ofelia Hesseldal

Ofelia was the most beautiful cat of the world! Besides she was an unusual beautiful Russian Blue, in fact we find it rather difficult to find any faults. Especially her eye-colour was exceptionally good. As a kitten she didn't look particularly promising, and we were quite sure that Odile would be the best Russian Blue of the two females, but Ofelia just grew more and more and more beautiful....

She also had some very good show results. At her very first show she was a junior, and she was nominated for Best in Show. As a fertile adult cat she was shown 5 times, and she didn't miss one single certificate. On the contrary she managed to be Best of Variety three times.

After she was neutered the show career went on, and she didn't miss any certificates neither on her way to the title European Premier, the highest title a neutered cat can obtain. She was nominated for Best in Show numerous times. At four shows she was BOX, and at one show she was BIS. She also was shown in the veteran class (cats 6 to 10 years old), and twice she was best veteran. In 1993 she was the best Russian Blue of the year in Denmark, and three times she was the best neuter of our Russian Blue club.

Ofelia was always sweet at shows, and she was much praised for her nice temperament. Unfortunately the visitors were unable to see her when she was in the pen, because she always hid, but when we took her to and from the judge's ring, we often - to our great pleasure - heard admiring words about her.

Also Ofelia got only one litter. The father of the kittens was Igor Las Islas DK. Djingiz (who stayed with us) and Bourtai both got descendants. They were also both shown with good results.

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If Djingiz had not been a male, he would probably also have been the most beautiful cat of the world. But we do like the more elegant lines of the females better, so Ofelia has this description for herself.

Unlike Ofelia Djingiz looked promising already as a kitten: Very harmonious with a perfect profile, very good coat texture and a promising eye-colour. We had a reservation of a male kitten from a Hungarian breeder, and because Djingiz looked so promising we chose him for going to Hungary. But we had second thoughts about it in the very last second. We couldn't do without him, and he certainly should not go so far away.

Djingiz was shown 4 times as a kitten and junior, but his results were not that extraordinary. Once he got Best of Variety, at the other shows we had to settle with ex.1 - much to our surprise. Anyway, it tells more about the judges than about Djingiz, because when he was shown as an adult cat, the good results came. As unneutered he was shown twice. The very first time he was nominated for Best in show, and he was almost BIS. The second time he got the certificate, but his mother Ofelia won Best of Variety.

After he was neutered, he was at shows 4 times. Of cause he got the certificate on every occasion, but besides he was twice Best in Show and once nominated for Best in Show. Unfortunately he felt more and more uncomfortable at the shows. He was never angry or hissing, but we could feel that he didn't like the shows, and naturally we stopped showing him. Though he had only a short show-career Djingiz was the second best Russian Blue in 1991 as well as the best neuter of our Russian Blue club also in 1991.

Premier
Djingiz Hesseldal

Djingiz became the father of a litter of 5 kittens, the mother was his cousin Tzaren's Blue Anastasia. It is the most beautiful Russian Blue litter we have ever seen. It was shown in the litter class, and it was the best litter - of 8 litters.

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International Champion & Grand International Premier
Zarin Lilit

When we got Lilit, we wanted her to have especially two things : green eyes and a strong chin. Lilit's chin is not very strong, and her eye-colour was for a long time rather muddy. On the other hand she has many other good qualities : She has a lovely little triangular face with a very good breadth, she has a good profile and a very good type of the body for example. Most of all she has a fantastic personality, both at home and at shows - and eventually she has also got a fantastic good eye colour.

We showed her twice as a junior to find out, if she behaved well at shows. There were no problems at all, and since she has behaved in an exemplary manner at all the shows she has been to.

Her best result was maybe when she at her very first show in the adult class was BIS. On the way she won over not less than 7 other shorthair females at the nomination. We were extremely proud. Since then she has had her ups and downs, and she became an International Champion.

Lilit was 1 certificate short of being a Grand International Champion when she was neutered. We continued to show her as a neuter, and now she is a European Premier. 
On her way to this the highest possible title she was nominated for Best in Show at several occasions, and she was even BIS twice and BOX twice.

In 2004 Lilit was one of the best Russian Blues in the big Swedish Russian Blue club. She was second best neuter, beaten by her half-sister Zarin Vega only. It was even better in the veteran class where she was number 1. Quite impressive, isn't it? By the way she was also the best Russian Blue neuter in Denmark in 2004. In 2005 she was the secont best female neuter in our club, Jydsk Racekatte Klub which is the largest club affiliated to FIFe.

Lilit had two litters before she was neutered. The first one was sired by the French bred Opiom De La Mer De Kara, and the kittens were the very beautiful Zenit and Zoogin. Lilit stuck to the two-times table, in her second litter sired by Rathcke's Chlopiec Elf were the two females Sarantoya who stayed with us and her sister Salonqa.

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To tell the truth Sarantoya didn't quite achieve results that justify her presence at this page. But almost - and anyway we are so pleased with her looks that we want to brag about her. 

She has a lovely triangular face and an almost perfect profile, her body is elegant yet strong, she has long legs and long tail, fine coat texture with a beautiful colour and excellent silver shine; and she has wonderful eyes with excellent shape and a smashing colour.

She has been doing very well at the shows. She has achieved Best of Variety at several occasions, and she has even been nominated for Best in Show. She is our first EC! She had to be at 24 shows as an adult cat, before the title was achieved. Three times she had to settle with EX.2 - once ot was her litter sister Salsa who beat her.

In 2001 Sarantoya was the best Russian Blue junior in Denmark, and in both 2003 and 2004 she was "Russian Blue of the Year".

At the shows she behaved very well though she didn't like to stand on the smooth judge's tables. We tried to teach her to stand nicely at tables, with some success.

Sarantoya was neutered in 2006, and we thought she was going to have a brilliant show carrier as a neuter, but it wasn't so. Two things happened: She grew too fat, and exactly as her mother she developed an allergy. Lilit's allergy disappered again pretty quickly, but Sarantoya's went on for a very long time, and we stopped showing her - which she probably is quite happy about herself.

Sarantoya has had a litter with two kittens, one of each sex.

European Champion 
Sarantoya Hesseldal

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European Champion
Odile Hesseldal

Leila Soerensen took this 
lovely photo of Odile..
Notice the thin, 
translucent ears of Odile.

Though we were not the owners of Odile, we feel free to boast about her anyway.

Bitsjka's second daughter, Odile, was a sweet little kitten with a lovely head - including a nice strong chin, a fine type of the body and beautiful eyes with a very fine shape and a promising colour. Last but not least Odile had a special charisma. She was sold to Leila Sorensen, and Leila had all we wanted from Odile's new owner. Most important is that Leila's home is a good home for cats, but besides she wanted to show Odile and to let her have kittens.

Odile appeared to be a good show cat. Already as a junior she was BIS. We didn't show any cats ourselves at that particular show, but we were present, and it left us speechless when Odile got to the top. We had bred only one litter with our female being the mother and the male living closest to us being the father.

As an adult cat things happened a little slowly in the beginning. Odile's coat quality was not so good until she became a little older and had had kittens. But when she was through the open class, the results came quickly, and in 1990 she reached the title European Champion. On the way she was BOX more than once, she was selected Best of variety not less than 12 times, and besides she was nominated quite a few times. Odile was always sweet at shows, and her charisma did not fail her.

Her most impressing result might have been when she in 1990 was no 8 on the Top 10 list of the Danish cat club "Racekatten". It didn't happen very often that a Russian Blue reaches the Top 10 in Denmark at that time.

Odile became the ancestress of Leila's breed "Tzaren's". She got three litters herself. The kittens who have left the strongest marks until now, are the two females from the first litter. Tzaren's Blue Affrosine and Anastasia. Both of them got kittens, and both had good show results. The father of these two is Tobias Argentum.
From Odile's last litter sired by Tzaren's Elias both Tzaren's Blue Janis and Tzaren's Blue Juziska got kittens, and Janis also had a show carreer. 

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Zenit, the first daughter of Lilit, has also got so good show results that she can be on the this page
At her very first show in Ribe, Denmark, April 22nd 2000, she was the best shorthair kitten. She found it a bit boring to be quiet when she was judged, but apart from this she was as cool as a cucumber at the show.

She has been to two more shows as a kitten and youngster, and she was twice Best of Variety and as a youngster also nominated for Best in Show.

Also we found Zenit a promising and beautiful kitten. She had a good coat texture and a coat colour a little more light than we are used to, but it was still definitely blue. She had a very promising eye colour, but her chin was a little weak like her mother's. When she was grown up she still had the same fine qualities, especially her coat quality was excellent. 

At home with her own family she was a ray of sunshine. We have always thought that Russian Blues are not exactly cats for children, but Zenit was one of the exceptions to this rule. She was a delight to all the members of the family, including the daughter who was 3 years of age when Zenit arrived.
Altogether Zenit seemed to have inherited the very open character of her father, Opiom. 

In 2000 Zenit was one of the most winning cats in our club Jydsk Racekatte Klub: She was third best kitten/youngster. Both we and Anne Merete were both happy and proud. Unfortunately Anne Merete didn't like the shows, and the show carreer of Zenit soon stopped.

Zenit Hesseldal

Photo: Anne Merete Ebbesen

Photo: Ole Palmhoj

When Zenit was a little more than 10 months old she was taken to a photographer. She didn't like it very much and wasn't very cooperative. 
Even so the photographer managed to take some very good photos of her.

This is one of them - isn't she beautiful? We think so!
Click on the photo if you want to see it larger. 

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