Devon Rex History

Kirlee

     The Devon Rex is a comparatively new breed of cat.  It was discovered in 1960 in the county of Devon, England.  The Devon Rex originates from a stray curly coated male who lived near a disused mine near Buckfast.  He mated with another stray, a tortie and white cat, who was also living 'rough'. The tortie was befriended by a lady who lived close by, Miss Beryl Cox.  Miss Cox took care of the pregnant tortie and white, and in amongst the litter that she gave birth to was a curly coated male kitten.  She named him Kirlee and kept him for her pet.
     At first it was thought that Kirlee was possibly related to the Cornish Rex, who had been around for approximately ten years prior to this, but it was later established that Kirlee carried a new rex gene and was indeed a new type. The Devon Rex had arrived!  But it took a lot of patience and out crossing to get the breed well established. Today, Devons are bred in most parts of the world. There are some subtle regional variances in terms of the emphasis or appearance qualities that breeders are attempting to achieve.  All Devons should be able to trace their ancestry back to Kirlee.
     A brief description of Kirlees appearance:  his coat was curly and mole-grey in colour.  He looked like a little pixie due to his wide cheeks, short face, and huge ears looking like bat wings.  His ears were low-set and were covered with tufts of hair on the back creating an ”earmuff” like effect. The Devon Rex is a breed of cat with a most unique appearance. Some of the very interesting and distinctive features of this breed are the large 'pixie' like ears, the short wavy and velvet like coat, short crinkly whiskers, and for some, the wrinkly foreheads.  To this day, Devon breeders have maintained the original look of the Devon Rex.  Photos of today's kittens look remarkably just like photos of the earliest Devon Rex.