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LaPerm

LaPerm

At a Glance

Known as the curly-coated cuddlers, LaPerms are a friendly and loving breed. They can be found with longhair or shorthair, curly hair and even straight hair. LaPerms are easy to care for and bond well with people, making them the ideal choice for many families. Find out more about this breed and if the LaPerm is right for you and your family.

Attending a cat show

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All About Cats

Printable Breed Introduction
Breed Standard
Pet Buyer’s Guide
Temperament

Gentle

Breed Seminar
Height/Weight Range

A small-to-medium breed, with males being larger than females. Females tend to be somewhat smaller in stature and finer boned.

Adult females

6-9 pounds

Adult males

7-12 pounds

Life Expectancy

The LaPerm is a very healthy breed and can be expected to live a good, long life of 12-15 years. However, some LaPerms have been known to live as long as 20 years.

Colors

Any color and pattern, including the new Karpati (salt & pepper) pattern from Eastern Europe.

Similar Breeds

Opposite Breeds

About The Breed

LaPerms are known for their soft, curly, low-maintenance coats. They are extremely affectionate and are known to sit on the laps of their families to seek out kisses or look deeply into their eyes. They are not generally vocal, but seem to understand human moods and react accordingly.

Easygoing and playful, the strong-bond they create with their families make them great companions for children, the disabled and those who live alone. They love companionship and should not be left alone often without a companion such as a cat with a similar activity level or a cat-friendly dog.

Activity Level:
The LaPerm is not a couch potato! They are an alert, intelligent, and active cat with a high degree of curiosity and independence. They love to be involved in everything their families are doing and can often be found following their people around the house and tapping their legs as they pass by to get their attention.

Toy mice and ping pong balls are recommended as well as a tall cat tree so they can climb and be up high to supervise the area.

LaPerms remain active and playful throughout their life, but will never miss an opportunity to cuddle up on their owners lap or around their neck.

The LaPerm is a naturally occurring mutation producing both long and shorthaired cats. It is medium-sized and curly-coated, with a semi-foreign type body. All colors are acceptable. All parts of the body are in harmony with the size of the cat. There is evidence of surprising weight for size. The cat is alert and seems to be walking high on his legs. Coat texture will be distinctly different than that of any other Rex mutation and will vary within the breed. Whiskers will be very long and curly, ear furnishings and eyebrow hairs may also curl and may grow long enough to curl into eye. The perfect cat will have a moderately soft, but textured coat that will be loose and bouncy, standing away from the body, resembling a “Gypsy Shag”. A coat you can run your fingers through to the skin but will appear very curly. The cat will have ringlet type curls at the base of the ears and on the underside of the neck running into the ruff on the longhaired version. The coat should be free of matting, so it should not be too thick and heavy. 

View Full Breed Standard

The LaPerm is not a couch potato! They are an alert, intelligent, and active cat with a high degree of curiosity and independence. They love to be involved in everything their families are doing and can often be found following their people around the house and tapping their legs as they pass by to get their attention.

Toy mice and ping pong balls are recommended as well as a tall cat tree so they can climb and be up high to supervise the area.

LaPerms remain active and playful throughout their life, but will never miss an opportunity to cuddle up on their owners lap or around their neck.

TICA Regions, Clubs & Rescues

Want to connect with fellow cat lovers and those who love the same breed as you?
TICA is a large resource made up of smaller regions and clubs around the world.
Click here to find a club near you and contact information for your regional director and website.

Wherever you are, you’re in TICA’s world!®

Find a Kitten: TICA Breeders

The TICA website is the only place where you can find TICA member breeders who have signed the TICA Code of Ethics.

Find LaPerm
  • While known for their curly coats. the first LaPerm was born completely bald. Occasionally a kitten will be born bald (BB), but will always grow into a curly coat.
  • LaPerm cats are the only “Rex” breed with whiskers that are long and flexible, while the Devon Rex, Cornish Rex, and Selkirk Rex are all born with brittle whiskers that often break off short.

Breed Information & Characteristics

The LaPerm is a distinctive cat that charms everyone it meets with its soft coat of shaggy curls and ringlets sometimes called a gypsy shag. These are intelligent, active cats who carefully think through just how to get that toy placed just out of reach. The name reflects their Native American connection with the Chinook tribe who traditionally used the French definite article when creating new words. Breed founder Linda Koehl thought the cats’ coat looked like a loose perm and thus named the new breed LaPerm. It is a lean muscular cat with no exaggerated features as is befitting its farm background as a working cat. In addition to the distinctive curly coat with its mohair texture, the LaPerm has enchanting large, expressive almond-shaped eyes.

On March 1st, 1982 Linda Koehl watched a brown tabby cat named Speedy have a litter of 6 kittens in a barn in her cherry orchard and witnessed the birth of a new rex mutation: a long, skinny, hairless kitten with large wide-spaced ears, and a tabby pattern apparent in the skin like a tattoo. At 6 weeks the kitten developed a sparse curly shorthaired coat with a brown classic tabby pattern and Linda named her Curly. As she matured, Curly developed a soft wavy coat. Over time, more curly coated cats appeared and fascinated visitors to the farm who told Linda she had something special. She entered six cats in a cat show to see what people thought. The judges echoed the visitors to the farm-Linda had something unique that needed conserving. She decided to start a breeding program to establish her unique cats as the LaPerm breed.

The LaPerm is a clever inquisitive cat that thinks about how to get what it wants and now how use their paws to reach out and get exactly what they want whether it is a favorite toy or your attention. These mischievous clown-like cats with their curls and ringlets and innocent eyes make you laugh at their engaging antics. These active, outgoing cats like to be with you and to join in everything you are doing. They want to be close to you and will follow you around like a dog, ride on your shoulders, play games with you, or sprawl out next to you on the couch as you watch television. They are gentle affectionate cats who want human contact and will reach a paw out to pat your face. Their affectionate, loving nature means they get on well with children and other family pets, making them an ideal family companion.

The LaPerm coat consists of loose, light, airy curls and bouncy ringlets. It has a textured feel to it with a slight drag and feels like mohair. All three hair types (guard, awn, and down) are present and the texture comes from the shape of the curls and the mixture of the hair types. It is an invitingly soft coat standing away from the body and feels springy when patted. The longest curls are found in the ruff and on the neck where they are like ringlets. They also have curly hair inside the ears, tufts on the ear tips and longer fur on the backs of the ears referred to as ear muffs. Curly plumed tails adorn the longhair while the shorthairs have tails more like a bottlebrush. Both coat lengths have long curled whiskers and kinked eyebrows. The length and fullness of the coat for both coat lengths varies with the season and maturity of the cat. They come in a wide array colors, coat patterns and eye colors.

The LaPerm has a medium to long, or semi-foreign, body with medium boning and long legs. It is an active well-muscled cat that weighs in at 8 to 10 pounds for males and 6 to 8 pounds for females. They are a cat without extremes and their modified wedge-shaped head has gently rounded contours. Their eyes and ears stand out. The large cupped ears have curly furnishings and ringlets around the base while their large, almond-shaped eyes look at you adoringly with an innocent look no matter what mischief they might have been up to.

Their curly coats are low shedding which makes maintenance a breeze-just like their airy coats! The coat does not mat easily as there is little undercoat and the curl holds much of the loose coat to the body rather than dropping to the floor and furniture. Light combing using a metal comb with rolling teeth removes any dead coat and keeps the coat in excellent condition in a matter of minutes. Bathing and towel drying will also keep the coat pristine-blowdrying is unnecessary as it will make the coat frizz. Once the coat is totally dry, emphasize the curl by spritzing the coat with a fine mist of plain water.

As a relatively new breed, there are no breed-specific diseases associated with the LaPerm. The TICA LaPerm Breed Committee recommends all breeders conduct DNA tests on all allowed domestic outcrosses before being introduced into the breed pool.

LaPerms come in Shorthair (SH), Longhair (LH) varieties.

Their coats are light, low shedding, and rarely matt since they are without a heavy undercoat. A wide toothed comb can be used to brush them, however bathing and brushing is not necessary as they are meant to look a little untidy.

Kittens are born with short fur and do not look like mini-adults. Longhairs in particular may go through some changes before getting gradually longer and curlier, with their full coat not coming in until three-years-old.

In summer, their coats are lighter with some loss of undercoat and on the neck for coolness. In winter a mature LH LaPerm will have a full ruff and plumed tail. Shorthairs are not as impacted seasonally and have a springy feel to their coat and a bottle brush tail.

Nails should be trimmed every two weeks. Begin brushing their teeth regularly at an early age with a vet-approved pet toothpaste. 

All cats need a quality food to keep their systems healthy and immunity high. The TICA LaPerm Breed Committee recommends asking your breeder what they are currently feeding and continue with that regime to avoid stomach upsets. While metabolism slows after neutering, it is rare for a LaPerm to overeat as they have so many other interests.

Fresh water should be available at all times. Water bowls should be washed and refilled with fresh water daily. As with all cats, it is important to give your cat fresh, clean water daily so they don’t hesitate to drink. If you worry about your cat drinking enough water each day, here’s a tip from some cat behaviorists: place the water bowl at least three feet away from any food. Cats’ noses are sensitive and an overwhelming smell of food may cause them to drink less. Filtered drinking fountains can also be used in place of a water bowl.   

LaPerm (SH/LH) Breed Committee (3)

Name Email
Chair: Denise Abrahamcatcurls.laperms@yahoo.ca
Chair: Nicola Lovellnicola515@hotmail.co.uk
Melanie Cassarcassar2080@gmail.com

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