The Selkirk Rex is a cat breed with curly hair that was developed in the United States in the late 1980s. The Selkirk Rex is distinct from the other Rex breeds by the thick quality of its coat, while LaPerm, Devon Rex and Cornish Rex have sparser curly coats. The Selkirk Rex are known for their placid, social and cuddly nature.
History
The Selkirk Rex originated in Montana, USA in 1987, with a litter born to a rescued cat.
American Shorthairs, Persians, Himalayans, Exotic Shorthairs, and British Shorthairs have been used as outcrosses to develop this breed.
The breed was accepted by The International Cat Association in 1992, the American Cat Fanciers Association in 1998, and the Cat Fanciers' Association in 2000.
In 2020 Cat Fanciers' Association (CFA) discontinued using Persian cats as an outcross, and in 2025 - British Shorthair or Exotic. Starting from 2025 Selkirk Rex kittens registered with CFA must have only Selkirk Rex parents. As of 2024, TICA permits Selkirk Rex to be outcrossed with British Shorthair, British Longhair, American Shorthair, Persian, Himalayan and Exotic cat breeds.
Appearance
thumb|right|200px|A white Selkirk Rex
Selkirk Rex is a medium to large cat with a solid, muscular body and heavy boning. Adult males weigh between 12 and 15 pounds, females are somewhat smaller. The head of a Selkirk is round and full-cheeked. Their eyes are round and set well apart, as are the medium-sized ears. Unlike other Rex breeds with reduced amounts of hair, the Selkirk Rex is not recommended for those who might be allergic to cat allergens.
The breed is accepted in all colors, including pointed, bicolor, cinnamon, silver/smoke and chocolate.
Genetics
The Selkirk Rex is defined by an autosomal incomplete dominant woolly rexoid hair (ADWH) abnormality that is characterized by tightly curled hair shafts. Heterozygous cats exhibit a full, randomly curled coat, whereas homozygous cats have a tight, soft and wavy curl, similar to the Cornish Rex. In addition to the curl pattern, homozygous cats also display a more slender body composition with bigger ears and a less rounded appearance of the head. The inbreeding coefficient of the Selkirk Rex population is low, on par with domestic cats of no specific breed.
A splice variant in the gene KRT71 was found to be associated with the curly coat phenotype. Three mutations in KRT71 have now been identified in cats, forming the allelic series, KRT71SADRE > KRT71+ > KRT71re > KRT71hr,