A Forest Cat can be described by any or all of the following words: Alert, inquisitive, fearless, courageous, intelligent, friendly, mischievous, strong, loving, playful and adaptable.

The current official GCCF standard of points against which the cats are judged is as follows (though the standard will be changing in June 2004)

Head - This should be triangular. They should have a long straight profile without a break in line and a strong chin.

Ears - They are usually described as high and open, with good width at the base, (width between ears being less than the width of one ear), high set so that the lines of the ears follow the line of the head down to the chin. With lynx-like tufts and long hair out of the ears.

Eyes - Large, well opened, slightly oblique. All colours are allowed, regardless of coat colour.

Body - The body should be big and strongly built, long and muscular with solid bone structure; must not be cobby or delicate.

Legs & Paws - The legs should be long, with the hind legs being longer than front legs. There should be tufts of fur between the toes.

Tail - This should be long and bushy, it should reach at least to the shoulder blades, but preferably to the neck.

Coat - Semi-long. The woolly undercoat is covered by smooth, water repellent overcoat. This glossy hair covers the back and sides. A fully coated cat has a shirtfront, a full ruff and knickerbockers. (During the summer months, the coat is considerably shorter).

Certificates or first prizes in Kitten classes are withheld if any of the following are apparent:

Cobby, small or delicate build, Break (stop) in profile, Round or square head, Short tail (not reaching to back of shoulder blades), Dry, knotted coat.

Any defect as listed in the preface to the GCCF's Standard Of Points booklet.

Small ears are considered to be a fault.

The FIfe standard is slightly different.

The pictures in the left column are to give examples of specific points, we are not claiming that any or all of them are the perfect NFC's!