American Shorthair Breeders and Registries: Where the Breed Actually Lives
A closed breed that seven other breeds borrow from, a UK gap with a polite official reason, and where real breeders actually are in all four markets.
Published August 21, 2026 5 min read
Contents
The breed present at 's own 1906 founding is, on paper, one of the most tightly closed pedigrees in the fancy, and one of its most borrowed-from. Here is the registry machinery, market by market, and how to find a real breeder inside it.
A closed book that other breeds keep borrowing
At the rule is four words: "Allowable Outcross Breeds: None." At the breed sits in Category I, "Established Breeds," with no outcrossing permitted inside a championship . Canada's prints the plainest version: "ALLOWED MATINGS: American Shorthair." Yet open TICA's own registration rules, and the breed's name appears over and over, on OTHER breeds' pages. The American Shorthair is a permitted outcross DONOR for the Maine Coon, Cornish Rex, Devon Rex, Scottish Fold, Selkirk Rex, Sphynx and Snowshoe.
Seven breeds are allowed to borrow its genes while it borrows from none. That, more than any ranking, is the breed's structural importance to the North American fancy. One dated nuance from 's own rules: registration tightened in 1985 (both parents must be registered). Since 1986, a "street cat" can enter the registry only on a special form with the Breed Council's own approval. A closed book with one guarded door.
The popularity arc, told with its years
Print the rank with its year or don't print it. ranked the breed #6 in the mid-2010s. It fell OUT of CFA's top ten in the 2025 edition (2024 registrations). It returned at #9 in the 2026 edition (2025 registrations), with CFA's own caption reading "Renewed interest in this time-honored breed brings it back on to our list this year." A decade-long dip and a documented comeback, in the registry's own words. And never "the most popular cat in America": these lists count CFA-registered pedigreed cats, a tiny minority of American cats. 's own top-five page, for contrast, does not include the breed at all.
United States: how to actually find one
's Find-a-Breeder program and 's breeder directory are the two starting points, and the catteries we read confirm the pattern: US American Shorthair breeders typically register with both. A 16-cattery independent directory we read spans thirteen states, and the named rate cards live on the price page. The usual discipline applies. A directory listing is an advertisement ( prints its own no-responsibility disclaimer). The paperwork that matters is the litter's registration and both parents' names.
United Kingdom: nobody has applied, in GCCF's own words
The most interesting registry fact in this breed's file. The American Shorthair is not -recognized, and GCCF's own Unrecognised Breeds page files it under its mildest category, "Green", with the Genetics Committee's comment reading, verbatim, "Not applied, probable acceptance." No welfare objection, no refusal, no controversy. In a century, no one has filed the application GCCF requires. The same entry names the recognizing bodies elsewhere (, , SACC), and even a "Recommended Similar Breed: British Shorthair" for UK readers, a comparison we have already written. Until someone applies, UK buyers are effectively importing. That is why our UK market research found no named, registered cattery.
Canada: recognized, closed, and thin on the ground
recognizes the breed with a fully closed standard (no foundation route, no outcrosses) under the general three-generation rule. Its breeder directory lists American Shorthair as a selectable category. In practice the population is thin: our research identified exactly one named -registered cattery (Ashmole, Lachute, Quebec, a silver-tabby specialist), currently without a reachable website.
Australia: standardized nationally, bred by a handful
publishes a national standard for the breed, imported from 's own 2012 text and effective since 2018, in its Group Three. , the other national body, does not list the breed at all. Its rules and breed showcase are genuinely silent, naming the American Shorthair only inside the Bombay's, Exotic's and Snowshoe's origin stories. At state level the breed is real: NSW CFA and Cat Fancy SA both carry it as a breeder-directory category (in different show groups, a quirk between state bodies). A named NSW breeder describes an active program built on imports since 2016. Expect a search measured in breeders, not in pages of listings.
The registry map on one card
| Registry | Status |
|---|---|
| (US) | Founding breed, 1906; outcrosses: none |
| (US) | Category I established breed; donor to 7 other breeds' outcross tables |
| (UK) | "Green: not applied, probable acceptance" ('s own words) |
| (Canada) | Recognized; fully closed |
| (Australia) | Recognized, Group Three, -sourced standard |
| (Australia) | Silent: no listing at all |
The vet's take
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Frequently asked questions
How do I find a reputable American Shorthair breeder?
Start at CFA's Find-a-Breeder and TICA's directory; expect dual CFA/TICA registration in the US. Verify the litter's registration paperwork and both parents' names: with this breed's name so often borrowed by casual listings, the papers are the whole point.
Is the American Shorthair recognized in the UK?
Not yet, and GCCF's own page explains why in three words: "Not applied, probable acceptance." No one has ever filed the application. GCCF itself suggests the British Shorthair as the closest recognized equivalent.
Can American Shorthairs be crossed with other breeds?
Not within their own pedigree: CFA allows no outcrosses and TICA's Category I forbids them. But seven OTHER breeds' rules list the American Shorthair as a permitted outcross donor, from the Maine Coon to the Sphynx.
How popular is the American Shorthair?
CFA #9 for 2025 registrations, back in the top ten after dropping out the year before; #6 a decade ago. Counted among registered pedigreed cats only, a tiny slice of America's actual cat population.
Community questions
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This is information, not veterinary advice, and it cannot tell you what is wrong with your cat. Our rule is a simple one: if something is wrong with your cat, call your vet, and call an emergency clinic if it is out of hours. Nothing you read here is a reason to wait.
Medical information applies to every reader. Prices, legal duties and common practice do not: unless stated otherwise, they are given for the United States, and they differ in the UK, Canada and Australia, and often between states or provinces. Check with your own vet and your own local authority.
Our sources
- CFA American Shorthair breed page
- TICA Registration Rules
- TICA American Shorthair breed page
- GCCF Unrecognised Breeds page
- CCA-AFC American Shorthair standard
- CCA-AFC breeder directory
- ACF American Shorthair standard
- ANCATS
- NSW CFA American Shorthair
- Cat Fancy SA breeders
- breedlist.com directory
- CFA Most Popular Breeds 2026
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