Whiskers above the rest: Judges choose finest felines at cat show (VIDEO)

Melanie Lower named her Bengal cat Indiana Jones for his extraordinary bravery.

“He was the first one out of the nest when he was born, first one out of the queening cage, first one over the barricade, first one down the stairs,” said Carrie Lower, Melanie’s mother.

He also was the first kitten in his litter to nonchalantly stroll up to a friend’s 170-pound male mastiff looking for milk.

On Saturday, Indy was first in the eyes of judge Jeff Janzen, who declared him Best Household Pet at the Wichita Cat Fancy show in west Wichita.

The category features non-pedigreed cats that have been spayed or neutered.

Janzen explained to spectators Saturday that he looks for three things from household cats: They must be clean. They shouldn’t be too skinny. (“Getting a few extra treats means they’re probably loved a lot,” he said.) And they can’t bite the judge.

Beyond that, “it’s pretty much a beauty contest,” Janzen said. He named Indiana Jones best of the 11 cats entered in the category because of his striking color and beautiful eyes.

Carrie Lower, who trains cats to become therapy and psychiatric assistance animals, said she uses cat shows as a training ground to get the animals used to crowds, noise and being handled.

“If they can’t handle all the noise and the people of a cat show, they can’t do therapy,” she said. “If they can’t do the traveling to and from shows, the in and out of cages, the people handling them, touching them, then they really can’t go any further.”

Indiana Jones, who meowed softly as Melanie Lower cradled him like a baby, is being groomed as a therapy cat for autistic children.

“Not everybody on the autistic spectrum can handle a dog because they’re too invasive,” Carrie Lower said. But a cat’s purr acts as soothing white noise, she said.

Bengal cats like Indy tend to be outgoing and social, and they are more hypoallergenic than other breeds. They also love water. “You have to fight to keep them out of your shower or bathtub,” Carrie Lower said.

More than two dozen breeds were represented at Saturday’s show at the Cotillion Ballroom. Among them, wavy-coated Devon Rexes, bold Japanese Bobtails, sweet-faced Persians, silky Burmese, curly LaPerms and giant Maine Coons.

Booths around the perimeter of the show floor offered cat toys, cat treats, grooming supplies and Grumpy Cat T-shirts.

In Ring Two, judge Jan Rogers described winning cats as if they were supermodels, noting their “rock hard” bodies, “gorgeous profile,” “beautiful stance,” “solid legs” and “stunning, high cheekbones.”

Rogers named Trudie Allen’s Maine Coon, Tru Tails MacGyver, best cat in the premiership class, a category for altered pedigreed cats more than 8 months old.

“He just looks so happy,” Rogers said as she posed for a picture with Allen and her grand champion cat from Fort Collins, Colo. “Such a magnificent example of the breed.”

This story was originally published February 7, 2015 at 5:34 PM with the headline "Whiskers above the rest: Judges choose finest felines at cat show (VIDEO)."