Tweed: From Hidden Genes to Show Bench Success
The Tweed is New Zealand’s newest fully standardized pedigree success story. Officially granted full show status by the New Zealand Cavy Judges Association (NZCJA) in 2016, the breed was developed in our country by renowned New Zealand cavy judge Christa Krey of Lessentine Cavy Stud.
The Tweed is one of the most visually striking and distinct breeds on the show bench, named after the classic, woven woolen fabric it closely resembles. The defining feature of a Tweed is its heathered coat. Instead of solid patches of colour, the coat consists of a beautifully even, intermingling of chocolate and white hairs across the entire short, cobby body. This patterning occurs in both light and dark varieties, and can also manifest in an exceptionally glossy, radiant satin sub-variety featuring hollow hair shafts that amplify the coat's natural sheen.
A pedigree Tweed must also feature a clean, solid chocolate head patch (the mask) around its nose and mouth. The lips and nostrils must be solid chocolate. They have large, bright eyes that are surrounded by a distinct, clean circle of solid chocolate eye circle. The ears are a solid, deep chocolate colour and shaped like drooping rose petals. This solid colour extends down to the foot pads, while the heathered Tweed pattern runs cleanly down the top of the feet.
Because of its relative youth and high genetic specificity, maintaining the purity of this breed requires dedicated preservation breeders. As the only clubs in New Zealand actively supporting and providing show benches for Tweeds, the Independent Cavy Clubs are entirely dedicated to preserving, protecting, and celebrating this unique Kiwi breed for generations of fanciers to come.
The visual beauty of the Tweed is only half the story, what lies beneath the coat is a fascinating genetic puzzle that took years of dedicated breeding to solve. To find out the interesting story of how the Tweed genes arrived in New Zealand and dive deep into the breed genetics, please follow through to the Tweed Genetics page.
