Feline fanciers herd their cats to Dulles this weekend

Flip the Persian Cat, a former champion (Courtesy of the Game Show Network)

The Going Out Guide staff has mixed feelings about Felis catus. We praise their hunting ability and cleanliness but complain about their aloofness and tendency to torture the allergic. But no such mixed feelings exist at the National Capital Cat Show, where, as you might imagine, cat supporters reign.

The cat show will be at the Dulles Expo Center on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Some of the country's finest show cats will be on display. Plus: Cat toys. Cat food. Cat grooming products. Cat supplies. Cat-friendly cat experts to help you with your cat needs. Cat!

(Even if your cat isn't in the show, you can show off him or her here, in our photo gallery.)

Admission is $8 for adults and $5 for children and seniors. Or take your family of four for a mere $24.

If you need a quick primer on cat show etiquette, I beg you to check out my colleague Dan Zak's 2006 tour de force expose on the world of championship cat showing. Claws Celebre is still one of my favorite headlines of all time.

As for me, I love cats. A photo of Max, the gray tailless Manx I grew up with, hangs on my refrigerator. Max passed away in 2003 at the age of 16, but I still have fond memories of his twilight years, when he had given up the pretext of civility to anyone but mom and me, ambush-face-biting anyone else he could, but still curling up in his two favorite laps like he was a kitten.

Of course, for you cat dissenters out there -- Mr. Larry Johnson knows what you are talking about:

--Justin Rude