Her "baby," 6-month-old Hadrian's Wall, has earned Adkins, 48, of Keene, the title "Dr. Frankenkitty" by more traditional catties.

Her little oddity - the product of two mutant genes, hairlessness and short-legs - will travel from its home near Fort Worth to make an appearance in Beaumont this weekend for the Golden Triangle Cat Fanciers Club cat show, held 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at the Montagne Center.

About 130 cats and kittens of varying breeds (Bengal, Siamese, Persians and Cornish rex among them) will compete in the show, which is sanctioned by The International Cat Association (TICA), said Carol Hale, show manager and president of the Golden Triangle club.

Of all the breeds, little Hadrian, one of 25 like him in the world, likely will draw the most attention, said Adkins, who expects both praise and concern.

From Hale, who shows American shorthairs, comes praise: "He's so ugly he's cute."

From 48-year-old Sherry Kern, a Lumberton teacher who shows Persians, concern: "My whole thing about breeding is to improve the breed, not using defects."

Many cat people stick their noses up at the short-legged felines, worrying that the genetic mutation (thought to be the same that causes human dwarfism) will lead to health problems. They also worry that the cat creators will grow too bold in their alchemy, and create a kitty monster.

"People are afraid we are going too far; that we will create a cat that is defective," Adkins said. "They have to trust us."

Hadrian, a new breed called a bambino, was formed by cross-breeding a short-statured munchkin to a hairless Sphynx, Adkins said. It's a genetic mix worthy of a Punnet square, what with dominant and recessive genes calculated over generations to form the desired healthy, hairless kitten with stubby legs.

It's those little legs - a genetic mutation found in two cats quivering under a Louisiana car in 1983 - that most worry the cat crowd.

In the early days of the breed - all progeny of those two Louisiana cats - some kittens had ribcages too small for their heart and lungs, Adkins said.

When a premiere feline organization, TICA, accepted the munchkins as a new breed in 1995, some TICA judges resigned, saying that the short felines were handicapped and should not be bred.

"But, there are possible defects in any breed," said Adkins, who has worked as a vet technician to learn more about cats. "There are some existing champion breeds that I wouldn't touch with a stick."

For example, the manx, a cat that appears to have no tail, is susceptible to bowel control problems, she said. And, some Burmese, bred to have a domed skull, can be born with open heads, while Persians are predisposed to kidney disease, Adkins said.

Yet, because these breeds are established, their flaws are accepted, Adkins said. Meanwhile, the bambino sometimes is scorned, she said.

"It's prejudice in the cat world," Adkins said. "Plain and simple."