Rabbi and Animal Chaplain Mikhail Salita honors rare Jerusalem-origin cats as “Heirs to King Solomon’s Feline Throne”

BROOKLYN, NY — A golden cat on an ancient king’s throne has inspired a new promise of care for a rare breed from Jerusalem. Rabbi and Animal Chaplain Mikhail Salita has announced the establishment of the Royal House of Kanaani, a cultural and preservation initiative proclaiming Kanaani cats “Heirs to King Solomon’s Feline Throne.”

The initiative is led by the World Kanaani Organization, affiliated with the Brooklyn-based Salita Foundation. It brings together Jewish tradition, the breed’s Jerusalem heritage, and a commitment to helping these cats survive for future generations.

The Kanaani breed was developed in Jerusalem by artist and Holocaust survivor Doris Pollatschek. Her contribution stands at the beginning of its modern story, and honoring her work is central to the Royal House’s mission.

“Doris Pollatschek gave this breed a beginning,” Salita said. “Our responsibility is to help ensure that its story continues.”

The Royal House takes its inspiration from Jewish accounts of King Solomon’s throne. In Midrashic literature—Jewish writings that interpret and expand upon sacred texts—a golden cat faces a golden rooster on the throne’s fifth step. For Salita, the cat’s place on the throne of a king remembered for his wisdom carries a meaning worth bringing into the present.

“I see the golden cat on Solomon’s throne as an invitation to carry a feline royal tradition forward,” Salita said. “The Kanaani’s Jerusalem roots give that symbolism a living expression today. As an ordained rabbi and ordained animal chaplain, I feel a duty to honor that connection through care. That is why we are establishing the Royal House of Kanaani and proclaiming these cats Heirs to King Solomon’s Feline Throne.”

Salita understands this work as part of a long Jewish tradition of responsibility toward animals. Bereshit (Genesis), the opening book of the Torah, describes animals and birds being created before humankind. Adam names the animals. Noah preserves their lives. Moses and David tend flocks before becoming leaders. Jewish tradition also remembers Solomon’s understanding of the language of animals.

“These stories have stayed with us across generations,” Salita said. “They teach us to notice the lives entrusted to us. In my own life, that responsibility has become very close and very personal: these are cats I feed, hold, worry about, and care for every day.”

The initiative also draws on a teaching in the Talmud, a central collection of Jewish wisdom and rabbinic discussion, that people can learn modesty from the cat. Salita finds a particular resonance between that teaching and the Kanaani’s little-known history.

“To me, the Kanaani is the most modest of all cat breeds. It has remained largely overlooked by breeders, and I believe that lack of attention has contributed to its extraordinary rarity. Today, seven documented Kanaani cats are in my care,” he said.

“I see their modesty as a mark of royalty. They do not need popularity to possess dignity. But being overlooked must not become a sentence of disappearance. When I say ‘modesty is royalty,’ I mean that their quiet dignity deserves to be recognized—and their future deserves our care.”

The World Kanaani Organization welcomes cultural partnerships, institutional support, and sponsorships to advance breed preservation and educational projects exploring Jewish heritage and the human–animal bond.

“The royal titles are a promise we must live up to,” Salita said. “We will remember where these cats came from, honor the woman who developed their breed, and do the daily work of caring for them. The next chapter of their story is ours to protect.”

For interviews, photographs of the Royal Family, or partnership inquiries, please contact:

Media Contact

Royal House of Kanaani
World Kanaani Organization
Brooklyn, New York
Email: royal@twko.org
Website: https://twko.org/