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SO you decided you want to breed?
This page is purely
to educate any new person interested in breeding.
As a
new breeder myself and having spent over a decade desiring
and researching about breeding, I have learnt one thing, that true
REPUTABLE
breeders
DO NOT
make a profit from breeding but do it for the sheer love and
pleasure of
their breed.
So if you
think you want to breed and think it's an easy game, please
take the time to read this information I have put together.
This page is to educate and NOT to
put any breeders down as I am supportive of all who
breed correctly.
I am a CAT breeder, I breed CATS
NOT dogs
NOT mice
NOT rabbits,
CATS!
I am a CAT breeder
I am not a pet store.
I cannot guarantee having a kitten of a
specific color or sex available on demand.
Those kittens listed on my website or that I tell you I have
available are ALL I have.
Just because you decide today that you want a kitten does
not mean that I have one available for you to take home
today.
I am a CAT breeder
I am not a traveling salesman
I will not bring a selection of kittens to
your home for you to look over.
If I have kittens available then you may make an appointment
to come view them.
All kittens marked as reserved on my site or I say are not
available are NOT available.
The age and availability dates that I list on my site are
NON negotiable.
I will not sell a kitten before I feel that it is ready to
go to it's new home.
I am a CAT breeder
I am not a bargain basement or clearance store.
If you are looking for a kitten at a bargain
rate keep looking you will not find it here.
Every kitten that I have is raised with all the loving
attention that I can give it.
I have spent many hours cleaning litter trays, feeding,
watering and worrying over each and everyone.
I am a CAT breeder
I spend hours on the phone, the internet and
in person answering the questions of each perspective buyer.
I answer the same questions time after time even though that
information is clearly listed on my website.
I answer the questions and put up with rude behaviour of
buyers who are upset that they can't get what they want when
they want it.
I am a CAT breeder
I spend countless hours learning more about
how to raise kittens better and more about my specific
breed.
I spend ENORMOUS amounts of money at the vets and buying cat
related supplies such as litter and quality food.
If you broke down what I bring in on each kitten as " profit
" I would be making pennies per hour.
I am a CAT breeder
I spend much money, many hours preparing for,
traveling to and attending cat shows and am thrilled to
bring home a two dollar rosette.
I enjoy the camaraderie of other breeders and admire their
cats even when their cats beat mine.
I am a CAT breeder and I LOVE my cats.
*
I wish to thank Christina from Norway
of Apelia's Birmans for allowing me to use this poem
*
WHAT IS
A BREEDER ??
A Breeder (with a capital B) is one who thirsts for
knowledge and never really knows it all, one who wrestles
with decisions of conscience, convenience, and commitment.
A
Breeder is one who sacrifices personal interests, finances,
time, friendships, fancy furniture, and deep pile carpeting!
She gives up the dreams of a long, luxurious cruise in
favour of turning that all important Show into this
years "vacation". The Breeder goes without sleep (but never
without coffee!) in hours spent planning a breeding or
watching anxiously over the birth process, and afterwards,
over every little sneeze, wiggle or cry. The Breeder skips
dinner parties because that litter is due or the babies have
to be fed at eight She disregards birth fluids and puts
mouth to mouth to save a gasping newborn, literally blowing
life into a tiny, helpless creature that may be the
culmination of a lifetime of dreams.
A
Breeders lap is a marvelous place where generations of proud
and noble champions once snoozed. A Breeders hands are
strong and firm and often soiled, but ever so gentle and
sensitive to the thrusts of a kitten's wet nose. A Breeders
back and knees are usually arthritic from stooping, bending,
and sitting in the birthing box, but are strong enough to
enable the breeder to Show the next choice kitten to a
Championship. A Breeders shoulders are stooped and often
heaped with abuse from competitors, but they're wide enough
to support the weight of a thousand defeats and
frustrations. A Breeders arms are always able to wield a
mop, support an armful of kittens, or lend a helping hand to
a newcomer.
A
Breeders ears are wonderous things, sometimes red (from
being talked about) or strangely shaped (from being pressed
against a phone receiver), often deaf to criticism, yet
always fine-tuned to the whimper of a sick kitten. A
Breeders eyes are blurred from pedigree research and
sometimes blind to her own cat’s faults, but they are ever
so keen to the competitions faults and are always searching
for the perfect specimen.
A
Breeders brain is foggy on faces, but it can recall
pedigrees faster than an IBM computer. It's so full of
knowledge that sometimes it blows a fuse: it catalogues
thousands of good bonings, fine ears, and perfect heads...
and buries in the soul the failures and the ones that didn't
turn out. The Breeders heart is often broken, but it beats
strongly with hope everlasting... and it's always in the
right place ! Oh, yes, there are breeders, and then, there
are BREEDERS!!
Author unknown
SO, YOU WANT TO BE A BREEDER ....
So you want to be a breeder do you? Good for you! That's
what I am, a breeder. But before you decide to go ahead and
breed dogs or cats, here are a few things you need to
know, and a few things you need to have.
1. You'll need to be willing to clean up vomit, urine,
feces, chewed up sofas, ruined shoes, and destroyed books,
TV remotes, curtains and wallpaper. Then you'll need to be willing to do it all over
again the next day, and the next, and the next....
2. You'll need a strong stomach, to be able to stand the
stench of rotting fetuses aborted mid term by your pregnant
female you've been waiting two years to breed. You'll need
that strong stomach when you look down on the occasional
deformed monster your female gives birth to, and you'll need it when
you humanely destroy that same puppy or kitten.
3. You'll need a strong heart to be able to nurture and love your healthy puppies and kittens until they're ready
to be sold into the hands of strangers who may abuse, neglect, starve,
beat, or at best ignore them. You'll need that strong heart when
even the puppies or kittens that go to good homes end up run
over by accident, or put down from illness. You'll need it when the tears
of those 'good owners' are pouring their way into your heart.
4. You'll need lots of room to be able to keep females in
heat away from stud boys, stud boys away from each other,
and puppies and kittens away from everything. Don't
forget about those last two pups or kittens that you couldn't find homes
for, or the rescue your breed club begged you to take in, or the pup or
kitten from your last litter that the owners decided just wasn't right
for them.
5. You'll need to be able to stand grief and loss. Like the
way you'll feel the first time you lose a female during
labor, and realize that it was your decision to breed her that
killed her. You'll need it when you explain to your kids and
friends why the miracle of birth has a dark side as well.
6. You'll need an employer that will understand if you have
to take time off work because your female died in labor
or you're hand feeding the new puppies or kittens every 2/3
hours day and night.
..........Wait a minute you're saying by now! Give me a
break! All you breeders are the same. You only tell us the
gory stuff, the stuff intended to scare us off breeding forever.
What about the money? I mean you guys just don't want anyone
else to compete with you.....
Oh yes the money, glad you mentioned
it.
7. You'll need money. Lots of it. Probably lots more than
you have, especially if the above mentioned employer
didn't turn out to be so sympathetic after all. Lets do some math
shall we? Vet bills, Cesarean section, stud fees,
registrations, vaccinations, worming, check ups, special diets,
birthing gear, FOOD and lots of it .... Let's say an average
of $700 - $1200 per litter, if nothing complicated arises. All this must
be paid out before the first
puppy or kitten ever sells, assuming that they're not all
stillborn, in
which case don't forget the cost of post mortems. Even if
every
puppy or kitten in the litter is show quality (we can all
dream after
all) and you find each one a dream home, you're still going
to
lose about $300+ per litter....if you rear them the RIGHT
way
.........Wait! Where are you going? I didn't tell you about show fees, travel expenses, or picking the right
stud boy, or cost of paperwork, or KC/GCCF registrations, or
dog/cat pens, or irate neighbours, or licenses.......
AUTHOR UNKNOWN
I Dedicate this Poem to ALL Breeders and Cat Lovers of the
World
I love
my little kitty, she makes my house a home.
She always is my best friend, I never
feel alone.
She makes me smile, she makes me
laugh,
She fills my heart with love ...
Did some breeder breed her, or did she
fall down from above?
I've
never been a breeder, seen life through their eyes,
I hold my little kitty and just sit and criticize.
I've never known their anguish, I've never felt their pain,
The caring of their charges, through snow or wind and rain.
I've
never sat the whole night through, waiting for babies to be
born,
The stress and trepidation when they're still not there by
dawn.
I've never felt the heartache, of a little life in my hands,
This darling little baby, who weighs but 60 grams.
Should
you do that instead of this ....or this instead of that,
Alone you fight, and hope one day, he'll grow to be a cat,
and bring joy to another being, and make a house a home,
You know it's all just up to you, you'll fight this fight
alone.
Formula, bottles, heating pads, you've got to get this
right,
Two hourly feeds for this tiny guy, throughout the day and
night.
In your heart you know, you're almost sure to lose the
fight,
to save this little baby, but God willing ... you just
MIGHT.
Day
one he's in there fighting, you say a silent prayer,
Day two & three, he's doing well, with lots of love and
care.
Day four & five ... he's still alive, your hopes soar to the
heavens,
Day six he slips away again, dies in your hands day seven.
You
take this little angel, and bury him alone,
With aching heart and burning tears, and an exhausted groan,
You ask yourself "Why do this? ... why suffer all this
pain?"
But see the joy your kittens bring... it really self
explains.
So,
when you think of breeders and label them with "greed",
Think about what they endure to fill another's need.
When you buy a kitten and with your precious dollars part,
You only pay with money ... we pay with our heart.
Author
Unknown
It angers me
to hear and learn that there are still people out there who
believe Reputable Breeders are money hungry and it's all for
profit??? My Question is why do people time and time again
go back to reputable breeders? What is reputable? .... in a
quick notion these are the words that I found mean
REPUTABLE!!!! " A good reputation, Honest, Highly Regarded,
Trustworthy, Well thought of, Dependable, Decent "...
SO If you
think you can live up to this and more then please find the
following links below as a further guide about what breeding
is all about and then think if YOU REALLY WANT TO BREED,
there will always be someone (like my Anne) who will help
you.
Happy
reading!
Breeds/ Genetics/ Type/ Cat Fancy
Breeding from your cat
Information on breeding pedigree cats
Breeding & Queening Cats
Breeding Cats
Breeding Cats & Kitten Care
FAQ About Cats
Breeding Cats
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