Breeding Question

I have a kitty client that wants to breed she emailed me asking this Ok here goes.
Her females mom is the grandmother of her male can they be bred?
I told her I was not sure but I knew of a place that could tell me for sure. She is not a breeder she wants just one litter to keep 1 kitty from and share with family and friends. Can any one help me with this one?
Appreciate all help
Sincerely
Debbie

Well.....

This really isn't that easy a question to answer, it also requires a basic knowledge of genetics. I found this excellent site that explain the uses, benefit and drawbacks...

Linebreeding

The mating of more distant relatives within the same bloodline. If much homozygosity is already established in the bloodline, it is still considered close inbreeding. Common ancestors of the parents must be found only in the very beginning of the breed's formation for it to be considered true line breeding.

What this will do for you...

Fixes desired traits
Increases homozygosity
Allows for some phenotypic and genotypic differences between individuals. This allows for greater subsequent genetic manipulations than inbreeding.

What you have to becareful of:


Brings out deleterious genes
Loss of vigor
Immunodeficiency becomes fixed

I found this Here

I think the bigger issue here is the lady who wants to do this is not a breeder and may not know all of the implications of breeding her female. Is she ready to have a cesarian if need be. Is she ready to help deliver these babies? And does she know about all of the things that can go wrong? I understand that some people want to have just one litter but then the female will be ready to have babies again right away are the cats goingt o be kept apart. And once a male is bred he may and probably will spray for the rest of his life even after being fixed.
If I was you I would look into the CFA and persian-cats site for what to expect when breeding and give her these articles and make sure this is the right decision for her. In most cases it would probably be cheaper and better on her cats to buy her friend a pet quality kitten from a breeder who is trying to improve there lines and happens to have a pet qaulity or better yet rescue or adopt a persian.
Denise

Hi kumfykitten, and welcome to the Cat Site Breeder's Forum.

With the small bit of information you gave about your friend's cats, personally, I think that they are a little too closely related for my own tastes.

In my humble opinion, the purpose of breeding is to add positive traits and to remove negative ones to/from any given bloodline. I'm afraid that in your friend's case, I can see no logical reason for this mating in light of the explanation you gave ... "just one litter to keep 1 kitty from and share with family and friends". I am not certain from your post if these are pedigreed cats or not, but even if so, it isn't logical for her to breed them unless it in some way enhances the bloodlines. If they are not pedigreed cats, then it simply makes no sense to me at all.

In the hopes of answering your question, from the information you've given, it is my opinion that the pairing of these two cats can very easily be considered to be close inbreeding, and I would strongly discourage her from doing so if I could.

Thank you for what I consider to be a valid and important question. I sincerely hope I have addressed your question and responded in such a way as to make you feel welcomed and appreciated. Since I felt I was able to shed some small bit of light on ceehorne's response to you, I have done so in private email, as I do not feel this is the appropriate forum to cover those issues.

My continued best to you,

Gaye

Gaye
Thanks so much for your response, it was much appreciated and well explained. I totally understand what you are saying. Thank-you for makeing me feel welcome
Sincerely
Debbie

Hi Everyone. I am a newbie to this site. I am really enjoying reading everyones posts concerning breeding.
I have a beautiful Siamese named "Bird" which we would love to breed.
She is experiencing her first heat. Would anyone be able to give me tips on finding a male, ect...
We have never had kittens before, and are gathering info before we start. We plan on only one litter, and all kittens are spoken for to other cat lovers.
I hope I am posting properly, please excuse any mistakes!

The best way to go about breeding a pedigree cat is to contact several reputable breeders and talk to them about stud service. It's also wise because a mentor is always helpful in the beginning.

I still dont understand why someone would breed a couple of cats just that one time to get that one litter even if they are spoken for. Why dont you go and rescue cats if thats all you want is pets. I do breed but I breed purebred registered cats that have titles in hopes of continuing to show and with the help of other breeders to produce cats as close to the standard as possiable while considering the personality traits.
You can find beautiful cats at the rescues. Why not stop by there first.
Denise

Hi dibsmo and welcome!

I would highly advise that you get your cat spayed ASAP. Spaying her as early as possible (preferably before her first heat) is the best thing you can do for her. To breed cats you need to be a professional and knowledgable breeder, committed to the standards of ethical breeding. I think it's a fascinating field and should you wish to learn more about it, I'm sure you can get a lot of help here. One thing is sure, if your cat is already in heat, you're too late for his heat cycle - learning just the basics of proper and ethical breeding will definitely take you more than a few weeks.

Just for starters, you need to know a lot about your cat's genetics. Breeding without that knowledge could lead to a serious of serious defects in the cats. I just checked out in one of my books and with Siamese you are looking at these potential problems: weak hind legs, visible kink in the tail, malocclusion, protruding sternum, heart problems and kidney disease. Even if your cat is healthy and the male is healthy, they still could be carriers of faulty genes and you may get sick kitties. That's one reason why breeding purebreds should be done only within a professional breeding program by someone who is thoroughly familiar with the blood lines involves. Other than genetic problems, you will also have to check your cat as well as the stud for FIV, FeLV and FIP - if anyone of them is a carrier you can't let them mate. Be careful - those are lethal problems!

And all I've said up to now is really just the tip of the iceberg. I myself am not a breeder - right now I can't afford the time or money to do that properly. And as the risks are so great when this is not done properly - I think the responsible thing for me is not to breed at all.

And as Denise so rightly said, there are so many Siamese looking for good homes out there. Here are links to rescue organizations that rehome Siamese cats. I'm sure that if your friends really want to give a good home to a Siamese, they can find their furbaby here:

http://www.kcsiameserescue.com/

http://www.siameserescue.org/

http://members.petfinder.org/~MI235/

http://ks.siameserescue.org/

http://www.siameserescue.org.uk/

http://www.purrsabound.petfinder.org/

http://tx.siameserescue.org/

There are actually many more - but I'm sure these can help you. Please help rescue a Siamese in need - there are kitties out there as sweet and beautiful as your cat that need good homes. There is really no need for you to breed her. You can also read more about the benefits of spaying and neutering here:
http://www.thecatsite.com/care/spay.html