About mating

daeliur

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Hello to all!
I would like to start breeding a few kittens and I stumbled onto a first problem:
we would like to have both a stud and a queen, but we're not sure that this is possible. We're afraid that if living together, the two cats won't mate.

How do breeders appease multiple cats?

Thank you.
 

rescuecatsrule

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Don't take this the wrong way, but there's sooo many cats and kittens looking for homes already, do you really want to breed?

If you want a kitten (or two) you are better off getting them from a rescue centre.

Plus, breeding costs a lot of money. I don't know exact figures, but even after the kittens are born, there's vets bills for the mum and babies, calling the vet out to the birth if needed, and a lot more expenses as well.

Just so you're aware of that!
 

sol

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If you wanna start breeding buying a stud and a queen is probably not the right way to start. You're probably better off buying one cat that you can show and who's breeder is prepared to mentor you.

Showing the cat will give you the opportunity to see other cats of the same breed, you'll get professional opinions on your cat and you'll get to know other breeders.

Once you have a mature and healthy cat you'll know what to look for in the spouse.
 

missymotus

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Studs are usually housed outdoors in enclosure, they are not living together with the female(s), only put together for supervised matings. But even if you do let them run together it will not stop their mating.

I agree with Sol, get yourself a cat to show first before you think about breeding.

Originally Posted by rescuecatsrule

Don't take this the wrong way, but there's sooo many cats and kittens looking for homes already, do you really want to breed?
This is the breeders corner
http://thecatsite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=143550
 

goldenkitty45

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First, what kind of cats are we talking about? Have you any experience in breeding and showing? If not, then you start at the beginning. You go to shows, talk to breeders of your chosen breed, make contacts. Then you work with ONE cat and show that cat and learn about the breed inside and out.

Most breeders will not hand over breeding cats to novice breeders. What are your intentions and goals in breeding? Are you willing to test your cats for genetic problems. Are you willing to keep the kittens for 12-16 weeks? Are you willing to spay/neuter kittens before placing them? Are you willing to take cats back?

There's a lot to breeding besides getting a male and female. You need to learn about genetics and mate the best two cats together. Your goal is to produce SHOW quality cats - not just pet cats. Even if you don't find show homes, they should be top quality.

Females cannot be put on hold when calling; and you can't let them keep going in and out of heat without breeding. A male will not be happy with just one female. He will also need to be caged so he does not spray everywhere.

Breeding is not to be taken lightly. Please give us some more info regarding WHY you want to breed, etc.
 
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daeliur

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Thank you so much for the answers.
@rescuecatsrule: I am not taking it the wrong way. I know you're right. I thought about shelters and rescue centers for a while, but I can't do it in my area - countless financial issues arise - and unfortunately there is no such thing here.

I thought that breeding would be a great thing to do to allow us to have more cats (idea which we're really fond of) while at the same time paying for the expenses, maybe allowing us to do something more for other animals as well.

@Sol Thank you Sol for the advice. You guys are right, first I should get a cat to show. We already have one, she's a superb cross-bred black persian and she was found on the streets (after a few weeks, she managed to get lost again, but we found her after a frantic week of struggles).

I don't know if I can show her, there's of course no ID, pedigree and such.
But my conclusion is the same as yours: I will get a pedigreed female as a companion for the persian (she really wishes for a playfriend) and try and show her and get contacts and such. After a few months, if all is well, I will consider breeding them both.

@GoldenKitty45: Genetic problems? That sounds really creepy. I will do some research, thanks for pointing it out.

@missymotus: thanks for the info. I see you pointed the Breeding corner guidelines and by reading it, i see why. I do think that this is a serious and interesting discussion.

Thanks again for your time.
 

bengalbabe

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Originally Posted by daeliur

Thank you so much for the answers.
@rescuecatsrule: I am not taking it the wrong way. I know you're right. I thought about shelters and rescue centers for a while, but I can't do it in my area - countless financial issues arise - and unfortunately there is no such thing here.

I thought that breeding would be a great thing to do to allow us to have more cats (idea which we're really fond of) while at the same time paying for the expenses, maybe allowing us to do something more for other animals as well.

@Sol Thank you Sol for the advice. You guys are right, first I should get a cat to show. We already have one, she's a superb cross-bred black persian and she was found on the streets (after a few weeks, she managed to get lost again, but we found her after a frantic week of struggles).

I don't know if I can show her, there's of course no ID, pedigree and such.
But my conclusion is the same as yours: I will get a pedigreed female as a companion for the persian (she really wishes for a playfriend) and try and show her and get contacts and such. After a few months, if all is well, I will consider breeding them both.

@GoldenKitty45: Genetic problems? That sounds really creepy. I will do some research, thanks for pointing it out.

@missymotus: thanks for the info. I see you pointed the Breeding corner guidelines and by reading it, i see why. I do think that this is a serious and interesting discussion.

Thanks again for your time.
Please at least consider getting the stray you found spayed and not breeding her. The reason is because you have NO idea of her genetic background and you have no idea what genetic faults she carries. She could pass on some VERY bad stuff. Not to mention, she will not fit the standard correctly since she is a mixed breed and you won't be able to get any papers on her offspring. There are enough mixed breed cats in shelters already. If you think that breeding will pay for expenses, you are sadly mistaken. It is hard to break even when you have top of the line cats. I can't imagine ever breaking even when your breeding non-pedigreed cats.
 
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daeliur

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We did consider neutering for her. It just doesn't feel right for her to never have kittens. She is almost 1 year old and we thought we should let her have a go once, and then neuter her.

It's this, and my fear of something happening during the surgery


I know we wouldn't get papers for her
And I can imagine that the profits may be non-existant... unfortunately, it's a necessity, we can't afford raising more than two
Well, two would be enough I guess..
 

mews2much

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My Friend was a Breeder of Persians but she kept losing Kittens to Genetic Problems and gave up. My other friend Breeds Ragdolls and has a Grand Champion.
 

EnzoLeya

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It is no disservice to her to never have kittens. There are millions of cats that have never breed before. All three of ours have never matted. The only way I would consider matting her is if you could prove she was purebred.

If you really want to get into breeding, you should look for some purebred kitties!
 

whiteforest

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Originally Posted by daeliur

We did consider neutering for her. It just doesn't feel right for her to never have kittens. She is almost 1 year old and we thought we should let her have a go once, and then neuter her.

It's this, and my fear of something happening during the surgery
Cats do not need to breed. They would never know the difference. The problem is that you have no idea of her background, she has no papers, and you have no way of knowing whether or not she's a mixed breed. Essentially you would be breeding a Domestic SH, and there are already millions in need of homes. As far as the risks of surgeries go, spaying and neutering is a very basic and common procedure. If you take you cat to a decent vet it is probably just as likely something could go wrong during pregnancy or birthing as it would be for something to go wrong during a spaying surgery.


If you feel that breeding is something you might like to get into, do as others have suggested and start showing. Get to know a breed, genetics, health and nutrition, etc. There is a lot more to it than just mating and kittens.
 

goldenkitty45

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I'll agree with you on finding a QUALITY persian if that's your chosen breed, but as far as breeding the mixed one, please reconsider. You don't know a thing about her background; breeders will NOT sell you an entire male without knowing you and why you want to breed.

The bottom line is you want to IMPROVE the breed - not just produce more cats. If you have no intentions on making that your goal, then you should not be breeding period. The best place to start is with a show quality altered cat - not a breeding cat. You need to study breeding and genetics and the breed. Persians have a lot of problems. Many of them need c-sections to deliver kittens.

Spay your mixed breed now. A female that is allowed to be in and out of heat over and over is prone to cancers and pyrometria (infection of the uterus). Both can kill your cat - spaying prevents a lot of cancers, especially pyro.
 

scamperfarms

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You said you cant afford to raise more than two? There are no guarentees you will only get 2 in a litter. Usually there are more.

Do not breed your Mixed cat. Please. If your seriously interested in breeding persians,go to a show talk to breeders in your area of Persians. There are lots of them.
 

bengalbabe

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Originally Posted by daeliur

We did consider neutering for her. It just doesn't feel right for her to never have kittens. She is almost 1 year old and we thought we should let her have a go once, and then neuter her.

It's this, and my fear of something happening during the surgery


I know we wouldn't get papers for her
And I can imagine that the profits may be non-existant... unfortunately, it's a necessity, we can't afford raising more than two
Well, two would be enough I guess..
Actually there are more risks associeated with not spaying her than with spaying her.

I dont understand what you were saying about it being a necessity...could you explain this further?

If you cant afford more than two, what will happen to her should she need a c-section (which is not uncommon with persians)? A c-section here costs about $1500.00 and that is not including any meds or follow ups or anything like that.
 

kluchetta

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Originally Posted by GoldenKitty45

I'll agree with you on finding a QUALITY persian if that's your chosen breed, but as far as breeding the mixed one, please reconsider. You don't know a thing about her background; breeders will NOT sell you an entire male without knowing you and why you want to breed.

The bottom line is you want to IMPROVE the breed - not just produce more cats. If you have no intentions on making that your goal, then you should not be breeding period. The best place to start is with a show quality altered cat - not a breeding cat. You need to study breeding and genetics and the breed. Persians have a lot of problems. Many of them need c-sections to deliver kittens.

Spay your mixed breed now. A female that is allowed to be in and out of heat over and over is prone to cancers and pyrometria (infection of the uterus). Both can kill your cat - spaying prevents a lot of cancers, especially pyro.
I know what you mean, but GoldenKitty is right. In PEOPLE, if you never have a baby, there are certain "statistical" risks of cancer, but in cats it's the opposite. They are better protected if they never have kittens.
 

booktigger

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Actually, females are at more risk of mammary, uterine and ovarian cancer if left unspayed and not allowed to breed, and also at risk of pyo - pyo affects them at a much younger age than cancer though, the average age for mammary cancer is 10, I have heard of under 2 year olds with pyo. Spaying takes away all these risks. Males left unneutered are at risk of testiclar and prostrate cancer.
 

yosemite

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Breeders don't make much money, in fact some even lose money - the reputable ones at least, so if you can't afford more than 2 cats, then it's highly unlikely you can afford to breed quality pedigree cats.

Please do not breed your domestic cat - it really isn't fair to her nor to all the cats and kittens waiting for a home at the local shelters.
 
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