Conference misery::feline

Oh, I just can't resist.  However, I shall do so in great moderation (being
one of the moderators, I gotta)..

>>Do any of you know of an unaltered male?  They seem to be very hard to 
>>come by (although one wouldn't think so considering all of the 
>>unwanted cats in shelters).

The majority of the readership of this conference feels that the keeping
if unaltered pets is not responsible pet ownership.  Those who breed would
rarely, if ever, consider offering stud service to anyone who is not also
a responsible breeder.  The reason there are so many unwanted cats in
shelters is because pets are not altered.

Unaltered males smell to high heaven.  They do not make good pets, on average,
because of their 'habits'.

I really doubt that your friend will find a paramour for the kitty.  If all
those people already lined up to take the kittens were to take kittens
arriving daily at shelters, we could help the problem and not add to it.

Whew, I feel much better now.....

Mary, who's now placing her moderator's hat squarely on her head...

Uh oh!  Please people, be nice!!  The base noter knows not what she says!

Holly

    Mary, I agree with everything you say; but, please, remember that
    neither the views expressed nor the need are mine.  I consider myself a
    responsible cat owner (though on the defensive right now) who has four
    spayed females, three of which are foundlings.
    
    I shall share your reply with my friend.
    
    Sunni
    
    P.S. I'm glad you're feeling better and that you didn't let me feel the
    full blast of your wrath--I might just have had to hang my head in
    shame and go home and hide under the bed for a while!

Sunni,

You know how it is....you get up on the wrong side of the cat and it sets
the tone for your whole day!!  And please don't be defensive--just sock me
with the spray bottle and I'll go hide under the bed for a couple hours!!

We're all pretty much of the same thoughtwave on this, so let's just lick
each others ears and be friends....

I think the real reason there aren't any whole boy pets out there is that
they do smell to high heaven.  When my Biff came into his manhood (he was
neutered, but only one part showed up for duty), it was awful.  The smell
was unbelievable and he sprayed everything he could get his butt near--
and things he couldn't get near, he sprayed from a distance!  UGH!!  I
couldn't wait to have him neutered again--although he wasn't too pleased!

Just a thought......since a breeder is likely to be the only one with a
whole boy, has your friend thought about what traits she likes and contacting
a breeder of such traits?  You know, blue eyes, long fur, brown ears.....
Designer kittens!!!

Mary

    Thanks for your note, Mary.  I'm all for licking ears and being
    friends.  Don't really want to go and hide under my bed--am working on
    an 18" dustball there.
    
    I know how badly toms smell, a neighbor's insists on spraying under my
    back porch, on my cow dung bag of all places.  And I picked it up und
    got the stuff all over the front of me, urgh!  I was not pleased.
    
    I shall pass your suggestion on to my friend.
    
    No_hard_feelings_Sunni

    Sunni,
    
    It sounds as if your friend does not have a purebred female, and wants
    another "garden variety" mate to breed her to.
    
    This is going to sound awful to some, but if she really, really wants
    to breed those kittens and has her heart set on it (I know how
    difficult it is to change a mind -- I've been there!!), why doesn't she
    just open the window when the cat is in full blown heat.  Sooner or
    later, she'll have her pick of toms to do the deed.
    
    I agree with Mary.... if she would just realize how many kittens are
    brought to shelters on a daily basis... she could send the people she
    has lined up to adopt one of those homeless kittens.  A friend of mine
    just took a mother cat and her three babies (one died --
    heartbreaking!) to a shelter because no one wanted them.  We split the
    $50 cost the shelter required to begin their care.  This is nothing
    compared to what your friend will have to pay to care for her litter,
    especially if complications arise.
    
    -Roberta

    As a shelter worker...I'm thrilled to see that it is hard finding
    a whole  male!!!   All we need to do now is work on the feral/stray 
    population which is very overwhelming!    
    
    Sandy

You know, Roberta's got a point.....when the girl goes into heat, EVERY
tomcat with the appropriate equipment will show up!!  My Meggie (a pregnant
stray I took in) went into heat shortly after she had kittens and I swear
a busload of boys showed up at my doorstep wanting her favours.  They
sang songs and did the boogie woogie all night long......

    I think you would be doing your friend a bigger favor by helping her
    understand why this breeding idea isn't a good one.  There are other 
    reasons, aside from the obvious overpopulation ones:
    
    By leaving her female intact, your friend is increasing her cat's risk 
    of cancer later on in her life.  She is also risking a potentially life
    threatening uterine infection called Pyometra.
    
    Jo

    Well, on another note....maybe your friend would consider spaying her
    girl and then going to a shelter and picking up a nice neutered boy to
    keep her company!  Smiles all around!  :-)   My neutered Cyrano and my
    spayed Zuzu are totally in love with each other, and though they are
    chaste, that doesn't dim their passion for holding each other all nite
    long and grooming each other.
    
    Love can exist without sex...  :-)
    
    Nancy

    And taking a chance that the male cat (Tom) that shows up
    at her door, that she decides to use may (definitely will not!)
    not be healthy and as well cared for as her cat, and may
    pass on to her cat and/or the kittens some kind of illness, 
    including but not limited to: Felv, distemper, rabies (gasp!),
    fleas, earmites.........
    
    There are plenty of kittens in the shelters, (not to mention being
    dumped on the street, or in fields) that need homes.  Plan a party
    where all the "kitten-takers" make a trip to a local shelter, including
    your friend, and once they see the # of unwanted cat & kittens, she
    might change her mind!
    
    Lynne

    I'M PUTTING THIS AD IN FOR MY CAT (CLOEY).  CLOEY IS A 
    HIMILAYEN/ANGORA CAT WHO WOULD VERY MUCH LIKE TO HAVE KITTENS,
    BUT IS BEING VERY PICKY ABOUT WITH WHO.  SHE IS NOT LOOKING FOR
    A SHOW QUALITY CAT, BUT WOULD LIKE HIM TO BE WHAT SHE IS. IF
    THERE IS ANYONE OUT THERE THAT WOULD BE INTERESTED IN BREEDING
    THEIR CAT WITH MINE, YOU CAN SEND ME MAIL ON MCIS5::KERA
    ANY REPLY OR IF YOU KNOW OF ANYONE WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED.
    
    CLOEY IS AN INDOOR CAT. SHE IS GRAY WITH BEAUTIFUL COPPER
    EYES, SHE HAS SOME TAN MARKS ON HER BACK FROM HER FATHER WHO
    IS A TAN ANGORA, SHE IS PETITE IN SIZE AND HAS A GREAT DISPOSITION.
    
    THANKS,
    DONNA KERA
    
    
    
    

    All I will say is that I hope if you breed her you have homes lined up
    for her kittens beforehand, or plan to keep them all yourself if no
    homes are found.
    
    You would be much better off having her spayed, as cats do not want or
    need the kittens... their owners do.
    

    
    re: .1  Roe, I could not have said it better myself...
    
    
    

    Ah, God, I hate to see notes like that one.....
    
    All you have to do is spend one nite at the humane society where I
    volunteer....look into the sad, confused eys of 50 furry faces, 
    some of them who have been there three and four years, to know 
    the tragedy ... what results when people ignorantly, and sometimes
    selfishly, breed their non-pedigree animals so their kids (or they
    themselves) can witness the "miracle of birth."  
    
    I'd like them all to be there when countless kittens are euthanized,
    because no homes can be found for them.
    
    To the person who wants to breed her sort-of himalayan....don't mean
    to get down on your personally, but just remember this...  even if you
    DO have homes for the kittens you intend to produce, for every home
    that one of them takes, there is a cat or kitten sitting in a shelter
    NOW who will not get that home.  Why make more kittens when there are
    FAR too many now that can't find homes.
    
    Nancy

    As stated in .14, people, please be nice.  She knows not what she says. 
    We CAN educate her, though!
    
    Holly