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Our Kitten Agreement

Have a read and let me know if you have any questions! I've spent hours on this, and it's a really important part of our program.Rosie xx...

Grooming, handling, socialisation

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Backyard vs Reputable Breeding - There's a difference

Okay, I know I bang on about this. Why though? Surely it doesn't matter that much? How many of you reading this have a dog or a cat, or want to get one (or more) in the future? Do you ever think about where it's come from? When I saw this graphic posted somewhere... there was a comment that said "but you can't do this if you're rescuing". Let me explain. Where do rescues come from? They exist because of BYB and kitten/puppy mills. Why? Because a BYB doesn't take responsibility for the offsp...

2021 Line Up

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Feline herpesvirus field guide

I wrote this paper as part of my vet tech academic study.  We will always evolve to follow current evidence-based practice.  Many of the principles in this guide are transferable to FCV and other feline infections. ...

Let's talk about the cost of a kitten

Our kittens are $3000 each. This is based on things quantified by a dollar value, AND other factors that are hard to put an exact value on. - Vet work > kittens come desexed ($140-200 depending on gender), vaccinated x 2-3 times ($90) microchipped ($25), worming (2 tabs x $11 and they are wormed every fortnight from 2 weeks old) they all come with a physical health record. This doesn’t include routine vet work of all adult breeding cats (routine = vaccinations, dentals, pregnancy stuff). -...

Nico's difficult birth and some more rambling about reputable breeding

Welcome to the worldThe C-Litter It wasn't a smooth ride this time around. Nico required some extra help after secondary uterine inertia. She had two on her own... then everything stopped. So after some oxytocin only partially got things moving, and she had two more... it stopped progressing again, and she required a c-section to deliver the last little one. One of the babies took a long time to start spontaneously breathing on it's own. Nico had a rough wake up. We were tired but we kept going...

Imagine this type of world...

Here's a hypothetical for you... To all the rescuers and foster carers, I love what you do, I have been involved in rescue before, and I will do in the future too. But before you jump down my throat, just have a read.... Imagine a world where shelters and pounds didn't exist. Except only to temporarily hold a lost dog or cat until their owners were found via their microchip. Imagine if they never lost their chip, or we found a way to easily, non-invasively link their DNA or paw print to their i...

Colour Genetics

I’m still learning and evolving, so please be kind if I haven’t got everything just right. I welcome any comments/opinions as long as they’re KIND 😊 So this is still a whole new world for me. I’ve been reading up on this since I chose Henley the day he was born, and he is now just over 2 years old. That’s a decent chunk of time and research, and I feel like I’ve only just begun to understand the tip of the iceberg. It’s pretty overwhelming and complex. We also did a little on Me...

Henley x Nico

Don't you love how Henley looks constantly perplexed 😅🤣 I would be too if it was my first time in the sack with a strange woman who spoke a different language 💃 I wonder if Henley can understand Nico's Danish accent 🤔 Only 6 days post arrival and in true Nico style, she's kicked into a full heat 🥵 This girl is bomb proof and just takes everything in her stride! However, It seems Nico is a silent caller, apart from a few quiet vocalisations... nothing! And her mama is that way too!...

Breeding... in general

Pedigree Dogs Exposed: Three Years On...

Polydactyly Papers

Here are a couple of recent papers that I've found on polydactyly characteristics and heterogeneity in maine coons.  The first two papers are published in J FELINE MED SURG and have impact factors in the 3rd quartile for veterinary sciences.  The third paper is older and not specific to maine coons, "Polydactyly in the earliest known tetrapod limbs" - so it's historic. This paper is published in the journal NATURE, which is a very well renowned veterinary source. NATURE ...

DNA Profile - Henley

Polydactyl Henley is heterozygous for polydactyl (Hw/N), which means approximately 50% of his kids will also possess the polydactyl trait and also pass this trait on. The following shows the 3 variants for the polydactyl allele which is dominant over non-polydactyl: Hw/Hw = Homozygous for polydactyl, every single baby produced will possess the polydactyl trait, and in turn past this trait downHw/N = Heterozygous for polydactyl, carries both poly & non-poly alleles, and 50% chance of kittens poss...

Polydactyly

What on earth is a polydactyly cat? I am going to add to this later.... but for now... have a read of these articles if you're interested. Observations of Feline Polydactyly, Curtis & King 2007Polydactyl Cats, Hartwell, 2001-2010Twisty Cats - The Ethics of Breeding For Deformity, Hartwell, 1999-2012...

The Enigmatic History of the Maine Coon

I've always been fascinated in where things come from. So let me share the mysterious history of the magnificent Maine Coon.  There doesn't seem to be any official record of where or why they came to be.  From what I've read, the Maine Coon is classed as a "natural" breed. This means that they were born and found in their natural habitat from a "landrace", then domesticated, and then developed into a formal breed which is then recognised by a feline association.  Landrace is a tec...

#RAWVOLUTION Part 2

So I ended my earlier post around the 5 month mark of Kuro's raw transition.  I was feeling lost and overwhelmed and frustrated. I had a lot of questions.  Do I prepare a fully 80-10-5-5 diet from scratch? Can I get a mix that's pre-prepared and safe for him to eat? Does that even exist here? Is it nutritionally correct? What if i buy it and he hates it? How do I prepare it correctly? Does it have to be frozen for a certain amount of time to kill the ...

#RAWVOLUTION Part1

Kuro, our beloved MC x Ragdoll pet and recently self-appointed CEO of Maynetree, would like me to tell you about his journey into his transition of a completely raw diet.  Kuro is 3 years old (2019) and was addicted to dry kibble and Royal Canin pouch/wet food.  This transition has been about 7 months so far. The first hurdle was taking away the kibble. We went through several months of Kuro-rage and salty glares when we took away the all-you-can-eat-24/7-buffet. A lot of crying and ho...

Some really important rambling, guys

Disclaimer notes: 1 .These blog posts will likely be developed and added to over time as I learn more information. 2. While some breeding "secrets" are kept as unwritten law, the general concept of what I write here is freely available to find if you look in the right places. The feline associations (Australian/American/European) are a good place to start. The PawPeds website also has some interesting information (not always/strictly scientific though).3. Some really rea...