So, you want to become a cat breeder? The answer is yes, anyone can become a cat breeder, but becoming a successful and responsible one takes dedication, knowledge, and a genuine love for cats. This comprehensive cat breeding guide is designed to walk you through every crucial step, from the initial decision-making process to cattery management and achieving cattery success.
Becoming a breeder isn’t just about producing cute kittens; it’s a commitment to preserving and improving specific breeds, ensuring the health and well-being of your cats, and contributing positively to the feline community. This guide will cover everything from breeding cats for beginners to the intricacies of pedigree cat breeding, ensuring you have the foundational knowledge for this rewarding endeavor.
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Is Cat Breeding Right for You?
Before diving headfirst into the world of raising purebred cats, it’s essential to honestly assess if this path aligns with your lifestyle, resources, and personal qualities. Breeding cats is a significant undertaking that demands time, financial investment, and a deep emotional commitment.
Personal Qualities for a Breeder
- Patience: Breeding involves waiting periods, unexpected challenges, and the need for careful observation.
- Dedication: Your cats will require constant attention, care, and a commitment to their well-being, day in and day out.
- Empathy: You need to be able to connect with and care for your cats and kittens, understanding their needs and emotions.
- Resilience: Not every breeding attempt will be successful, and you may face health issues or difficult decisions.
- Organizational Skills: Managing pedigrees, vet records, finances, and mating schedules requires meticulous organization.
- Continuous Learning: The world of animal husbandry, genetics, and health is always evolving.
Financial Considerations
Starting a cattery involves significant upfront and ongoing costs. Be prepared for:
- Acquisition of Quality Foundation Stock: Purchasing well-bred cats from reputable breeders is crucial.
- Veterinary Care: This includes routine check-ups, vaccinations, genetic testing, potential emergency care, spaying/neutering of non-breeding cats, and pregnancy-related costs.
- Food and Supplies: High-quality food, litter, toys, grooming supplies, and comfortable bedding are essential.
- Registration Fees: Registering your cats and litters with cat fancier organizations incurs fees.
- Show Expenses: If you plan to show your cats to evaluate them against cat show standards, there will be entry fees, travel, and grooming costs.
- Cattery Setup: Creating a safe, clean, and stimulating environment for your cats and kittens may require investments in specialized housing, carriers, and cleaning supplies.
Time Commitment
Breeding is not a part-time hobby. It requires:
- Daily Care: Feeding, cleaning, grooming, and spending quality time with your cats.
- Monitoring: Closely observing cats during heat cycles, mating, pregnancy, and kitten-raising.
- Kitten Care: Intensive care for newborns, including feeding, socialization, and monitoring their development.
- Sales and Placement: Screening potential buyers, communicating with them, and ensuring kittens go to suitable homes.
- Record Keeping: Maintaining accurate pedigrees, health records, and financial logs.
Choosing Your Breed
The first major decision is selecting the cat breed you wish to breed. This choice should be based on your personal preference, as well as your ability to acquire and care for the breed’s specific needs and traits.
Researching Breeds
Thorough research is paramount. Familiarize yourself with:
- Breed History and Standard: Every breed has a specific standard of appearance and temperament that breeders strive to uphold. Understanding cat show standards is vital if you plan to participate in shows.
- Temperament: Does the breed’s typical personality align with your lifestyle and the type of owner you envision for your kittens?
- Health Concerns: Some breeds are prone to specific genetic health issues. Knowing these will allow you to select healthy foundation stock and conduct appropriate testing.
- Grooming Needs: Some breeds require daily grooming, while others are low-maintenance.
- Availability of Quality Stock: Reputable breeders of your chosen breed can be hard to find.
Finding Foundation Cats
Acquiring your first breeding cats is a critical step.
- Reputable Breeders: Seek out established breeders who are knowledgeable, ethical, and prioritize the health and temperament of their cats. They should be willing to answer your questions and provide health clearances for their breeding stock.
- Health Clearances: Ensure that any cats you purchase have been tested for common genetic diseases and infectious illnesses relevant to their breed. This is a cornerstone of responsible cat breeding.
- Pedigree: A pedigree is a record of a cat’s ancestry, tracing back several generations. It’s essential for pedigree cat breeding and understanding potential genetic predispositions.
- Judging in Person: If possible, meet the parent cats of any kitten you are considering. Observe their temperament and physical condition.
The Science of Cat Breeding: Genetics and Health
Successful breeding relies heavily on a solid grasp of cat genetics and a proactive approach to health.
Grasping Cat Genetics
Genetics dictate everything from coat color and pattern to physical traits and susceptibility to certain diseases.
- Genes and Alleles: You’ll learn about dominant and recessive genes, and how they are passed from parents to offspring.
- Inheritance Patterns: Understanding how traits like coat color (e.g., black vs. orange, solid vs. tabby) or specific genetic conditions are inherited is key to making informed breeding decisions.
- Genetic Testing: Many breeds have specific genetic tests available to screen for inherited diseases. Conducting these tests on your breeding cats is a crucial part of responsible cat breeding.
- Avoiding Inbreeding: While linebreeding (breeding related cats carefully) can help solidify desirable traits, excessive inbreeding can lead to a higher incidence of genetic defects and weakened immune systems.
Health Protocols
Prioritizing the health of your breeding cats and kittens is non-negotiable.
- Veterinary Partnerships: Establish a strong relationship with a veterinarian experienced in feline reproduction and genetics.
- Routine Health Checks: All cats in your cattery should receive regular veterinary check-ups, vaccinations, and parasite control.
- Genetic Screening: Before breeding, ensure your cats are screened for breed-specific genetic diseases. This may include tests for:
- Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM) – common in Maine Coons, Ragdolls, Persians.
- Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD) – common in Persians.
- Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA) – can affect various breeds.
- Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) – seen in Maine Coons.
- Infectious Disease Testing: Test for Feline Leukemia Virus (FeLV) and Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV) before introducing new cats to your cattery or breeding. Also, screen for Feline Herpesvirus (FHV) and Feline Calicivirus (FCV).
- Nutritional Support: Provide high-quality, balanced nutrition suitable for all life stages, especially for pregnant and lactating queens.
- Reproductive Health: Monitor estrus cycles, understand optimal breeding times, and be aware of common reproductive issues.
The Breeding Process: From Mating to Kitten Care
This is where the theoretical knowledge meets practical application. Breeding cats for beginners can feel daunting, but breaking it down into stages makes it manageable.
Selecting a Mate
Choosing the right partner for your queen (female cat) is critical for improving the breed and ensuring healthy kittens.
- Complementary Traits: Aim to select a stud (male cat) whose strengths complement your queen’s. For example, if your queen has a slightly weak head type, choose a stud with excellent head conformation.
- Health and Temperament: Ensure the stud cat is healthy, has clear genetic testing, and possesses a good temperament.
- Pedigree Analysis: Examine the stud’s pedigree for potential genetic issues or undesirable traits that might be inherited.
- Reputable Stud Owners: Work with stud owners who are as committed to responsible breeding as you are.
Mating and Pregnancy
- Estrus Cycle: Learn to recognize the signs of a cat in heat (estrus). Queens typically cycle every 2-3 weeks during breeding season.
- Introductions: Introduce the queen to the stud’s territory (his home is often best) to reduce stress. Supervision is necessary.
- Gestation Period: Cat pregnancy, or gestation, lasts approximately 63-65 days.
- Pregnancy Care: Provide a quiet, stress-free environment for your pregnant queen. Ensure she has a high-quality diet rich in nutrients. Avoid unnecessary travel or stress.
- Veterinary Check-ups: Schedule a veterinary appointment to confirm pregnancy and monitor her health.
Birthing (Queening)
- Preparation: Set up a comfortable, private, and clean birthing box for your queen a week or two before her due date.
- Labor Signs: Watch for signs of labor, such as nesting behavior, restlessness, and loss of appetite.
- Assistance: Most cats deliver without assistance. However, be present to monitor the process and intervene only if absolutely necessary and you are confident in what you are doing. If there are complications (e.g., prolonged straining without a kitten, retained placenta), contact your veterinarian immediately.
Kitten Care and Socialization
This is a critical period for kitten care.
- Newborn Kittens: Kittens are born blind and deaf and rely entirely on their mother. Ensure they are warm, fed, and being nursed properly.
- First Weeks:
- Weighing: Weigh kittens daily to ensure they are gaining weight.
- Stimulation: The mother cat handles stimulation for urination and defecation.
- Environment: Keep the kittens and mother in a quiet, warm, and draft-free environment.
- Eyes Opening: Kittens’ eyes typically open around 7-10 days old.
- Weaning: Kittens begin to show interest in solid food around 3-4 weeks of age. Introduce a high-quality kitten food.
- Litter Training: Kittens instinctively know how to use a litter box, especially if their mother does. Place them in the box regularly.
- Socialization: This is arguably the most crucial aspect of kitten care for future pet owners. From 2-7 weeks, kittens are highly impressionable.
- Handling: Handle kittens daily, gently and positively.
- Exposure: Introduce them to various sights, sounds, and gentle human interaction.
- Play: Provide safe toys for play and exploration.
- Litter Box Training: Ensure they are consistently using the litter box.
Kitten Sales and Placement
- Age for Placement: Kittens should not leave their mother before they are at least 12 weeks old. This allows for proper socialization and development.
- Screening Buyers: Develop a thorough screening process for potential buyers. Ask questions about their lifestyle, home environment, and experience with cats.
- Contracts: Use a written sales contract that outlines the health guarantee, return policy, and any required veterinary care.
- Kitten Packs: Provide new owners with a “kitten pack” that includes a small amount of their current food, a favorite toy, a blanket that smells like home, and their pedigree and health records.
Cattery Management and Ethical Practices
Maintaining a well-managed and ethical cattery is fundamental to responsible cat breeding.
Establishing Your Cattery
- Cattery Name: Register a cattery name with a recognized cat fancier organization. This name will be part of your cats’ official pedigrees.
- Record Keeping: Meticulous record-keeping is essential. This includes:
- Pedigrees: For all breeding cats and kittens.
- Health Records: Vaccinations, deworming, vet visits, test results.
- Breeding Records: Mating dates, pregnancy outcomes, litter details.
- Sales Records: Buyer information, contracts, kitten details.
- Financial Records: All expenses and income related to the cattery.
Ethical Breeding Practices
- Health First: Never breed a cat with a known genetic defect or chronic illness. Prioritize the health and welfare of your cats above all else.
- Temperament: Breed for sound temperament. Aggressive or overly timid cats should not be used for breeding.
- Responsible Retirement: Develop a plan for retiring breeding cats. This may involve spaying/neutering them and finding them loving pet homes.
- Limit Litters: Avoid overbreeding queens. Allow them adequate recovery time between litters.
- No Kitten Mills: Never contribute to or support kitten mills. Focus on quality over quantity.
- Transparency: Be honest with potential buyers about the health, temperament, and lineage of your cats and kittens.
Cattery Environment
Your cattery management includes providing a safe, healthy, and stimulating environment.
- Hygiene: Strict sanitation protocols are vital to prevent the spread of diseases. Clean litter boxes daily, disinfect surfaces regularly, and wash your hands frequently.
- Space: Ensure cats have adequate space to move, play, and retreat. This includes comfortable sleeping areas, scratching posts, and climbing opportunities.
- Socialization Areas: Create areas where cats can interact and socialize safely.
- Quarantine: Always quarantine new cats for at least 30 days to ensure they are healthy before introducing them to your existing cattery.
Showing Your Cats
Participating in cat shows is an excellent way to evaluate your breeding program against cat show standards and network with other breeders.
What are Cat Show Standards?
Each breed association (e.g., CFA, TICA) publishes detailed breed standards that describe the ideal physical characteristics and temperament of a breed. Judges assess cats against these standards.
Preparing for Shows
- Grooming: Learn the specific grooming requirements for your breed.
- Handling: Acclimatize your cats to being handled by strangers and examined by judges.
- Carrier Training: Ensure cats are comfortable traveling in carriers.
- Nutrition: Maintain excellent health and condition through proper diet.
Show Etiquette
- Respect: Be respectful of other exhibitors, their cats, and the judges.
- Cleanliness: Keep your exhibit space clean and tidy.
- Honesty: Present your cats honestly.
Continuing Education and Community Involvement
The journey of a cat breeder is one of lifelong learning.
Staying Informed
- Breed Clubs: Join breed-specific clubs. These organizations often provide valuable resources, mentorship, and educational opportunities.
- Veterinary Conferences: Attend feline veterinary conferences if possible.
- Reading: Read books and articles on genetics, feline reproduction, health, and behavior.
- Mentorship: Seek guidance from experienced, ethical breeders.
Community and Networking
- Cat Fancier Organizations: Become a member of a national or international cat fancier organization. This provides a framework for registering cats, showing, and adhering to breed standards.
- Ethical Associations: Align yourself with breeders who share your commitment to ethics and welfare.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q1: How long does it take to become a reputable cat breeder?
Becoming a reputable breeder is a continuous process, but you can start with a solid foundation within a few years. This involves acquiring quality cats, educating yourself extensively on genetics and health, and gaining practical experience through mentorship and observation.
Q2: Can I breed cats without registering them?
While you can physically breed cats without registering them, it’s not recommended for serious pedigree cat breeding. Registration with a recognized cat fancier organization is essential for proving lineage and participating in shows, which are crucial for evaluating breeding stock against cat show standards.
Q3: What are the most common challenges for new breeders?
New breeders often face challenges such as unexpected health issues, difficulties with conception or pregnancy, finding suitable homes for kittens, and managing the emotional toll of difficult breeding decisions.
Q4: How many cats are too many for a hobby breeder?
This depends on your resources, time, and ability to provide excellent care for each cat. A responsible hobby breeder typically focuses on a limited number of cats of one or two breeds to ensure they can give each cat individual attention and maintain a high standard of care. Cattery management is key here.
Q5: What is the most important aspect of responsible cat breeding?
The most important aspect is prioritizing the health, welfare, and temperament of the cats above all else. This includes thorough health screening, genetic testing, proper kitten care, and ethical decision-making throughout the breeding process.
Becoming a cat breeder is a significant commitment, but with dedication to responsible cat breeding, a passion for your chosen breed, and a commitment to continuous learning, you can achieve success and contribute positively to the feline world. This cat breeding guide has hopefully provided you with the essential knowledge to embark on this rewarding journey of raising purebred cats.