My cat is in heat and I'm going to have to do "something" about it.....

[bettyellen]

it's been a few months, but oh my, here she goes again.
i know i know, i ought to and will spay, but i paid the darn rescue to do it, but they didn't and now i'm thinking i want kittens, so sue me.
she's 100% indoor, and a gorgeous purebred Cornish Rex, and i could easily gift out a litter before i get her done. that is, if, i could find a reasonable stud. and, i'm going to work on that.
i'll figure it out by the spring, but in the meantime, i'm grabbing the q-tip and going for it.
yikes, this is weird, but man, she is a howling. i feel so bad for her right now.

[superconnected]

1. are you going to keep all of the kittens, are you going to get them

spayed? What's your plan?

I ask because of the news artical posted here a week ago where 80 thousand animals were euthanized in 5 houston shelters in the last 5 years.

Kittens are wonderful, but they are also a potentional for thousands more cats to come out of and many of those, euthanized.

So sue me, I'm against bringing animals into the world if you don't plan on caring for them yourself...

[RebelOne]

2. I agree. Are you going to raise the kittens and find them

good homes? It is very difficult to find homes for kittens, no matter what their lineage. Expect to be flamed by other responsible pet owners on this forum.

[bettyellen]

6. yes, thay are all but spoken for now, due to the hypoallergenic nature

and the fact that my very allergic friends have played with her, and not reacted at all, and fallen in love.
they are a god send to those of us with allergies, and my two best friends have allergic kids or mates.
they are pretty rare cats, usually costing 500- 600 each. i got them from a rescue, but i don't want to sell the kittens.
so, i'd only let her get pregnant if i could find a Crex daddy. but , like i said 4-5 would already be spoken for, with people who couldn't/ wouldn't take other cats.
i have rescued dozens of cats from the streets over the years and found them good homes, this would be a piece of cake compared to that. got massive flea bite scars to prove it, unfortunately.

[tencats]

10. No! There are no hypoallergenic cat breeds.

http://www.cat-world.com.au/Hypoallergenic.htm

People who are allergic to cats have a reaction to the cat's saliva and dander (dead skin cells). However, typical allergic symptoms do not result from direct contact with your pet. Instead, when the cat grooms itself by licking its fur, it deposits saliva, which dries leaving behind the protein antigen and loosens dead skin cells. These allergens (saliva and dander) are very lightweight and are easily airborne. Once in the air, the antigens spread throughout the home and cause a living hell for those humans with cat allergies.

[bettyellen]

11. Sweet Pea causes no reaction at all with my friends son, her husband

my other friends husband, or myself. i usually get welt if a cat licks me, as does my friend.
Sweet Pea likes to lick my arms, his arms or face, nothng happens.
So, yes she is. at least to the people who matter here!
Breeders will not guarantee that this is the case, of course, but it is so with Sweet Pea. I can bury my face in her belly and nothing happens. It's remarkable. :shrug: but it is a trait of the breed, to have this tendency. My other Rex, same story. There must be something (bad) missing from their saliva, because it's harmless.

[Lorien]

19. Actually, it's recently been discovered that there is one:

http://www.siberian-cat-breeder.com/

The Siberian has a genetic defect that won't allow it to produce the protein antigen that causes the histamine reaction, so most people who are allergic to cats can own a Siberian (despite the fact that it has very long fur).

[bettyellen]

5. my two best friends begging for 3 of them. because they are very hypo-

allergenic, and they have allergic spouses/kids and can't afford a Crex. and i can relate to that because that's why i chose them, i'm allergic. took me six months to find em on Petfinder. i figured i would have to give up one or two to the daddy in lieu of a stud fee- because i don't have the cash for that. the rescuer kind of screwed me over by not fixing her and keeping my money. i don't have the 300$ to fix her now at the moment, they are not always good with anesthesia, and need extra tests done and monitoring, so it costs more.
they are pretty rare cats, usually costing 500- 600 each. i got them from a rescue, but i don't want to sell them. i'd find them homes with allergic people like me, and make sure they are fixed first too. i'd only let her get pregnant if i could find a Crex daddy. but , like i said 4-5 would already be spoken for, with people who couldn't/ wouldn't take other cats.
i have rescued dozens of cats from the streets over the years and found them homes, this would be a piece of cake compared to that.

[bettyellen]

9. i have two friends begging for three, i would have to pay the stud owner

a cat or two, and i'd keep one if there were any left for sure.
the deal is, all these people (like me) can't have regular cats because the Crex are hypoallergenic. well, except maybe the hypothetical stud person, who i'm sure doesn't want another kind of cat.
just so you know, every cat i ever had was a rescue, and i've placed a good dozen kittens from my yard. i have also spayed/ neutered at least 6 ferals from the same yard. some asshole poisoned them ALL last year, so in addition, i dealt with their poor dead bodies, i know how bad is out there. but these would be very wanted. in the meantime. i can't spare the 300$ for the spaying. and she's up again and hollering. yikes. i gotta do what i gotta do. :shrug:

[IndyOp]

3. Your local humane society/rescue has moms & kittens that need fosters

- right now, I bet. If not, they will in a few weeks from now and then a few weeks later and then a few weeks after that. You can have an unending succession of mom's with kitties, all of whom will need homes, all of whom were born because someone did not spay their female.

I am not telling you what to do with your cat - just commenting that there is more than one way to have the experience of having kitties in your home... Ways that are part of the solution, instead of, well...

:(

[bettyellen]

8. well these would go only to homes that can't take a regular kitty because

of allergies. mostly because i sympathize with the allergic, because i am myself.
my friend has been looking on Petfinder for a Crex, and they seem to be mostly down south and out west for some reason. mine were from down south.
i have spayed/ neutered half a dozen ferals in my yard, and adopted out more than a dozen kittens, so i know the drill, trust me.
it's just through a freak occurence she is not spayed, and that i don't have the 300$ right now, and my allergic friends are in love with her.
they usually cost 600$, so it would be the only way my friend could get her son a cat, so it's tempting, you know? hey, i had a hard time reconciling the fact that i wanted a purebreed, but i couldn't stand being on allegy medicine for another 15 years, so i found one (well, two).
oh god, when she wakes up, i'm going to have to do the deed. x(

[japple]

4. If you want kittens, maybe you should get her spayed and get

a kitty as a playmate for her. If you really want another Rex kitten, you could probably find one thru Petfinder or Pet Smart.

[bettyellen]

7. she has a (fixed) playmate from petfinder....

and the reason i'm considering it is at least 3 would be spoken for to homes that can't take regular cats. my best friends both married allergic men, Sweet Pea can lick on them all day, and nothing, so they are very into it. i just don't have the 300$ to spay right now. and the low cost options don't work because they are anesthesia sensitive. i gotta pay extra for tests/ monitoring/ etc.

[japple]

12. Well it sounds like you have all the answers. N/T

[oregonjen]

14. And having kittens cost nothing?

No vet bills? You aren't going to take care of them when they are born? What if your cat needs an emergency c-section? What if a newborn kitten has problems and needs vet care? All that adds up. Shots, routine care, it's not free you know.

Edited to add: If you can't afford the $300 spay, you can't afford having kittens.

[bettyellen]

21. wow, way to make false negative assumptions....

as i said, money is tight, but i could pay for a spay, or breed the cat. i'm thinking about both options.
not asking for your approval, or to listen to your false assumptons.

[oregonjen]

22. What false assumptions?

You wrote in post #9 that you can't afford the $300 spay fee. So, what false assumptions? Look, from the tone of your answers, you knew all along that you wanted to breed the cat. You sounded like you wanted help and people asked you honest questions. Mine were honest too. Breeding is not cheap. Once the cat in pregnant, there may be complications, or not. You don't know for sure. Sure, the future kittens may all be spoken for, but is the money there to care for them properly once the cat is pregnant and then gives birth? That was my point, all because in post #9 you plainly stated you don't have the funds.

:shrug:

On edit: post #5 and 7 also state that you don't have enough funds and my original reply was to post #7.

[bettyellen]

23. that i would have kittens and not make sure they are taken care of

properly, or take care of their mom too. that's a crappy and incorrect assumption.
listen, never mind, reading that stuff about thta person letting the cats out to practice breed has clued me in there are a lot of idiots out there. sorry you confused me for one of them, and not the caring responsible person i am.
the prospective parents offered long ago to pay for all the the vet stuff anyway. that's kind of understandable, since they would be getting a cat that usually costs $600 for free. i have the money for the spay, so that's not a big issue right now. whether i could handle this periodic yowling until i move downstairs is. i wouldn't breed her till i'm in the new place, bacause i wouldn't want to move her when she's knocked up.

[oregonjen]

24. You are very confusing

"I have the money for the spay, so that's not a big issue right now"

Not having the money for a spay was the basis of your dilema. Now you do. I'm glad you do and best wishes to you and your cat.
By the way, I'm not making crappy and incorrect assumptions. When you post threads on DU, including myself, it is basically a free-for-all. I don't know you and vice-versa. When you post several times that you don't have money, then you come back defensively with replies that say you do, it's confusing for the readers of your post. My frustration was from the fact that if you don't have money, why take on the financial responsibility of taking care of kittens. I didn't call you names, I just didn't understand if you didn't have money, why procreate. It doesn't make sense to me to bring little kittens into the world, by choice and then be strapped for money to care for them before they were old enough to go to homes.

I wish you well and hope that you make a decision that is comfortable for you.



:hi:

[bettyellen]

25. hey, lifes confusing...

i took a major financial hit around the holiday due to my moms health, didn't have an extra 300$ to throw around for something not really urgent. because i like to have some in the bank for emergencies. and i'm a little pissed at the rescue person because i paid her to get them both fixed, and she didn't, and won't pay me back.
in the meantime we realized that not one of my friends is allegic to my cat, in the least, and they fell in love with her. so we started talking about it, and i put aside the neutering forr now, to think/ read r/esearch breeding her. the only thing i didn't anticipate at all was this incessant yowling. who knew? we had feral gals at one of my jobs for a short while and they never sounded like this. it's bizarre, she is really very loud. so that stinks. no worries, i'll do right by her.
:hi:

[demnan]

13. I would contact a breeding group

and find out if you do decide to breed your cat, what you are getting into. Also these people can help responsibly find the Tom if you choose to do this. I got Lily from a lady who tried to breed Abbyssinians. Her mother was a beauty of an Abby cat but refused to breed with the Tom she bought stud services for. One night to allow the cat to learn "how" she let her go out while she was in season. Lily and her sisters were the result. She kept one of the sisters and gave two away. My friend learned that it is a lot harder to breed throughbred cats than you might think, so I would certainly get some advice from some experts before venturing forth with this plan. My friend ended up getting the cats spayed - by then there was another cat, not a purebred girl, in the house with a litter that looked like "the boy next door". My irresponsible friend went through hell for these ambitions and the cats peed and shit and had fleas everywhere, she didn't get one purebred Abby for all her trouble.

Also, please don't let her go out to learn how! Cause cats learn fast!

[IndyOp]

15. She let her out to LEARN HOW ?

That is about the stupidest thing I've heard since *'s last speech.

:wow:

[demnan]

16. Yeah, it was pretty stupid!

Actually Cleo, Lily's mother was in a cage with the Stud for two weeks and didn't let him come near her. I think she thought Cleo would "learn" how from the neighbor cat, a handsome medium-haired brown tabby.

The way my Lily growls at her younger brothers I know she inherited not only her good lucks, but her indomitable spirit from her mother.

Lily growling from on high at her youngest brother who is on the bed:

[IndyOp]

17. Lily is a *lovely* cat -

you are lucky that the woman decided to let her mom out to "learn how" - :hi:

[demnan]

18. I fell in love with Lily before I even met her

Sally said when she came into work that two kittens had been born but Cleo's stomach was still very big (I would have never let a queen of mine give birth alone) I kept going by her desk in the office and saying, "meow, meow, meow". When she came in the next day another beautiful healthy kitten had been born. She named them Pansy, Petal and Lily. The stories of the rambunchus Lily prevailed over the next few weeks. My dear Lily was always the favorite, the clown and the beauty of the litter. But there were no pictures because she was so adventurous, the pictures were of a momma cat looking out with two kittens around her. She was looking out at Lily.

Well I came and got my Lily when she was 8 weeks old and she came to live with me, Lucifer and Shadow, my cats, my parents and a brother with his lab-spaniel mix dog, Niki. She weighed barely a pound but she had the entire household, including Niki, under her complete control within days of her arrival. She played leap frog with the cats and momma brace with the dog.

So now we've gone full circle and she is the oldest of the three cats and the youngest is an orange tabby cat. She still holds her own and won't compromise with the younger cats (gives them great big growls).

So that is Lily's story.

[bettyellen]

20. oh wow, what a weird story. of course i would never let her out

she's indoor and staying that way. it's too dangerous around here.