Seeking mentor -- cattery questions

[AlmostNakedPups]

As many of you already know, I breed champion line AKC Chinese Cresteds (those adorable hairless pups) and I'm a big fan of pretty much any critter without hair. After having Neffie-Berry for only a few days now, my boyfriend, children, and I have all decided we'd like to expand our dog breeding to include a Sphynx cattery, too.

I NEVER take this kind of thing lightly. I have a lot of research to do and studying to complete before I'll even consider opening our doors. In an attempt to get started out right from day one I am seeking an established reputable Sphynx breeder to be my mentor.

I have a LOT of questions. I am a very fast learner, but I want to know everything, so ideally this person will be patient and thorough. I may ask about your own policies as well as the details of the breed, too. I do not care for snooty attitudes and uppity people, so please be down to Earth and honest.

If anyone is willing to be my mentor I would greatly appreciate it. My Chinese Crested mentor retired many years ago, but while she was still in the business I sent a LOT of clients her way as a thank-you for all her hard work and dedication to making me a good breeder. I'd like to do the same to whoever takes me on.

 

[Mews2much]

Let me ask some breeders I know that live up that way.
My next step is breeding.
You need to start with a show alter.
That is what I am am doing.
It is different then dog breeding.
Most breeders will not sell cats with breeding rights until you learn alot and prove you can be trusted.
I want a naked dog.

 

[Sleepyheadkitten]

Annnd...

Kittens are typically much harder to raise then puppies- at least when we are talking about the initial 6-8 weeks. They are very fragile and you lose them easily. I've heard more then one cat breeder, who was originally a dog breeder, say they never expected it to be this hard.

 

[Sleepyheadkitten]

Good luck though- I didn't mean to sound like a downer I had great luck my first few years and only recently have run into the harder side of things. But I had 10 years experience with neonatal kittens as a rescuer, so I did my time with them- and learned the hard way like we all do.

I would think having Cresteds, since they are probably more delicate then the normal puppy at birth, that you probably have a good leg up on some things you'll need to learn

 

[AlmostNakedPups]

Oh, yes. The Cresties are super delicate at birth and for about 4-5 weeks after. I sleep on the floor next to the whelping box for the last week of pregnancy and stay there until the babies are about 2 weeks old. The nursery is attached to my master bathroom so we can hear every peep, squeak, and baby howl. It takes me all of 10 seconds to go from my bedroom to the nursery, and I'm up every hour to check everyone anyway, lol. I'm a doting worry wart, but our Mamas always appreciate the extra hands and attention. One of my Mamas won't leave the box for more than a moment to go potty, so I hand feed and water her so she doesn't have to get up. They are our lives!

Yes, I know kittens are super delicate and take a different kind of care, so I'm eager to get in touch with a breeder and start learning ASAP. I am NOT interested in showing though, so I will not be going that route. I don't care for the politics and back-stabbing. MY goal is healthy, well-socialized Sphynx kitties--I really don't care about the other people and their hang ups, lol.

Mews2much, what do you mean by "show alter"? And naked pups are the BEST! We love them all so much. Really unique little guys. And each one is different than all the others. Once you get a Crestie, you'll want more. . . kind of like owning a Sphynx! lol

 

[Mews2much]

When you start with sphynxs the breeders do not want to sell you whole cats.
They want you to start with altered cats first.

 

[AlmostNakedPups]

When you start with sphynxs the breeders do not want to sell you whole cats.
They want you to start with altered cats first.

I thought that's what you meant, but figured I should ask just in case. Most dog breeders are this way as well. I have an airtight contract I require which states very clearly the dogs are to be altered no later than 6 months of age. I will not release the papers until I get vet confirmation of the surgery and I will sue and/or repossess a dog if there is breach of contract.

 

[EmbraceMonChat]

Well the difference here is that a lot of serious Sphynx breeder/exhibitors will alter the cat prior to sending it to you. There will be nothing to breech.

If you want access to the long time breeders, and their cats, you will need to submit to doing it their way. They want you to show one of their cats in the alter division. If you get titles on it...or if you don't but you are out there putting forth the effort, they will know you are serious and then they'll think about getting you started with whole cats for breeding. It's the way they do things. If you tell them you absolutely have no intention to show, those people will not work with you no matter how caring or consciencious you are. It's just how it works.

You can find people willing to sell you intact cats but be very careful they aren't the bottom feeders willing to sell anything for a dollar. You probably won't find the best cats this way and sometimes not the healthiest either...but then again there are show people who skate past health factors too. Sad but true.

 

[Mews2much]

I was t.old to start with alters and yes I have been offered whole cats from bad breeders and turned them down.
Any breed that offers you a whole cat right now I would not trust

 

[Bella07]

Also be sure to check the Mentor Programs available if you haven't already:
CFA Mentor Program
Mentor Program
Good Luck in finding someone!

 

[ckutkuhn7]

You have received great advice here as usual. Goodluck in your search!!

 

[MissMySphynxBoys]

You have received great advice here as usual. Goodluck in your search!!

Couldn't have said it better.

Good luck AlmostNakedPups.

 

[dreaming_in_colour]

Good luck AlmostNakedPups! There are a lot of good resources here to help or point you in the right direction.

I don't know if I could ever be a breeder but I really would like to show some day.

 

[susi794]

I think you would be able to purchase registered cats with breeding rights from Russia--they have some absolutely GORGEOUS cats and it is not that difficult to import them. If I were in the market for some, I would try them. First educate yourself on the standards for the breed, have someone willing to look at the kits you are looking at and go from there. Even if you don't intend to show, go to one that has sphynx entries and listen to what the judges are looking for. Great way to meet and greet breeders that might be willing to work with you too.

 

[Sleepyheadkitten]

I was told by a little birdy, however, that Russian breeders don't usually bloodtype their cats and you can end up with a heartful of ache and a lot of money lost due to this one simple issue.

I DO like a lot of their cats that I have seen though- oh, to be rich

 

[Jinxlover]

I was told by a little birdy, however, that Russian breeders don't usually bloodtype their cats and you can end up with a heartful of ache and a lot of money lost due to this one simple issue.

I DO like a lot of their cats that I have seen though- oh, to be rich

I have heard people talk about bloodtyping before can some one tell me what it is and why people would do it and why it would cause heartache? No one bloodtypes dog before they breed them??? Thanks

 

[Sleepyheadkitten]

Bloodtype issues come up when you breed two bloodtypes together. How do I explain it?

Okay, say you have a Mama with an A blood type and you breed her to a male with a type B blood. She has the babies, everything looks okay, and then one by one, your babies fade and die off.

What's going on is when they nurse- they are absorbing proteins from their Mother's milk. These proteins contain the immunity that keeps them healthy those first few weeks. They pass through the wall of the gut, which at this point in time, has larger openings to allow thse proteins to pass, and the baby's immune system says, "Hey! These are bad for me! Attack, attack!"

Uh- yeah, so the baby's immune system attacks itself and the kitten dies. Why? Because the kitten had the father's blood type and can't accept the mother's. Kinda like rH factor in humans...

 

[Jinxlover]

Bloodtype issues come up when you breed two bloodtypes together. How do I explain it?

Okay, say you have a Mama with an A blood type and you breed her to a male with a type B blood. She has the babies, everything looks okay, and then one by one, your babies fade and die off.

What's going on is when they nurse- they are absorbing proteins from their Mother's milk. These proteins contain the immunity that keeps them healthy those first few weeks. They pass through the wall of the gut, which at this point in time, has larger openings to allow thse proteins to pass, and the baby's immune system says, "Hey! These are bad for me! Attack, attack!"

Uh- yeah, so the baby's immune system attacks itself and the kitten dies. Why? Because the kitten had the father's blood type and can't accept the mother's. Kinda like rH factor in humans...

Thank you.. I understand now..
Is that only with cats? Even hairy ones? I have never heard of it tell I got on here.

 

[Bella07]

Yes it is with all cats ranging from Domestic Cats all the way up to Exotic Shorthairs!
This website is fantastic---I love it. It is easy to understand, and has taught me so much about Blood Groups---I'll pass it along. The Breeds Chart and the Blood Typing Kittens are interesting reads in this article too!

BLOOD GROUPS IN CATS

 

[Sleepyheadkitten]

But with some breeds, it is more of a problem then with others... And you can pull the kittens and handfeed them for 72 hours and return them to Momma and supposedly, they will be fine- but most new breeders don't realize this and lose litter after litter and then spay the Momma. BUT the trick there would be to pet out the kittens with the less common blood type, I would think, if you knew you were breeding kittens that might carry for B type.

 

[holly_savage]

Thanks for this great info, I have filed it away in my favorites section for later use. And thanks for asking Shannon as I was wondering the same thing. I knew it to be similar to the Rh factor with humans, just didn't know all the nitty gritty details!
Yay I learned something new today...

 

[Jinxlover]

Yay I learned something new today...

WooHoo me too

 

[MissMySphynxBoys]

Thanks for bringing up the important and sometimes overlooked issue of blood type. It's good to be aware of.

 

[firehillqueen]

Invaluable information here. I will be sure to blood type my cats before I make the decision to bred. I had no idea about the blood typing. I will take this information to heart. I won't make any decision on breeding until I do some showing first. Again, I am already concerned that just because I have unaltered cats doesn't mean they should be bred. I will see how I feel about that after we do some showing.

 

[klreese]

i fully support your drive to produce new naked babies many members have gave great advice. you stated, however, that you've only had your cat a short amount of time, i would suggest taking a little time and not necessarily jumping into this so quickly. But of course, time will come while you mentor. Hopefully you can find some great mentors! i would suggest maybe keeping in touch with more then 1 person- so you can get 2nd opinions on things.

We have an english bulldog, we show and are planning to bred. we are part of a few local bulldogs groups and have become great friends with many bulldoggers. they've helped us SO much with understanding the breed.

I would also suggest going a local group and as one pp stated, showing your cat. I'm sure you know, from showing you animal, you learn so much more about the bred (not to mention how fun it is!)

Good luck!! and Thank you for wanting to supply all us naked-kitty lovers with more love-bugs!