Siberian cats (or Maine Coon)

[TransformX]

Alexandra and I want a kitten.
The bad news are that apparently breeders want ~500 USD for a kitten (shipping not included) and 1000 USD for a breeder kitten.
One site specificly pointed out that "normal" (non breeder kittens) are shipped already 'altered'

Does anyone knows how to get a nice little true siberian fertile kitten or a nice Maine Coon (seems like a relative as it shares most attributes) for a reasonable price ?
We don't look forward making profits out of our kitten but we'd love sharing our love of cats with our cat loving friends.

[Admiral]

We don't look forward making profits out of our kitten but we'd love sharing our love of cats with our cat loving friends.

Then why look for breed and not go to your local shelter and pick a normal one ?
Easyer on the pocket and you also do a good deed.

[az]

If you plan to let your cat leave the house, get it neutered, please!

Also, why not just buy a "normal", race-less kitten? Why buy in the first place? Get one from an animal shelter!

AZ

[Fat Tone]

Speaking from experience, cats are children substitutes. We had two cats, now we also have two kids and the cats can't be trusted, so they aren't allowed beyond the kitchen.

Have your kids, then let the kids have cats when they are old enough.

T.

[KvHagedorn]

What do you mean can't be trusted? Do they tear up the house in a jealous rage?

btw, I think Rakido keeps Maine Coon cats. They are a nice breed.. big, pretty, and friendly.. but I agree on the animal shelter bit, or going through the grapevine to find whose cat might have had kittens to adopt. There are a lot of kittens and adult cats out there who would love to have a home, and most are as bright and friendly as one you would spend money on.

Tony is right, though.. if you guys want a kitten, you really want a baby, but might be a bit afraid to admit it.

[Fat Tone]

There is the flea issue: No matter how hard we tried, treatments, sprays (and we all know how much cats like that - I have several scars to prove it), powders etc, the only way we could avoid getting bites in the house was to break the cycle and then keep the cats out.

Sometimes they manage to sneek in. Never content with just sitting quietly in the lounge they will then try their hardest to get upstairs unseen. Once there, they feel free to piss in the master bathroom (unfortunately not using the facilities but instead the carpet). Another favourite is to sneak upstairs during the day, then launch themselves into the babies cot at about 2am. Fortunately this results in loud complaints rather than suffocation, and has only happened 2 or 3 times.


It's partly our fault though. When we first had them (and no kids) they had free run of the house. We didn't have much choice due to the layout of the house though. One would often sleep curled up partly on Wifey's head. I'm pretty sure they also had free run of the house they were in before going to the shelter we got them from.

Don't get me wrong, I like cats. Perhaps a well trained house cat would make a better pet than our two.

[TransformX]

Let me take it step by step:

1. We currently live with my parents and have here 6 stray cats (most we raised since they were kittens) and a dog. (edit: thinking about it, we once had as many as 10 cats at the same time. We are a friggin shelter !)

2. As a child I grew up with cats and dogs. My niece grows with a (rather stupid) cat and no problems there as well.

3. I don't need to go to a shelter, there are tons outside.

4. Why Siberian / Main Coon ? First, they're 3-5 times as big as Israeli stray cats. Secondly, they are more hypo-allergic than normal cats. 80% of the people allergic to cats aren't affected by them. Third, they don't need too much treatment and don't leave as much hair all around during the whole year as typical Israeli cats.

5. Our dog did come from a shelter

6. Siberian and Main Coons have water proof coat and are friendlier than small cats. They're much better with children than the average stray cat.

7. Why breed ? Because most people I know would love having one and it could be a great first step between owning something "cool" to becoming a true cat lover for many people.

8. We'd ideally want a female and let have have a litter before being neutered.

edits: typos

[TransformX]

Originally posted by KvHagedorn

Tony is right, though.. if you guys want a kitten, you really want a baby, but might be a bit afraid to admit it.

We do want a baby and actually plan starting to work on it pretty soon.
It doens't change the fact I adore cats and I want a new "special" kitten.

Most people have a mythological ex. I have a mythological cat. I want/need a new fur-ball.

[Drizzt]

TX, search for an Ocelot. It's a wonderful cat!
(I'll buy one when I'll go live by myself)

[KvHagedorn]

Whoa there, Drizzt.. Ocelots are not tame housecats. They can be gentle, loving friends 99% of the time, but then there is that 1% where they get startled out of their domestic bliss and revert to wildness, perhaps scratching an eye out or destroying other stuff. They will never be really tame. To anyone who desires a wild cat as a pet, if you are not ready for an unusual commitment which might go beyond the dedication needed for a good marriage or parent/child relationship, do not go further. You will be doing both yourself and the cat a great disservice.

By the way, the right wild cat properly managed can be a better, less dangerous pet than many big dogs, which is to say many big dogs should not be kept as pets either.

About Ocelots.. they are endangered. I doubt you could find one here in the states, much less in Italy. There was one spotted not far from where I live, but the bitch that saw it had the cops come out and shoot it. Sometimes I REALLY hate people.

[Drizzt]

Originally posted by KvHagedorn
Whoa there, Drizzt.. Ocelots are not tame housecats. They can be gentle, loving friends 99% of the time, but then there is that 1% where they get startled out of their domestic bliss and revert to wildness, perhaps scratching an eye out or destroying other stuff. They will never be really tame. To anyone who desires a wild cat as a pet, if you are not ready for an unusual commitment which might go beyond the dedication needed for a good marriage or parent/child relationship, do not go further. You will be doing both yourself and the cat a great disservice.

By the way, the right wild cat properly managed can be a better, less dangerous pet than many big dogs, which is to say many big dogs should not be kept as pets either.

Uhmmm...
I've learned from long time experience with animals that an animal is an animal. A pet is an animal with the wrong name, as any animal can be a pet and still any pet is an animal.
If you call him pet, only thing you obtain is to call him pet. But, still an animal.

[TransformX]

To understand why someone would want a Siberian / Norwegian forest / Main Coon cat, read this, this and this.

[KvHagedorn]

Originally posted by Drizzt
Uhmmm...
I've learned from long time experience with animals that an animal is an animal. A pet is an animal with the wrong name, as any animal can be a pet and still any pet is an animal.
If you call him pet, only thing you obtain is to call him pet. But, still an animal.

That might be true in theory, but wild cats take a certain type of person to make them a pet. It's a lot more than just calling it a pet.. and that cat bonds to one owner only. If you had read as much as I have on the personal experiences of people who do this, you would understand. There was this woman who kept two cougars in her house. She went into details about how the house had to be all tile floors because they urinate where they stand.. there's no house-training them. To let them outside is not an option for her.. they would jump over any fence and she can't afford to roof in her yard. She cannot have shelves in the house.. the cats would try to jump up and perch on them (and they weigh 100 pounds each) She says the male is a sweetheart but the female has an attitude. What's worse, she got fat and had to be put on a diet. YOU try and tell a big cat that they need to not eat.. the cat would camp out in front of the refrigerator and bite her owner on the butt (hard enough to bruise) if she didn't get fed. Then there is the vacation and job problem.. they don't like being left alone, and strangers are not usually welcome. This woman could not leave her house.. the cats would get lonely and tear the place to shreds (it happened once, as she relates.)

[TransformX]

Seems like she's a prisoner in her own house.
It isn't too smart to raise a wild animal, especially a wild animal which happens to be bigger/stronger than you. Even worse is raising a wild animal in a place which happens to be the size a hundredth of his natural teritory.

[Drizzt]

I have a few friends who keep Ocelot as "pets" on their boat.
We are not speaking about cougars, lions and such, an Ocelot tipycal wheight is between 500g and 1kg and no more than a meter long.
I s'pose that my 60kg dog is a bit more difficult to handle...