# Tentatively exploring options



## Astarael (Feb 20, 2013)

Hi guys! I'm tentatively (potentially) looking at cats that would be a good fit for my cat, Mia. When I moved out of my room mate's, she seemed very sad that her buddy Mary Jane was gone. I'm currently watching Mary Jane for my ex-room mate (also my cousin, fyi!!) while she is getting ready for a move from Texas to Colorado.

Mia is a pretty high energy cat, loves to play "rough", and her favorite playmate was a rough and tumble dog my room mate had. So she likes to play rough and Mary Jane and her seem to be a good fit.

In the course of looking for cats, looking at rescues and even checking out breeders.

I have a particular affection for color pointed animals, and have found myself looking at ragdolls, siamese cats, etc etc. 


Anyways, my question being, is it ethically/morally okay to adopt out retired breeders? Coming from a different pet community, it's definitely not an okay thing to do with their breeders but they have substantially shorter lives (pet rats). 

Is that a red flag for a breeder to adopt out "retired" breeders? I would prefer one of those but it certainly makes me question the breeder themselves, but I'm just only beginning in the "cat community", if that makes sense!!


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## KittehLove (Feb 7, 2014)

Is your Mia a tortie? I'm assuming so because of your avatar. My Naminè is, and her daughter is a point kitty... (Not purebred, of course) And honestly, she gets along way better with my Deja, who is solid black. Moiraine seems to be too high strung, and actually gets on her nerves because they can never agree on a time to play. 

For instance, Nommy will try to engage her, but then she will walk off uninterestedly. Later in the day, Moiraine will ambush her and then chase her around the house until her tail is so poofy it looks like a rabbits tail (she has a short tail), Naminè screams, and I split them up.

Nommy is also strange because she is not tolerant of other cats. She's gotten waaaay better since she's been spayed though. Shes my wild baby. When I would get on to her for being naughty she would take her scolding like a champ and then scurry under the bed and hiss at the other cats and hit them twice on the head. No more, no less. Hahaha

Of course all cats personalities are different, I'm sure, but that's my experience with Torties and points.


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## Speechie (Dec 2, 2013)

I don't think it is a red flag that a breeder adopts out older cats that are done breeding, usually by age 4, I think. In my limited chats with a very experienced ragdol breeder, they don't usually adopt retired breeders to a home with other cats. For some reason, most breeders around here want their retired cats to go to be only cats, they fix them first and are VERY picky about who gets them...


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## Astarael (Feb 20, 2013)

KittehLove said:


> Is your Mia a tortie? I'm assuming so because of your avatar. My Naminè is, and her daughter is a point kitty... (Not purebred, of course) And honestly, she gets along way better with my Deja, who is solid black. Moiraine seems to be too high strung, and actually gets on her nerves because they can never agree on a time to play.
> 
> For instance, Nommy will try to engage her, but then she will walk off uninterestedly. Later in the day, Moiraine will ambush her and then chase her around the house until her tail is so poofy it looks like a rabbits tail (she has a short tail), Naminè screams, and I split them up.
> 
> ...


Mia can be very rambunctious! My reasoning was that these cats are likely more experienced living in large groups and might be easier for her to get along with. She's becoming very attached to her buddy MJ, and I even saw them actively engaging in play today which was not one sided (which it can be sometiemes because of Mia's energy, hah). Also, I don't think bringing in a kitten will be good for her, plus kittens are a little too crazy for me, as much as I love cute little kittens!




> I don't think it is a red flag that a breeder adopts out older cats that are done breeding, usually by age 4, I think. In my limited chats with a very experienced ragdol breeder, they don't usually adopt retired breeders to a home with other cats. For some reason, most breeders around here want their retired cats to go to be only cats, they fix them first and are VERY picky about who gets them...


I wasn't sure whether or not it could have been. IME (Which is limited to pet rats) adopting out retired breeders is a red flag/looked down upon because they are considered forever pets (Their lifespan is 2-3 years at best), and not just breeders, if that makes sense! I figured it could be a totally different morale here. 

Not sure why some one would want them to go to single-cat only homes if they are not aggressive with other cats, can some one explain it to me? I'm not challenging the belief, I'm honestly just curious. 

Obviously I'm looking at shelters/rescues in the area but this came up in conversation.


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## Speechie (Dec 2, 2013)

I don't know why, I am new to talking with breeders. I wonder if it has to do with males not being fixed for years? Would they be more likely to be territorial? Not sure.


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## librarychick (May 25, 2008)

It could be a region thing, or a thing particular a specific breeder.

I'd suggest you look up a few catteries in your area and ask. In your case an adult cat could be a great addition, the breeder should know their cats and their personalities very well, so they could possibly have a great match for your girl.

You would need to be willing and able to do a full intro, since you're talking two adult cats. Check out Little big cat for info on good intros.


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## Astarael (Feb 20, 2013)

Speechie said:


> I don't know why, I am new to talking with breeders. I wonder if it has to do with males not being fixed for years? Would they be more likely to be territorial? Not sure.


Good question! I mean it seems a little biased to me if they're doing it on the basis of "You only have enough love/attention for one cat", but thats absolutely their choice since its their cat. 



> It could be a region thing, or a thing particular a specific breeder.
> 
> I'd suggest you look up a few catteries in your area and ask. In your case an adult cat could be a great addition, the breeder should know their cats and their personalities very well, so they could possibly have a great match for your girl.
> 
> You would need to be willing and able to do a full intro, since you're talking two adult cats. Check out Little big cat for info on good intros.


Since I won't have vacancy since April, I figure it might be best to wait until then, right? I'm definitely not ruling out rescues, too, so thanks for the info!

Also thanks for the intro link, I'll have to be more strict with introductions. Thanks for all the help


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## librarychick (May 25, 2008)

Actually, not necessarily. If you're looking into a retired cat from a great breeder you should start looking now because they may want to put you through an application process, have you come meet the cat/s, get to know you, ect.

I'd say, start looking now, but be up front about your timeline. That way you'll have plenty of time to figure out if the breeder you're talking to is doing the right things


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## kwarendorf (Oct 12, 2009)

Franny, on the right in my avatar, was adopted from a breeder at age 3. This particular breeder, from whom I also got Franklin as a baby, only breeds her females 3 times. After that she adopts them out. When I picked Franklin up Franny had just had her third litter. It took Franny no time to adjust to Franklin. It took her months to adjust to me. Now, 5 years later, she is a velcro cat.

The question I have is about retired male breeders. Do the have a longer (re)productive timeframe? I wonder if they may not be as adoptable because they are kept to them selves and may not be as well socialized as the females?

Kyle


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## Boristhecat (Jul 13, 2013)

One of my cats, Hef, is a retired stud. We got him from the same breeder that we got our other (desexed male) cat, Boris, from. In fact Hef is Boris's grandfather! I don't think breeders adopting out their retirees is a red flag at all. It's not really practical for them to keep every cat they've bred from. Good breeders only breed females a few times and males are generally retired by 6 years old.

Like you, I was interested in a retiree because my first cat was a bit crazy and likes to play quite roughly, so I was worried about him accidentally hurting a kitten. Getting Hef was the best decision I've ever made. They became friends incredibly quickly, largely due to Hef's perfect manners when it comes to meeting other kitties! He was really well socialised and knew just how to win Boris over. Now they are best friends and are always together - they play together, sleep together, and groom each other.

Hef was desexed at age 6, which is when we adopted him, and he isn't at all territorial. I've been told that if males are desexed after this age, they tend to still act like toms.

I think adopting a retiree is a great thing to do. They have worked hard and deserve a relaxing forever home when their breeding life is over.


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## catloverami (Jul 5, 2010)

_Kwarrendorf_, re retired male breeders.....yes they usually have a longer productive time frame mine were retired around 5 yrs. old, if they produced typey, healthy kittens with outgoing personalities. It also depends on how the breeder manages the stud.....if it's a large cattery, a stud may spend most of its time in a cage. Over 18 yrs. of breeding/showing as a small home breeder I definitely could not keep all my cats and often it was difficult to let them go. I kept one stud at a time, and had a maximum of 4-5 females,he was not caged unless I didn't want him to breed a certain female. The stud often baby sat the kittens and played with them after weaning, he was walked outside on a leash around the property, and was allowed house freedom as long as he didn't spray. Otherwise, he had a room of his own with a view of a bird feeder and lots of sunny windows, in a part of the house where people walked through, so he wasn't shut away in a windowless basement from people coming thro the house. All my studs that were retired went to homes, and integrated very well into them as they were well socialized, and had gentle outgoing personalities, and as _Boristhecat_ commented they also had excellent social skills with other cats.


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