Studying Traditional Persian Cats And Getting Confused!
by Rudolph.A.Furtado
(Mumbai)
Queen cat "Matahari" and her kitten"Matata" (25-1-2010)
Persian cat Matahari is 2 1/2 years old and is pictured with her 10 month old kitten Matata. Matahari was mated to a normal white coloured Traditional (Doll-Faced) Persian cat and the resultant offspring were all white coloured except Matata who turned coffee coloured brown and has the beautiful perfect configuration of the "Show cat Persian".
The only difference is that he is not "Flat-Faced". The "Traditional Persian cat" is no longer recognised as a seperate breed by "Cat Fanciers"..
Rudolph talking about his Persian cats
Recently, a month ago I was under the impression that there was inbreeding with kitten Matata having mated with Matahari, since Matahari's behaviour had changed abruptly.
Matahari began to consume more food and also became lethargic and I even mentioned the same in a previous blog in Pictures of Cats.
Just 3 days ago Matahari suddenly came into heat again, purring and rolling on the ground but refusing her kitten Matata to approach her for mating, something strange as I thought that cats in heat would mate with any male cat.
Matata at 10 months of age was mortally afraid to approach Matahari when in heat, otherwise they normally play around the house, chasing each other and happy together.
What's the reason for Matahari rejecting Matata in heat? Is Matata too young at 10 months of age for mating? Another strange behavior of queen cat Matahari is that she urinates on the bed when in heat, the only instance that she indulges in this outrageous behaviour.
What's the reason for this strange misbehaviour when in heat? At present I am delighted that Queen cat Matahari did not get herself pregnant, but, would this also effect the future mating behaviour between Matahari and her kitten Matata?
Hi Rudolph... Firstly, it is great to see you! That is the power of video and it makes a big difference. Thanks for making and embedding the video.
It is also nice to see your gorgeous Persian cats in a video. For us in Europe and for people in Amercia Mumbai is a long way away, a different world. I would like you to make a video about the domestic cats of Mumbai and the feral cats of Mumbai! Please :).
OK I will try and answer your questions but I am not a breeder and this are cat breeder questions so if a breeder visits it would be nice to hear from you. Finn we need you!
What's the reason for Matahari rejecting Matata in heat?
Perhaps Matada is staying clear of Matahari because she is in heat and smells and behaves differently and females can be aggressive and territorial during estrous.
Rejecting Matada may simply be a question of choice. In the wild females wild cats exercise a bit of discretion as to male partners. Perhaps this is a case of selection by her of her partner. However, I think it is more likely to be an initial rejection followed by an acceptance - all part of the mating ritual. I know that female cats accept pretty much any male cat. The males have to fight for the female. Matada is sexually mature as I understand it as males are sexually mature at 5–7 months.
What's the reason for this strange misbehaviour (urinating on the bed) when in heat?
I think this is Matahari attracting males by spraying, thereby giving the signal that she is in heat as her urine will smell slightly different and a male cat will recognise it as the smell of a female cat in heat and come calling. This is normal behavior as I understand it.
Hope this helps a bit..I moved your submission to the Pictures of Persian Cats page.
Associated pages:
Studying Traditional Persian Cats And Getting Confused! to Persian Cats
