Neonatal isoerythrolysis (NI) is a strange disease because it goes against everything we are to believe about a mother caring for her offspring. Did nature screw up completely or is something happening which has created this dire state of affairs? … Continue reading →
The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences has done a study into hereditary hip dysplasia in Maine Coon cats. They concluded that the size of the cat is a major contributing factor in cats developing hip dysplasia. They also said that … Continue reading →
The San Antonio Express-News has a letter from a visitor which discusses a kitten living in Houston with her owner who had an extremely small stub of a tail. The kitten had trouble controlling her urinary flow. The kitten was … Continue reading →
Genetic testing is a growing market. It is used to assess inherited diseases and the likelihood of a dog (or cat) developing a specific disease in the future. Livescience.com reports the disturbing case of a 13-year-old pug, Petunia, who had … Continue reading →
Hybrid vigor (vigour) is also called heterosis. When you introduce fresh genes into a breeding program the offspring may benefit from hybrid vigor. The offspring are healthier and sometimes larger.
Continue reading →From the standpoint of inheritable diseases the Maine Coon is healthier than the flat-faced Persian. Both are popular breeds. I believe this is worth knowing because most purebred cat adopters consider the health of the cat important. You are in … Continue reading →
People might hate me for writing this. It is deliberately irreverent. Purebred cats are riddled with genetic disease; the longer established they are the greater the number of diseases. They aren’t even the real thing – we made them up. … Continue reading →
Is the new cat breed, the Lykoi Cat bizarre or beautiful? Just when I thought that there couldn’t be any new cat breeds making the scene to tickle my fancy, I nearly fell off my chair when I discovered that … Continue reading →
I don’t think you can generalize and say that cat breeds are less healthy than the rest of the cats. There is, though, a feeling that inbreeding, a part of creating cat breeds, leads to less healthy animals because inbreeding … Continue reading →
Despite its esteemed position as one of the world’s most recognisable and popular purebred cats, the Siamese is arguably the most sick of all the cat breeds, indeed of any other cat. The title is deliberately provocative but the statement … Continue reading →
