so frustrated ... decided to retire one of my queens

[rhythmicgoldfish]

my queen Leia just had her second litter. the first time around she had a difficult pregnancy she did not handle labor very well and gave birth to two kittens one very healthy and one that died by the end of the day. this time around she had a healthy pregnancy delivered four kittens all over 100g without any problems but one died unexpectedly after just over a day and one other who has been struggling probably wont make it through the night the other two are however healthy and have been putting on weight. i gave her this second chance because she did an incredible job fostering kittens from my other queen who had delivered 9 kittens and the problems with her first pregnancy may not have been her fault but now out of two pregnancies she has lost half her kittens so i think her career is done, time to find a nice family for her to love

so heartbroken to have lost two kittens this week

[The Divine Miss M]

Question: Is it customary for cat breeders to rehome their retirees?

I know I'm not a breeder, but I find it difficult to imagine rehoming any of my babies after they've been with me so long. I understand in a case of what's best for the animal, say an aggressive animal that needs an owner better suited to managing it's behavior or a bullied animal that needs to be separated from a bully, but just because I'm no longer going to get babies? It's not a judgement. I'm just very, very curious.

[rhythmicgoldfish]

Originally Posted by The Divine Miss M

Question: Is it customary for cat breeders to rehome their retirees?

I know I'm not a breeder, but I find it difficult to imagine rehoming any of my babies after they've been with me so long. I understand in a case of what's best for the animal, say an aggressive animal that needs an owner better suited to managing it's behavior or a bullied animal that needs to be separated from a bully, but just because I'm no longer going to get babies? It's not a judgement. I'm just very, very curious.

yes it is ... every breeder i know has a few retired cats that they have kept but in order to move forward and keep a diverse gene pool you need to bring in new lines and retire others ... Leia has lost 50% of her kittens she is an excellent mother but not a good fit for my or any other breeding program and i will probably retire her with someone who buys one of the two surviving kittens she is only two years old and will have a long happy life with someone else but i only have room in my home for 4 cats. if i had a truly close bond with her nothing in the world would separate us but the fact if despite being a friendly good girl she has not pair bonded with anyone in the household and I'm sure that she would be very happy going to a new home with one of her children

[Kobster]

....sounds like she would be better off in a new home.

[doodlebug]

This sort of thing is the reason that breeding purebred cats (properly) is an expensive hobby and not a money making business. It's also one of the reasons that purebred cats are so expensive (alluding to the next thread down in the forum). It's something every breeder has to deal with...

[The Divine Miss M]

Good to know. I think I'll stick with my little DSH babies.

[SomeRandomChick]

Originally Posted by The Divine Miss M

Question: Is it customary for cat breeders to rehome their retirees?

I know I'm not a breeder, but I find it difficult to imagine rehoming any of my babies after they've been with me so long. I understand in a case of what's best for the animal, say an aggressive animal that needs an owner better suited to managing it's behavior or a bullied animal that needs to be separated from a bully, but just because I'm no longer going to get babies? It's not a judgement. I'm just very, very curious.

It is very normal for breeders to retire breeding and rehome cats, and it can be a wonderful way for an owner to get a purebred - lower cost, usually they're pretty young, and usually the cat you'd end up with is very good example of the breed standard, obviously why they are used to breed from in the first place. Because most breeders will retire a cat and replace it with another breeding cat, and because this is usually done within the first 2-4 years of a cats life, not rehoming breeding cats would mean the breeders would end up with tons of cats in the space of a few years. Personally, I think there is absolutely nothing wrong with it, and I think most often it's in the cat's best interest. The homes they go to generally have less kitties than the cattery, and so they can get a lot more one on one time.

In any case, breeders sell cats all the time - I personally can't imagine parting with a kitten that I've helped raise from birth, but breeders do it all the time, and I'm sure they get used to it. The breeder I got CeCe from has kept a few of her retirees - but those are the ones that are really bonded to one or more humans in the home, so they have an attachment and it wouldn't benefit the cat to be rehomed - if, however, a breeding cat is more independent, or they think the cat would do better in a quiet home, or a home with no cats, then they will rehome them when retired. Again, I think it's honestly in the best interest of the cat - I know if I was a cat I would much rather be in a loving, devoted pet home with maybe a couple other cats, than in a cattery with multiple cats of all ages, and, by necessity, with humans that don't have as much time for me. I'm not saying breeders neglect their cats, of course, but due to usually having quite a few adults and often one or more litters of kittens, it just follows that they would have less time for any one cat than the typical pet home would.

My breeder has also retired a female recently who was 1.5 years old - because her first litter was troublesome, required surgery, and produced only one surviving kitten. I don't think spaying and rehoming that cat was at all motivated by financial reasons - she genuinely felt that future breedings would possibly be too hard on the cat, and that being so young, she would do very well moving to a new home - and becoming someone's spoiled pet, rather than having to "work" for her keep.

They can't possibly keep every cat they work with - they'd shortly be out of breeding and have a ton of pets.

Just my 2 cents.

[The Divine Miss M]

I get all that so no judgement. I'm not a breeder so I'm in no place to judge the logistics. I am however a pet owner, and personally will not be choosing to financially support such practices and will just stick to shelter and oops DSH babies or like my current two dumps.

[rhythmicgoldfish]

Originally Posted by SomeRandomChick

It is very normal for breeders to retire breeding and rehome cats, and it can be a wonderful way for an owner to get a purebred - lower cost, usually they're pretty young, and usually the cat you'd end up with is very good example of the breed standard, obviously why they are used to breed from in the first place. Because most breeders will retire a cat and replace it with another breeding cat, and because this is usually done within the first 2-4 years of a cats life, not rehoming breeding cats would mean the breeders would end up with tons of cats in the space of a few years. Personally, I think there is absolutely nothing wrong with it, and I think most often it's in the cat's best interest. The homes they go to generally have less kitties than the cattery, and so they can get a lot more one on one time.

In any case, breeders sell cats all the time - I personally can't imagine parting with a kitten that I've helped raise from birth, but breeders do it all the time, and I'm sure they get used to it. The breeder I got CeCe from has kept a few of her retirees - but those are the ones that are really bonded to one or more humans in the home, so they have an attachment and it wouldn't benefit the cat to be rehomed - if, however, a breeding cat is more independent, or they think the cat would do better in a quiet home, or a home with no cats, then they will rehome them when retired. Again, I think it's honestly in the best interest of the cat - I know if I was a cat I would much rather be in a loving, devoted pet home with maybe a couple other cats, than in a cattery with multiple cats of all ages, and, by necessity, with humans that don't have as much time for me. I'm not saying breeders neglect their cats, of course, but due to usually having quite a few adults and often one or more litters of kittens, it just follows that they would have less time for any one cat than the typical pet home would.

My breeder has also retired a female recently who was 1.5 years old - because her first litter was troublesome, required surgery, and produced only one surviving kitten. I don't think spaying and rehoming that cat was at all motivated by financial reasons - she genuinely felt that future breedings would possibly be too hard on the cat, and that being so young, she would do very well moving to a new home - and becoming someone's spoiled pet, rather than having to "work" for her keep.

They can't possibly keep every cat they work with - they'd shortly be out of breeding and have a ton of pets.

Just my 2 cents.

this is very well put thank you for your response ... also i think that some people should remember that this is a breeding forum and thus breeders will post here ... apparently mostly just me

[spotty cats]

So sorry you lost kittens, I've only lost one and it hurts like ****.

I would be getting them autopsied to find out the cause.