miane coon

Our Maine Coon boy died very suddenly in January just under 5 years
old the cause was found to be cardiomyopathy We where not aware of any
problems with the breed until it was too late. Thanks to lots of info
on the internet.

We are not really prepared to take the chance with another Maine Coon
it would be to heart breaking if it happened again
although we are not ready for another cat we have talked about
Norwegians and Siberians is anybody aware of any problems with these
breeds ?

On 18 Feb 2004 10:56:31 -0800, (den) wrote:

Our Maine Coon boy died very suddenly in January just under 5 years
old the cause was found to be cardiomyopathy We where not aware of any
problems with the breed until it was too late. Thanks to lots of info
on the internet.

We are not really prepared to take the chance with another Maine Coon
it would be to heart breaking if it happened again
although we are not ready for another cat we have talked about
Norwegians and Siberians is anybody aware of any problems with these
breeds ?

If you are still interested in Maine Coons, talk to breeders
about whether or not they do echocardiograms with color doppler.
Responsible Maine Coon breeders do this yearly on breeding cats, and
will be glad to talk about it with you and show you the test results.
They also test for feline hip dysplasia and luxating patellas.




Orchid
See Orchid's Kitties! -- http://nik.ascendancy.net/bengalpage
Want a Purebred Cat? Read This! -- http://nik.ascendancy.net/orchid

Orchid wrote:

On 18 Feb 2004 10:56:31 -0800, (den) wrote:

Our Maine Coon boy died very suddenly in January just under 5 years
old the cause was found to be cardiomyopathy We where not aware of any
problems with the breed until it was too late. Thanks to lots of info
on the internet.

We are not really prepared to take the chance with another Maine Coon
it would be to heart breaking if it happened again
although we are not ready for another cat we have talked about
Norwegians and Siberians is anybody aware of any problems with these
breeds ?

If you are still interested in Maine Coons, talk to breeders
about whether or not they do echocardiograms with color doppler.
Responsible Maine Coon breeders do this yearly on breeding cats, and
will be glad to talk about it with you and show you the test results.
They also test for feline hip dysplasia and luxating patellas.

As I noted in another thread, breeders of Maine Coon cats have a database in
which they enter screening info for individual cats regarding test results for
HCM and hip dysplasia. I've also seen one for Norwegian Forest Cats. Of course,
any cat can develop HCM and even if you choose a kitten which has no hcm in its
pedigree that's not a guarantee it will never have HCM, but you can find out
whether there is a genetic propensity. I don't know about Siberians but yes,
occasionally the inherited kind of HCM shows up in Norwegian Forest Cats. It
does not seem to be so common as with Maine Coons, but that may be because
Maine Coons have been the breed researchers have studied most to track
inheritable HCM.

Orchid wrote:

On 18 Feb 2004 10:56:31 -0800, (den) wrote:

Our Maine Coon boy died very suddenly in January just under 5 years
old the cause was found to be cardiomyopathy We where not aware of any
problems with the breed until it was too late. Thanks to lots of info
on the internet.

We are not really prepared to take the chance with another Maine Coon
it would be to heart breaking if it happened again
although we are not ready for another cat we have talked about
Norwegians and Siberians is anybody aware of any problems with these
breeds ?

If you are still interested in Maine Coons, talk to breeders
about whether or not they do echocardiograms with color doppler.
Responsible Maine Coon breeders do this yearly on breeding cats, and
will be glad to talk about it with you and show you the test results.
They also test for feline hip dysplasia and luxating patellas.

As I noted in another thread, breeders of Maine Coon cats have a database in
which they enter screening info for individual cats regarding test results for
HCM and hip dysplasia. I've also seen one for Norwegian Forest Cats. Of course,
any cat can develop HCM and even if you choose a kitten which has no hcm in its
pedigree that's not a guarantee it will never have HCM, but you can find out
whether there is a genetic propensity. I don't know about Siberians but yes,
occasionally the inherited kind of HCM shows up in Norwegian Forest Cats. It
does not seem to be so common as with Maine Coons, but that may be because
Maine Coons have been the breed researchers have studied most to track
inheritable HCM.

On 18 Feb 2004 10:56:31 -0800, (den) wrote:

Our Maine Coon boy died very suddenly in January just under 5 years
old the cause was found to be cardiomyopathy We where not aware of any
problems with the breed until it was too late. Thanks to lots of info
on the internet.

We are not really prepared to take the chance with another Maine Coon
it would be to heart breaking if it happened again
although we are not ready for another cat we have talked about
Norwegians and Siberians is anybody aware of any problems with these
breeds ?

If you are still interested in Maine Coons, talk to breeders
about whether or not they do echocardiograms with color doppler.
Responsible Maine Coon breeders do this yearly on breeding cats, and
will be glad to talk about it with you and show you the test results.
They also test for feline hip dysplasia and luxating patellas.




Orchid
See Orchid's Kitties! -- http://nik.ascendancy.net/bengalpage
Want a Purebred Cat? Read This! -- http://nik.ascendancy.net/orchid

"den" wrote in message
om...
Our Maine Coon boy died very suddenly in January just under 5 years
old the cause was found to be cardiomyopathy We where not aware of
any
problems with the breed until it was too late. Thanks to lots of
info
on the internet.

We are not really prepared to take the chance with another Maine
Coon
it would be to heart breaking if it happened again
although we are not ready for another cat we have talked about
Norwegians and Siberians is anybody aware of any problems with these
breeds ?

If you want to avoid getting your heart broken by the early death of
your cat, why not forget about "pure bred" cats and adopt one of the
lovely long-haired (etc.) cats currently in your local no-kill
shelters or on death row at your local SPCA? Get a young adult that
has been in a no-kill shelter for several months and you have a cat
that is guaranteed to have good bathroom habits and to be wonderfully
socialized by the volunteers who love them up every day.

Heartbreak is watching these cats die every day while people PAY for
in-bred cats that die young.

"Mary" wrote in message news:dQOYb.18120$%

If you want to avoid getting your heart broken by the early death of
your cat, why not forget about "pure bred" cats and adopt one of the
lovely long-haired (etc.) cats currently in your local no-kill
shelters or on death row at your local SPCA? Get a young adult that
has been in a no-kill shelter for several months and you have a cat
that is guaranteed to have good bathroom habits and to be wonderfully
socialized by the volunteers who love them up every day.

Heartbreak is watching these cats die every day while people PAY for
in-bred cats that die young.

He was our first pedigree cat we had a ginger tom who we got as an
abandoned kitten he died 5 years ago at the age of 13 we still have a
female tabby whos is 18 but sadly she has cancer of the colon and the
time is getting close to saying goodby

"den" wrote in message
om...
"Mary" wrote in message news:dQOYb.18120$%

He was our first pedigree cat we had a ginger tom who we got as an
abandoned kitten he died 5 years ago at the age of 13 we still have
a
female tabby whos is 18 but sadly she has cancer of the colon and
the
time is getting close to saying goodby

I see. I forgot to tell you that I am really sorry you lost both your
Maine Coon and your lovely ginger boy. I have a special love of
tabbies, and your poor little girl is very lucky to have you caring
for her. Be sure to come here and talk to us. Nobody here will ever
say "it was only a cat!" as we all know they are family members to
anyone with a heart.

When you are feeling low, go visit a no-kill shelter, and just get to
know the kitties a little. What you need more than anything is a
sweet, fun, affectionate darling that will be so grateful to you he
will love you forever. You will be surprised at how the young adults
are at these places. It is not like the pound where everyone is crying
and screaming and barking. The animals are pretty packed in, but they
are loved and socialized. The shelter owners can tell you all about
them, where they were found, what they are like. You can know what you
are getting, to a degree. One cat will come to you or look at you or
lean into your hand when you pet him, and win your heart.

Mary wrote in . com on 19
Feb 2004:

When you are feeling low, go visit a no-kill shelter, and just get to
know the kitties a little. What you need more than anything is a
sweet, fun, affectionate darling that will be so grateful to you he
will love you forever. You will be surprised at how the young adults
are at these places. It is not like the pound where everyone is crying
and screaming and barking. The animals are pretty packed in, but they
are loved and socialized. The shelter owners can tell you all about
them, where they were found, what they are like. You can know what you
are getting, to a degree. One cat will come to you or look at you or
lean into your hand when you pet him, and win your heart.


There are quite a few areas where no-kill shelters are not available. These
are only run by non-funded organizations where there is money and most are
actually not really a shelter, but animals fostered in private homes. I've
only seen one true no-kill shelter in my area here in the DC area and they
can only house about 40 cats at a time. No, they aren't packed in, but
they turn away many other needy cats. The foster situation is where the
true rescuing takes place here.

--
Cheryl

Trapped like rats. In a chia-pet.
MIB II

"Cheryl" wrote in message
...
Mary wrote in . com
on 19
Feb 2004:

When you are feeling low, go visit a no-kill shelter, and just get
to
know the kitties a little.


There are quite a few areas where no-kill shelters are not
available. These
are only run by non-funded organizations where there is money and
most are
actually not really a shelter, but animals fostered in private
homes.

We have several in the Raleigh, NC area. Snowflake is my favorite. A
married couple has given over their entire house to the rescues. They
survive on private donations and volunteers. Some of the animals,
including large dogs, are fostered out, but still appear on their web
site and at the "Adopt-a-thons" held at PetSmarts etc. The upstairs of
this house consists of one bathroom, a second-level screened porch
where the cats can perch and get fresh air, watch birds and
squirrells, etc and several bedrooms that have been converted into
rooms for the cats. One is a sick room, and everyone wipes the bottoms
of her shoes and her hands with disinfectant upon entering and leaving
this room. Cats with colds or any type of infectious illness are kept
there. The other rooms are floor to ceiling cages, with kitty beds and
toys tucked in. Some cats are caged much of the time, some rarely,
depending on their dispositions and how they do in the shelter
environment. Local vets volunteer their services and volunteer cat box
cleaners and feeders and "petters!" come around the clock on a set
schedule.

Here is a list of NC rescues and shelters:

http://www.snowflakerescue.org/morelinks.htm

Here is Snowflake's web site:

http://www.snowflakerescue.org/

I've
only seen one true no-kill shelter in my area here in the DC area
and they
can only house about 40 cats at a time. No, they aren't packed in,
but
they turn away many other needy cats. The foster situation is where
the
true rescuing takes place here.


I think Snowflake is kind of like a giant, well-organized foster
situation. Click on some of the photos and prepare to have your heart
become a big puddle!