Puppykats

Looking at her website (www.puppykats.com) in one of the photos, she
has some kind of shack behind her that she keeps the cats in. Sounds
like a cat/puppy mill Sad too when she sells one of these
"puppykats" and it doesn't live up to what someone expects, then what
will happen to it.
(my own cats do act doglike, but they weren't bred too)

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2006...1906192121.txt

Resident develops new breed of dog-like cat - the puppykat

By: JOSE CARVAJAL - Staff Writer

LAKE ELSINORE ---- It's not a dog; it's a cat that acts like a dog.
Confused? Don't be. It's a "puppykat," a new breed of cat developed by
Lake Elsinore resident Dawn Houston.

Houston says she stumbled across the puppykat seven years ago, when two
wild cats she had rescued mated. Their offspring were very puppylike,
she said, so she gave them the new moniker and began breeding more of
them.

Three years ago, she said, she began breeding them full time.


Houston, who said she has rescued animals most of her life, has big
plans for the puppykat.

Already, she has registered the breed with the Rare and Exotic Feline
Registry.

And she plans to continue to breed and sell puppykats ---- she guesses
she has already sold more than 40 of them in the last seven years for
between $275 and $675 ---- so that she can raise enough money to fund
future cat-rescue efforts. Those efforts include plans for responsible
breeding education programs and plans to get lax breeding regulations
changed.

The puppykat, Houston said, has become popular with people who like
their pets to have certain traits more commonly found in dogs. Like
their canine counterparts, puppykats are more social, curious and
playful, she said. They'll even come when you call.

Their physical traits ---- mainly their folded ears and shorter tails
---- are also doglike.

"A lot of people that would have never gotten a cat are now open to
owning a cat," Houston said.

Kent Broussard bought two cats from Houston about a year ago. One of
them was a Manx, the other was a puppykat.

He said that, while the Manx is standoffish and tends be content on its
own, the puppykat craves the attention of humans and is much more
playful.

"She just has to be around people," the Laguna Beach resident said.
"She loves being petted. She's a little sweetie.

"She definitely follows you in the other room like a puppy. That's a
perfect name."

While the results may be adorable and Houston may have found a market
for the puppykat, her breeding hasn't been received positively by
everybody.

Breeders and cat lovers from across the country have sent dozens of
e-mails and letters criticizing her for mixing the Scottish fold, Manx
and polydactyl breeds, something they consider dangerous to the health
of the cats.

But Houston asserts she's being responsible.

She takes great care to make sure the cats she uses in breeding don't
carry the same dominant genes, she said, thus eliminating potential
dangerous genetic threats to the cats.

Plus, she isn't doing what many breeders do, Houston said, in
overbreeding their cats by inbreeding or by making individual cats have
too many litters. Those can each have detrimental effects on
generations and generations of cats, she said.

"If you do it wrong, it could be traumatic," Houston said.

Houston also shot back at the animal rights organization People for the
Ethical Treatment of Animals, whose members have heavily criticized her
the last several weeks after reading a news report about her breeding.
They have sent dozens of e-mails and letters, she said, many of which
have been less than pleasant.

PETA researcher Dan Paden said that his organization was contacted by
more than 100 people who complained that, through her breeding, Houston
is contributing to the overpopulation of cats.

The organization issued an action alert through its Web site, he said,
asking people to contact Houston and ask her to stop the breeding. It
also urged them to ask her to donate the money she has made through
selling puppykats to spaying and neutering programs.

The alert calls Houston's plan of breeding puppykats in an effort to
help rescue other cats the "most dim-witted idea ever." It states that
breeders like Houston "have created a tremendous overpopulation problem
that forces animal shelters across the nation to put millions of dogs
and cats to death every year."

Paden said PETA has never before issued an action alert for a breeder
like Houston.

"No one before has ever proposed that purposefully breeding animals is
a good way to help fight the overpopulation crisis," he said. "It's
unique in its irony. It's unique in our response."

But Houston said that those who have accused her of contributing to the
overpopulation problem don't know what they're talking about.

There will always be people out there, she said, who prefer to buy cats
from professional breeders instead of shelters. That market will always
exist, she said.

More importantly, Houston said, every cat she sells is spayed or
neutered before it is released to its new owner.

All the fuss raised over her puppykat breeding is much ado about
nothing, she said.

"I know what I'm doing," Houston said.

"PawsForThought" wrote in message
oups.com...
Looking at her website (www.puppykats.com) in one of the photos, she
has some kind of shack behind her that she keeps the cats in. Sounds
like a cat/puppy mill Sad too when she sells one of these
"puppykats" and it doesn't live up to what someone expects, then what
will happen to it.
(my own cats do act doglike, but they weren't bred too)


http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2006...1906192121.txt



Ugh. Anything for a buck. This is really sad.

PawsForThought wrote:
Looking at her website (www.puppykats.com) in one of the photos, she
has some kind of shack behind her that she keeps the cats in. Sounds
like a cat/puppy mill Sad too when she sells one of these
"puppykats" and it doesn't live up to what someone expects, then what
will happen to it.
(my own cats do act doglike, but they weren't bred too)

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2006...1906192121.txt

Looks like she's breeding Moggies to me - as if there isn't enough
random bred moggies to go around. What an idiot!
-L.

I thought the world already had a "dog like cat" ,the Maine Coon???

I hate the idea of the puppykats.

It is all about money

"Sherri" wrote in message
ups.com...
I thought the world already had a "dog like cat" ,the Maine Coon???

I hate the idea of the puppykats.

On Tue, 21 Mar 2006 00:54:49 +0000, Matthew AKA NMR ( NO MORE RETAIL )
wrote:

It is all about money

"Sherri" wrote in message
ups.com...
I thought the world already had a "dog like cat" ,the Maine Coon???

I hate the idea of the puppykats.



IMHO It all in the name. Without the moniker it would just be a mixed
breed. MLB

On 20 Mar 2006 21:43:20 +0100, "cybercat" wrote:


"PawsForThought" wrote in message
roups.com...
Looking at her website (www.puppykats.com) in one of the photos, she
has some kind of shack behind her that she keeps the cats in. Sounds
like a cat/puppy mill Sad too when she sells one of these
"puppykats" and it doesn't live up to what someone expects, then what
will happen to it.
(my own cats do act doglike, but they weren't bred too)


http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2006...1906192121.txt



Ugh. Anything for a buck. This is really sad.

Tweaker is an extreme puppycat. One thing about him and other cats
like him though... they really need to stay indoors, even more than
other cats. I think Tweaker knows this, because he doesn't really try
to go outside unless I'm there to stop him.

He walked straight up to my tenants' pit bull when they first me, and
he responds to all dogs that way.

The biggest danger here is raptors. On this island, all the ferals
are black... natural selection at work.

Charlie

PawsForThought wrote:
Looking at her website (www.puppykats.com) in one of the photos, she
has some kind of shack behind her that she keeps the cats in.

I don't have a problem with her work!

I just wrote her and told her too! I think she's right on.

Did you know, she saves over 500 cats a year! That's right! 500 Cats a
year

Did you know, not one bred cat leaves her facility (which was
expensive...rather than some shack you jeer at) without first being
neutered?

Cybercat is right, people do anything for a buck! SO may as well teach
ignorant breeders how to be responsible and not add to the
overpopulation problem.
Houston is doing exactly that. She has a 15 page packet that each new
owner gets...highlighting how to be responsible and explaining the
over-population problem.
By example! if every breeder did as she does, Im guessing it would be a
tremendous help towards rescue at large. No, not just a pamplet and a
little lecture but in practice! 500 cats? omg! Unless my ship comes in,
I am certain I will never SEE that many cats in one lifetime, let alone
rescue that many.

Houston loves animals, all of us do, she stumbled upon a unique cat.
Yes of course there are possibilities of having sick cats due to bad
breeding, however! This is not the case, the reason: She does not breed
close to the gene pool. Houston does not impose but 1 or 2 pregnancies
on any one mother.

Now, lets do the math. She has created 40 PuppyKats, yet she was able
to save over 500 cats with the money she made from the sale of these
cats.

Remember! every cat she sells will never become a contribution to
overpopulation (they are all neutered)

Im no fool, I realize that most breeders are irresponsible, but lets
give credit where credit is due!

Houston is always getting slapped in the face for breeding, but she
does not have a voice in the face of a mob who has already tried and
convicted her without considering the facts.

It is ironic and rare! That Houston is actually saving cats, through
breeding. She gets I think $250.00 for each one (or thereabout) There
is no way that 40 PuppyKats at 250ea could ever rescue and home 500
cats! I am positive that Houston and her SO have paid out of their own
pockets. She does not deserve a slap in the face.

PawsForThought wrote:
Looking at her website (www.puppykats.com) in one of the photos, she

what I'm really trying to say is, we should enlarge our circle!

embrace that which is a help to our cause

Miami Jones wrote:
Im no fool, I realize that most breeders are irresponsible, but lets
give credit where credit is due!

Houston is always getting slapped in the face for breeding, but she
does not have a voice in the face of a mob who has already tried and
convicted her without considering the facts.

It is ironic and rare! That Houston is actually saving cats, through
breeding. She gets I think $250.00 for each one (or thereabout) There
is no way that 40 PuppyKats at 250ea could ever rescue and home 500
cats! I am positive that Houston and her SO have paid out of their own
pockets. She does not deserve a slap in the face.

Did you know that many vets will tell you how they donate their time to
rescue, but yet they declaw cats? I commend someone for helping cats,
but on the other hand, just because they do something good doesn't
necessarily negate the wrong they do. I'm sorry, but I wish Houston
would find another way to fund her endeavors other than breeding
moggies. Makes me wonder was she just looking to make a name for
herself by discovering this "breed"? I've had cats all my life, and
I've always found them to be playful, come when called, social and
curious, you know, "dog like" Here she is increasing the number of
cats while thousands of great cats (and yes, even "dog like" ones") are
euthanized. But I guess since she gives money to shelters, it makes
it okay? I don't know, I think there's got to be a better way...