Cagaran Cats

Cagaran Cats - Pedigree Cat Breeders in Scotland

Information for Prospective Owners

Our girls live in the house with us, and their kittens are therefore raised as part of our 'family'. The kittens will start their lives in our special 'kitten room', which is an easily-cleanable room set aside for the girls to give birth in and raise their kittens for the first few weeks. This room has wipe-able flooring, allowing us to thoroughly sterilise it before each litter, and is set up with a kitten pen, all the necessities and various beds (including heated ones) for the kittens and their mums to enjoy.

When the kittens are ready for more interaction with the rest of the house, they are allowed out of the kitten room, into a cordoned-off area on the landing at the top of our main staircase. This is in the middle of the house and allows the kittens to get used to all the normal comings-and-goings of a house. It also lets them get used to sounds such as the toilet flushing, and the hoover, and also meet new people. Our flat is above the office where I work, and we try and get my colleagues, and also family members to come up and handle the kittens so that they get used to being handled by a variety of different people. This should help them settle into their new homes more quickly and be more sociable as adults.

We believe that the reason for having a pedigree cat is that it gives you the opportunity to select the 'right' temperament to fit in with your life. Although there are variations within breeds, all cats of a particular breed should be broadly similar. Therefore, please have a read of the breed descriptions on this site, and think carefully about what you want your cat to bring to your family. If you would like to come and meet our adults, we would be delighted to have you round to the house, even if that means that you go away wanting one of the breeds that we have as neuters, but do not breed. The last thing that we want is one of our precious kittens going to a home to which it is not suited - if you would be better off with a Russian, Abyssinian, Devon Rex or Maine Coon, for instance, then we would prefer that you have one of those instead.

Most of our kittens will be looking for loving pet homes, although we would love our kitten owners to at least try showing their kittens. You may find, as we did, it becomes the centre of your social life and something that you really enjoy and look forwards to. If you would like to try showing, let us know and we will be happy to lend you a spare 'show kit' for the day. Then, if you decide you want to keep doing it, you can buy one of your own. We will also give you any help you require in completing entry forms. If you are buying a kitten from us that we consider to be of exceptional show quality, we will happily pay for its first show entry, if that means that we can get you (and it) along to a show!!

Pedigree kittens are not like those of most moggies, in that they are not generally interested in the outside world. There are exceptions, but most pedigree kittens seem to show a definite preference for staying within the confines of their 'safe' home. It would obviously be completely irresponsible for cat breeders to allow their breeding animals to run free, so pedigree kittens come from generations of mothers who have been kept indoors, and fathers who have been kept confined to a stud pen. This seems to have resulted in them losing the natural desire to get outside. Cats are essentially creatures of habit, and like to have their own territory. Without the inherited desire to roam, why would they want to leave the space that they know and head out into one that they don't?

Since keeping cats indoors keeps them safe from various outdoor dangers (and it doesn't seem to bother them), we will generally give preference to those homes with a secure outside space (this is what we consider to be ideal), or indoor-only homes. However, you must remember that if your cat is kept indoors it will need additional stimulation that it would normally get from exploring outside. Kittens, in particular, need a lot of stimulation, and we therefore recommend purchasing two at the same time - these do not need to be the same breed, or even both pedigrees: when we bought our Maine Coon (Call), we bought a moggie kitten (Ali) at the same time. If you cannot offer a secure outside space, or indoor-only home, we will certainly consider homing a kitten with you, but would never do so to a home next to a busy road, for example.

All kittens sold as pets or show neuters will be spayed or neutered before leaving us. The practice of 'early neutering' has been common in Australia and the USA for many years, and is now recommended by the Cat Group, GCCF and International Cat Care (previously the Feline Advisory Bureau). The cost of the operation means that our kittens are around Ģ50 more expensive (slightly less for boys, slightly more for girls) than they would have been without having had the operation. However, our vet gives us a good rate, so it should work out cheaper for you in the long run, and most genuine pet owners are glad to know that they don't have to worry about having that done. It also means that the small risk from the operation is taken by us, and you don't have to worry about buying a kitten and then losing it under the anaesthetic. Kittens will also be micro-chipped before going to their new homes, but the chip will be registered in the name of the new owners.

We may occasionally consider selling a kitten of suitable 'quality' and parentage for breeding. If you are interested in getting involved in breeding Tiffanies or other members of the Asian Group, please get in touch and we will be happy to discuss this with you. We would love to see new breeders of both breeds, but it is not something to take on lightly, and is certainly not a good way to make money - it is something to do for the love of the breed. You should have a look at the 'Breeding' page in the 'Other Cat-Related Information' section of this site, and think long and hard before making this decision. Since kittens sold as pets will be spayed or neutered before leaving us, you must tell us at the outset if you are interested in breeding, because we would need to set aside a special kitten for you.