Ragdoll Cats can inherit Mucopolysaccharidosis MPS1 (Lysosomal Storage Disease) and the other variety of this disease: Mucopolysaccharidosis MPSM (Lysosomal Storage Disease). It may also affect Maine Coon Cats to a lesser degree. I simply passing on what I see on the internet. Each individual person, breeder or owner, will obviously check themselves and do what they think is right to investigate further.
OK, what happened and what is the disease? At the moment there is nothing that I can find out about how this happened or which breeding lines are involved. There seems to be an Australian connection (a breeder or breeders there may have cats that are passing this defective gene on). The gene is autosomal recessive as far as I am aware.
It would seem (but to be confirmed) that the older Ragdoll lines from the UK and Australia are OK. USA imported Ragdolls into Australia may be at risk as are Ragdoll cats that have been bred from outcrosses other than domestics. I presume this to mean outcrosses to other approved purebred cats.
Testing can be done under the auspices of the CFA associated DNA testing service, VeriSNP™ Universal Genetic Evaluation. As I understand it people send in a sample such as a hair or a cheek swab and the test is carried out on it.
It would seem that the people who run the testing program are DNA Diagnostics, Inc and Texas A&M University Animal Genetics Laboratory(TAES) - but please confirm. It would also seem that they have a website: CatGenes which spells things out some more. See this page for example: http://www.catgenes.org/mps.html. However, they describe the two diseases (MPSM and MPS1)in exactly the same way. That seems strange to me.
Ok that's about all I know on the subject of Ragdoll Cats can Inherit Mucopolysaccharidosis MPS1 (Lysosomal Storage Disease) for the time being...more to come or perhaps someone can add a useful comment and if so thanks in advance.
Click: Genetic Diseases in Purebred Cats for more on the subject of genetic diseases generally.
Thursday, 18 December 2008
Cat Clicker Training
Cat clicker training may be the only way to keep your highly active Bengal cat off your computer key board - if you really want that to happen.
Clicker training is normally associated with dogs but can be used for cats. The big issue with cat training is do we want to bother? Do we have the time and energy? This might sound a bit negative but I sense it is a fair question.
If the answer is yes then proper cat clicker training will prove effective. However, some conventional ways to keep Mr. Bengal cat of the computer might be a to put something that cats don't like (in terms of smell) next to the computer. This might be a bowl of oranges or hot pepper flakes perhaps. Maybe suck-and-see testing is required. Another possible alternative is a product called a Scat Mat. They release a static charge when touched. They're about $70 (USA) or £45 (UK). A computer is probably attractive because it is where we are or have been and it is warm. If the attractiveness is neutralized it may put our cat off going near the computer.
Cat clicker training is the real deal though. This is not guesswork but real control using action reward. The clicker seems to act as a reinforcer and marker for the reward element of the training process. The underlying methodology is positive reinforcement. The same process occurs when a dolphin is trained using a whistle, for example. Your cat is "empowered" by finding a way to make you click and then receive a reward. Once cats figure out how the game is played, they may prefer the "game" over the reward. Click-and-treat training is a means of non-verbal communication, which can be followed by voice cues later.
Clickers are cheap and readily available on the internet. Try googling, "training clicker".
Here is a good video on cat clicker training:
Yes, it might take a bit of time but a result would seem to almost certain.
Cat Clicker Training to Home page
Clicker training is normally associated with dogs but can be used for cats. The big issue with cat training is do we want to bother? Do we have the time and energy? This might sound a bit negative but I sense it is a fair question.
If the answer is yes then proper cat clicker training will prove effective. However, some conventional ways to keep Mr. Bengal cat of the computer might be a to put something that cats don't like (in terms of smell) next to the computer. This might be a bowl of oranges or hot pepper flakes perhaps. Maybe suck-and-see testing is required. Another possible alternative is a product called a Scat Mat. They release a static charge when touched. They're about $70 (USA) or £45 (UK). A computer is probably attractive because it is where we are or have been and it is warm. If the attractiveness is neutralized it may put our cat off going near the computer.
Cat clicker training is the real deal though. This is not guesswork but real control using action reward. The clicker seems to act as a reinforcer and marker for the reward element of the training process. The underlying methodology is positive reinforcement. The same process occurs when a dolphin is trained using a whistle, for example. Your cat is "empowered" by finding a way to make you click and then receive a reward. Once cats figure out how the game is played, they may prefer the "game" over the reward. Click-and-treat training is a means of non-verbal communication, which can be followed by voice cues later.
Clickers are cheap and readily available on the internet. Try googling, "training clicker".
Here is a good video on cat clicker training:
Yes, it might take a bit of time but a result would seem to almost certain.
Cat Clicker Training to Home page
Wednesday, 17 December 2008
Three Types of Cat People
There are three types of cat people. The first is those that care for animals and cats. These are people who are sensitive to the feelings of cats and lets remind ourselves that cats have emotions. These people pick up the mess caused by the people who are insensitive to the emotions, welfare (call it what you like) of cats and all animals. These people are irresponsible and self centred and have an outdated, outmoded and limited perception of life and the suffering, feelings of other living creatures including cats. Then there are the ones in the grey area in between. In terms of animal and cat welfare, the ones in between are almost as bad as the worst group because they are passive, inactive and apathetic to the plight of many animals.
Some people in the first group don't set out to help cats but the task is thrust upon them. One such person is Melinda Beit of New London County, Connecticut, USA. She traps, neuters and releases feral cats. She feeds feral cats. She cares for feral cats in her area. Someone has to. She didn't plan to do. It just happened. She couldn't turn her back on it. She has a heart and she picks up the pieces of irresponsible people in the other two categories mentioned above.
She says this, "Spay a cat and save a hundred from a lifetime of misery and certain death."
There are three types of cat people and Melinda is in the good group, the very good group.
Some people in the first group don't set out to help cats but the task is thrust upon them. One such person is Melinda Beit of New London County, Connecticut, USA. She traps, neuters and releases feral cats. She feeds feral cats. She cares for feral cats in her area. Someone has to. She didn't plan to do. It just happened. She couldn't turn her back on it. She has a heart and she picks up the pieces of irresponsible people in the other two categories mentioned above.
She says this, "Spay a cat and save a hundred from a lifetime of misery and certain death."
There are three types of cat people and Melinda is in the good group, the very good group.
Tortoiseshell Cats
Tortoiseshell cats - Tortie Ultra (Contemporary) Persian Cat She is called "Princess". Photograph is copyright Helmi Flick - please respect copyright. |
Torties have a very distinct appearance. It is an impressive appearance, an almost chaotic appearance and a strange one. Sometimes the change in fur color dissects the nose as with the cat below right (this is a Flickr photograph published under a creative commons license - Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.0 Generic - it is by kangster).
This is called a "blaze" by cat breeders as I understand it. The lighter color on the nose of this cat is caused by the pigment called phaeomelanin (red/yellow pigment). It is an appearance that I personally like very much. But do we see this cat coat at cat shows and on show cats? We do, but not as commonly, in my opinion, as many other types of coat.
All the photos and on this page are protected by copyright © including the photos in the video. Violations of copyright are reported to Google.com (DMCA). |
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Black tortie with blaze on nose |
For example, the Persian above was photographed by Helmi at a cat show. Tortoiseshell can also be seen as black tortoiseshell, chocolate tortoisehell, blue tortoisehell and seal tortoiseshell. And, of course, you've got tortoiseshell and white. Then you've got the pointed cats with tortoiseshell pointing. In other words these are pointed cats such as the Himalayan (a long haired Persian) with the pointing made up of tortoiseshell hair coloration. We shouldn't forget the torbies.
What are torbies? These are a mix of tabby and tortoiseshell. And there are cats too, that only have torbie pointing or cats that are torbie and white. And you've got the dilute torbies and silver torbies - I could go on; the range is almost endless and very involved. In fact, it gets really complicated. And I haven't mentioned all the combinations. As I can't show them all, I'll stick to some prime examples and an explanation as to what happens to make the fur tortoiseshell in appearance. First here is another good old plain tortoiseshell color on a fine Maine Coon cat - a great looker - the Maine Coons nearly always are:
Tortoiseshell Maine Coon Cat "Madison". Photograph is strictly copyright Helmi Flick. Please respect copyright. |
So what is happening at a genetic level? There are two types of color pigmentation in individual hairs, eumelanin (black/brown) and phaeomelanin (red/yellow pigment). Domestic cats are either red because the pigment phaeomelanin is present or not if eumelanin is present. Tortoiseshell cats have a pattern of both pigments which are dispersed throughout the entirety of the individual hairs (i.e. this is a solid colored cat as opposed to a tabby cat, where the hairs have a banding of color within them). In other words torties are non-agouti cats. A lot of us know that tortoiseshell cats are always female, with rare exceptions. Why is this? Females have two X chromosomes. If a particular female cat is destined to be a tortie she will have received from her parents an X (Eumelanin) chromosome from one parent and an X chromosome (phaeomelanin) from the other. Each cell can have one X Chromosome activated. A factor in the creation of the tortoiseshell coat is controlled by X Chromosome Inactivation. This process only takes place where there are two X Chromosomes; hence only females are tortoiseshell cats. As the cells divide and multiply patches of the two different types of pigment are created.
The video shows the cats you see here plus more and some strange music - I chose it! The music complies with copyright law and I like it. Here are some examples of tortoiseshell cats:
Black Tortoiseshell and White Persian cat -- photo copyright Helmi Flick
Black Tortoiseshell cat - this is a household pet or non-purebred cat but still a show cat - the photograph is copyright Helmi Flick. Please respect Helmi Flick's copyright of all her photographs.
Blue Torbie Point Persian cat -- photo copyright Helmi Flick
Tortoiseshell and White domestic cat (called household pets in the cat fancy) -- photo copyright Helmi Flick
Tortoiseshell cats to Home Page
See the following alternative cat coat colors and patterns:
Cat coats tabby
Cat coats tabby and white
Cat coats color dilution
Cat coats white
Cat coats solid and white
Black cats
The tortoiseshell cats above are well loved, cared for and frankly pretty glamorous. Now lets briefly look at the other side of the coin. There is another report of a tortie cat being shot with an air gun. It happened in Herne Avenue, Herne Bay, England. This is on the coast in the south of England. An 18 month old tortie cat was shot in the spine with an air rifle (or hand gun). The pellet lodged in the spine. This cat will be lucky to survive. Apparently such cruelty tends to take place more in the school holidays indicating that it is school boys that are the culprits. Ultimately it is the parents who are to blame.
This is a criminal act punishable by a maximum of 51 weeks in prison and/or a £20,000 fine under the Animal Welfare Act 2006. The chance of the person being caught is minimal. The police in the UK just don't give a damn about this sort of crime.
Cats are being Dumped
Because of the economic crisis, more cats are being dumped. The law treats cats as chattels (objects). The law is outdated, old fashioned or so I thought. The law is not outdated, now I know. Some people treat cats as chattels.
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Photo in public domain. Words added. |
There are reports on the internet and in the papers of rescue centres being fuller than ever of rescued, dumped or abandoned cats. It doesn't matter how one describes these animals. They have no human companion and they are meant to be domestic cats. These cats shouldn't be born. How do I know?
Because all we can do, nearly all the time, is destroy them, put them in a freezer and then what? Where do they go after that? I don't know.
Because all we can do, nearly all the time, is destroy them, put them in a freezer and then what? Where do they go after that? I don't know.
Sometimes the bodies are used commercially, in my view. And that just compounds the wrong. We allow cats to breed when we shouldn't. And we then kill them and use the carcass.
Man, it makes some of us sick.
Here are some cat rescue centres reporting higher numbers and more euthanising:
- Shenton Park Cat Haven - Perth, Australia;
- Battersea Dogs Home (they also rescue cats) - London, England;
- The Auckland (New Zealand) SPCA has recorded a 25-year high in the number of animals dumped.
I could list lots more. Cats are being dumped because people don't ask themselves if they are able to care for a cat for the life of the cat. If they can't answer in the affirmative the cat should not be adopted.
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