Moonandstarkatz Kitten Care Sheet

Welcome

For those of you who have reserved a kitten from us here at Moonandstarkatz, we would like to take a moment and thank you for choosing one of our kittens. We asked a lot of questions to ensure a good match between a kitten from us and your family,  and in the end, we believe that you will have an extension of your family with one of our babies who will hopefully bring you many years of joy.

The Care Guide Intro

In order to ensure a smooth transition from our home to yours, we have created this care guide. It is somewhat long as we do a lot with our kittens to give them the greatest possibility of a smooth transition. If you see something not covered in here, please let us know. This care guide's frame will remain the same but will constantly be added too as we see the need for additional information that will make things easier for your kitten.

Good Facts to Know 

Please keep in mind this is our personal cattery kitten care sheet created for those taking one of our kittens home or considering a kitten from us. If you are going to a different breeder, please check with their practices and care sheet as each cattery has different policies and practices. Some catteries are a business, others are like us, a home based small for personal enjoyment cattery, or maybe even one female cattery and will have different methods to transition a kitten from their environment (caged, rooms, or home based run) to your home.

Who can be a cattery ?  

Anyone with a feline and desire to have a registered pedigree or housepet that can be shown in championship or HHP in a registered organization. 

It only takes a check to a registry and an accepted name to be a "cattery." We here at Moonandstarkatz began as a household pet cattery with 2 housepets registered with TICA for showing in HHP category. In 2005, we got our first Siberians and joined the Siberian TICA breed section with the intent to breed and show, which is exactly what we have done and LOVE IT...

Your Kittens Homecoming....

What will come with your kitten (s)?

Your kitten is coming home to you with a carrier, a toy, a blanket that has the scent of our home and cats for your kittens initial comfort, a bed, vet records, the actual care sheet more personalized to your kitten printed out in an easy to read format, our contact info and the TICA blue slip if TICA has given it to us. 

What is the registration process for our kitten and what does blue slip mean?

When a litter is born, we check the gender and color and once we are 100 percent sure on those two items, we register the litter with TICA. A few weeks later, TICA sends us a blue slip for each kitten to be registered. The blue slip indicates official name, gender, eye color, longhair standard Siberian and registration number as well as whether show or breeding rights have been allocated. If a kitten is sent home with the blue slip (TICA can take time to get the blue slips to us) then the responsibility to register your kitten is entirely up to you. It is 10 dollars. Please read the next paragraph if you have show or breeding rights or want us to register your kitten for you.

More on TICA registration papers?

If we haven't received  the blue slips from TICA, we would be more than happy to get an email update from the TICA main office indicating they are working on it for you and an estimated time for you to get your papers. You can also opt for us to register your cat for you particularly if you are unsure of how to fill out the blue slip or have picked a name ahead of time. Its 10 dollars to register and free if we do it but it will take a few more weeks.

If you are co owning with us (fostering a Stud or Queen) or receiving show rights, we will do the registration for you automatically. This is because we have to register them differently than those going as altered pets.

What preparations will I need to make for my kittens homecoming?

Your kitten will need a quiet space with a litter pan and food. Make sure the litter pan is where you plan to keep it  for a while. Cats don't like change and may decide to continue to use that spot if you move their litter pan. If you add a second litter pan (there should be one on each floor the kitten has access too), then you can see if your kitten uses it faithfully and move/get rid of the other one. If you have problems after moving, getting rid of the old one, give kitty back that pan.

So for the room you will need:

Your kitten has a carrier, blanket and bed, don't force the kitten out upon arrival, instead place the carrier in the space with the litter pan and food (not right next to each other). 

Litter - Arm and Hammer odor alert mixed with Feline Pine is best and what your kitten is used too. We will send a small baggie home for your first night. You may want to switch entirely to Feline Pine by mixing at first and then slowly over about 2 weeks to Feline Pine if you have allergies. I like the deodorizer in Arm and Hammer, but if you have allergies, it may not be ideal for you. If you would like to try other litters, same transition of mixing over 2 weeks applies. Please contact me about other litters as I have tried just about everything.

Litter Pan - We recommend any type of enclosed pan or standard box pan. You can get them from any supermarket or pet store. Prices are from 6 dollars upwards. We prefer enclosed pans and your kitten starts on a box pan and moves to an enclosed pan. Please contact us for more info on pans and we would be happy to tell you what will work best for your personal situation.

Food and Water Bowls - We recommend stainless steel or glass dishes. These do not absorb and collect bacteria like plastic although the auto feed/waterers aren't bad if you run them in the dishwasher at least weekly.  Stainless steel is the most sanitary and glass is heavier so they can't tip it. We would be more than happy to discuss which bowls are ideal for your situation and what you are looking for. We don't recommend ceramic dishes as pretty as they are because they are porous and can collect bacteria.

Dry Food - We will send home a small baggie of food with California Natural. We recommend and feed a mixture of: Nutro urinary tract for the neutered males to keep PH balances level, Innova Evo, Wellness Core, Wellness all life stages, Royal Canin Kitten, California Natural and Katz und Flocken. You can feed anyone of these. Please contact us about specific dry food combos as we have certain amounts we mix for our cats to ensure a well balanced diet.

Wet Food - We feed wet food regularly. We recommend Wellness and Solid Gold for wet food. Fancy Feast fishy flavors are a treat we give weekly. California Natural wet food hasn't been such a good experience for us. DO NOT FEED 9LIVES wet food. Some of the farm cats of distant relatives were fed this brand and not only are the ingredients substandard, the food creates a very less than appealing smell. We don't recommend Friskies but don't find it appalling. Science Diet unless used for a medical condition is a food we do not recommend in the wet or dry. Contact Us if you have more questions concerning food brands. As a cattery we have tried many but had the worst experience with Science Diet.

RAW - Our favorite diet. Cats are natural obligate carnivores and eat meat in the wild. We don't recommend letting your cat catch mice and eat them as they could carry diseases and cause worms. To use raw, you must do this correctly and there are a variety of options to go completely raw, get pre frozen raw where all you do is thaw in the fridge and feed kitty, or feed raw in conjunction with a combo of wet and/or dry. Please Contact Us for more information on raw. We will be more than happy to give you additional resources and information on raw as well as where to attain raw. 

Toys - we will send kitty home with a toy. You will want to visit the dollar store for feather toys and little balls and so forth. We will discuss with you your kittens preferences as they grow with us. 

Scratching Post - A cardboard or sisal floor scratcher and a simple 3 ft cat tree are good starting points. Our kittens love windows and the higher the and more attached they are to their scratcher hopefully in front of a window the less likely they will be to explore the rest of the high places in your home.

Vet  - Please arrange to find a vet if you don't already have one. We can find references of good vets just about anywhere on the planet if you need us to search for you. We are in regular communication with breeders all over the world as well as here in the states, not just limited to Siberian breeders as the cat fancy encompasses far more than our beloved breed. We can also help you if you need help finding a dog vet.

We have a holistic vet for dietary needs and everything else is done through our regular vet. We also have references to specialists for just about anything you can imagine. Please let us know if these circumstances arise. 

Your Kittens Development, Lines and Pedigree

We work with a variety of lines that mature differently. We have been breeding for a few years now and have watched 2 generations of kittens grow and mature. This is our third generation. Our first Queen is a grandmother now. We are also in communication with our pet owners who have altered pets besides the kittens we keep for our own breeding program. Communication is key throughout the entire process as your kitten is a unique individual with its own likes and dislikes. We will keep you updated on its physical development and temperament characteristics. Its up to you to stay in communication at least one time per year so that we know our kittens are happy and healthy and the lines we are breeding are healthy. We are not a pet store, this isn't a one day take kitty home and our relationship ends. We won't bug you too much but when kitty comes home, about a week later and then annually a simple email that all is well and preferably a photo would be great. We do care about our kittens.

Our Cats and their Lines

The lines we have all originally come from Russia. We currently have lines from Moscow, St Petersburg and Siberia. Our kittens from Armand seem to look like miniature adults from a very young age. There are a few that grow lanky for about 6 months. They are still cute but grow long then fill in while others maintain their proportions the entire way throughout.

Armands line has been in America for quite a few years so we have a good amount of background that our kittens are typical in development although we are mixing his lines with fresh imported lines which can alter what we know. But this is a big part of breeding, watching the development to see what works and what doesn't. We prefer to not line breed but to try different unrelated lines with strong immune systems and try blending.

Tayga is a new line for us and will be critical to see his kittens development. The mixing of Fialka, Cirkumpolare and Asthera lines are new and they look great now but we haven't seen this combo to adulthood. We expect great results from this pairing as well as great results blending with other lines we currently have. 

Our girls are:

Sunbeam Bella Bleu Chingi Black - she went through a lanky stage but looked great at 8 weeks and now at 10 months is proportioned to perfection. She is maturing but has been a slow maturing girl. Her litter mates have the same so paired with Armand, the kittens will be stunning but will go through a full adolescent stage and you will watch your baby actually change. Its natural for a Siberian to do this and they can continue to change until 5 years of age. Not only is her type impressive, her pedigree has Dimka Laskovy Zver, Gray Black, the Valenvic line and Chingi Tura from the Ediger progeny. Add to that the color possibilities. She is a blue cream tortie smoke. This means with Armand she can produce red, torbie as well as tortie (genetically solid and Armand carries solid), silver, silver torbie and tortie, and if Armand carries dilute, blue, blue cream tortie and torbie. With Tayga, its a dilute wonderland of blue silver, silver, blue, blue cream tortie and torbie as well as red is possible. 

Cica F Rajjah Zhdanovna Black developed looking like a miniature adult. She has grown bigger and her forehead spread but her proportions have been the same throughout. She is from a linebred program although genetically healthy with a healthy COI, she is great for setting type and adding diversity to our program. Her kittens tend to not blend as well as some of more diverse pedigree girls, but she has some of the best set type in our breeding program so its a benefit when she repeats herself and we can tell you, the kittens are absolutely stunning. Her first litter produced a show alter. She does tend to have small litters. She is from a litter of 3, has tested negative for the colorpoint gene, probably carries for dilute and classic as her grandfather Fawn Fawn is a classic and her brother was blue. We can test for dilute with VGL and may due so prior to breeding her to Tayga. Her kittens are few but quality is better than quantity. Our long term plans include a future stud from her. She can produce black, possibly blue, smoke (with a silver male), brown as she carries for agouti as well. She puts solid into our program and many breeds use solid black every so often in a breed program to add the many things a well typed black cat can add.

Southernsibs Marigold - Marigold is a black torbie classic. She was our first classic and has been a wonderful mom. We are impressed with our girl as she produces red and tortie/torbie. We don't believe she carries for solid and will know soon if she carries for the cs gene as we are testing her for it. Keep in mind she can produce mackerel kittens but they ALL carry for classic as its recessive and thats all she has to give genetically. Dilute is a mystery at this point and we will see when we mate her to Tayga the answer to that question. She may not have dilute and solid on her genetic plate but she has great type and wonderful litters. She has a zero percent COI and blends well which is important when working on individual lines. We did not have Marigold until she was a bit older so we aren't 100 percent on her development. Her kittens will be important for us to see their type develop.

Moonandstarkatz Kisa Armandovna - She is our little girl who will be fostered by a wonderful family here in Ohio. She is only going to have one litter and it will be with a blue and white boy of first generation starpoint pedigree which is exciting to us. After her litter she will have an early retirement to her pet family and we will keep a kitten from her.  We can't wait to watch her grow up as we know she is going to be living in a pet home where she will receive one on one attention. She will be bred in August to September 2008. Stay tuned for her kittens as she is a stunning brown classic without white although she probably carries for it. She will more than likely only carry for agouti but could carry for colorpoint and solid from Armand. We will not be breeding her for colorpoint. Her sister Moonandstarkatz Boghdana will be joining Artistry Cats in MI in December as well. The pedigree of Armand and Marigold is the old Siberian lines we love and these kittens are just wonderful.

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