Sorry to hear it, and good luck for next time around.

And I'm loving that you have a cat called Nigel

Update - and you can all call me an idiot if you like.

The very next day, Katie had just one kitten, black shaded silver.

Now, I was totally convinced that I knew which of the two black shaded silvers was which (they were all in together), and I was bitterly disappointed because the one I was convinced was Katie's, a girl, developed long hair, which would have been next to impossible if Basil was the father.

Eventually, because I was so convinced that Basil had properly mated with Katie, and because Katie's (which was a boy) was so very like Basil in his character, desperately hoping that I just might have mixed the two kittens up, I sent off swabs to Australia for DNA testing. Let any who consider this route be warned, it takes far longer than you expect it to, the kittens are 4.5 months now and I am still awaiting the result!

Just a couple of days ago it occurred to me, perhaps I emailed some group, or posted somewhere, and said what gender the kittens were. So I looked through the posts here and yes, I said that Fiona had a black shaded silver girl.

So, unless I got the gender wrong (not totally impossible at birth, I see I got the gender of one of the blue ones wrong), if Fiona's was a girl, the boy must have been Katie's, in which case he could be Basil's, and if he is, I have just wasted four DNA test fees.

But of course now I have got to wait anyway because there is certainly no point in having come so far and spent so much and then not waiting for the result.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

liz

oh no lol!!!

I used a place in america for colour dna came back pretty quick, maybe another place woulod be quicker?
hope it works out the way you want!!

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Pinmoore Labs (in the UK) also do paternity / colour testing for cats. Have a look on pages 15-17. I've used them previously to test my queen for HCM before I bred her and they emailed her results in under a week.

http://www.palsvetlab.co.uk/sitebuil...0pricelist.pdf

Thanks - worth remembering certainly. In this case, though, it would have been about double the price

Liz

thats £40 cheaper than going to my vets, might give it a try

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Langford Labs do it in Bristol
Coat Colour Guide | Diagnostic Services | haematology | biochemistry | bacteriology | virology | Langford Veterinary Services

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Kaz

For kittens, joy is for the asking and smiles are for the giving

Have I read this correctly? You are allowing two entire male cats access to an in season female? And are then disappointed when the one you don't want to father the kittens does

or maybe the queen in question are one of Liz's queens with free access to the great outdoors. I know nothing of breeding matters... but enough to know any un-neutered female cat could get pregnant by any tom (dick or harry) if they are allowed outdoors.

Tips for avoiding this situation:

Keep entire males away from entire females at all times, even in winter months. As a breeder you should know that females do occasionally call during winter. If they are in the same proximity as males, they may not even appear to call, as a breeder you should know that females in a males company sometimes feel the actual 'call' to be unnecessary.

When you want to breed a specific queen with a specific male after the the correct testing has been done to ensure both are in tip top condition, and are not going to pass of genetic condition ... then and only then put the two together, away from the access of other males/females.

I am astounded at your lazy breeding Liz, I really am. You claim to be an experienced breeder. You actually do a fantastic job of proving my saying right 'Just because you're experienced, doesn't mean you do it right'.

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