autumnclockwork asked:
drferox answered:
I don’t see many Manx, but I will forever remember a little kitten called Olive who suffered such severe ‘Manx Syndrome’ that as a ten week old kitten she was completely fecally incontinent due to her spinal deformity, and would just drop nuggets of poo as she walked and played. She had no idea she was doing it either, playing with her new ‘toys’ when she discovered them. She was put to sleep because of her severe spinal deformity.
Please note the disclaimer. These posts are about the breed from a veterinary viewpoint as seen in clinical practice, i.e. the problems we are faced with. It’s not the be-all and end-all of the breed and is not to make a judgement about whether the breed is right for you. If you are asking for an opinion about these animals in a veterinary setting, that is what you will get. It’s not going to be all sunshine and cupcakes, and is not intended as a personal insult against your favorite breed. This is general advice for what is common, often with a scientific consensus but sometimes based on personal experiences, and is not a guarantee of what your animal is going to encounter in their life.
Genetic spinal defects and ’Manx Syndrome’ are the major concern in this breed. The Manx cat is well known for its short or absent tail, but the dominant gene which causes this trait results in potentially severe spinal deformities and pain for the cat. The shorter the tail, the more likely this condition is to occur. The gene responsible is also homozygous lethal, so most responsible Manx breeders now breed short tailed to longer tailed cats, even though the long tailed cats can generally not be shown.
It’s thought that the short tailed gene basically causes a form of spina bifida, and affected cats may have neurological changes in their hind legs, may be urinary and fecally incontinent and may have arthritic tails or spines. The little kitten I knew had an extreme version of this condition, less extremely affected cats will often survive for several years.
The breed is also described as having a ‘hopping gait’, but that is also a symptom of Manx Syndrome and should be considered an abnormality.
Because of the altered neurological function in the back half of these cats, Megacolon is more common than in mixed breeds. In this condition the colon loses muscle tone and becomes flaccid, causing life threatening constipation which may require lifelong medication or surgical removal of the colon.
Longer tailed Manx will suffer less neurological disruption than cats with no tails, but even the longer tailed cats may still suffer fused vertebrae in their tails.
Because this severe condition is associated with a single gene around which the entire breed is based, there are some ethical concerns about continuing to breed the Manx cat in its current form.
On 6 February 2012, a female black-footed cat kitten, Crystal, was born to a domestic cat surrogate after interspecies embryo transfer.
A black-footed cat served as the surrogate mother for [2011′s] litter. Researchers next sought to show that vastly more plentiful domestic cats can serve as surrogate mothers in efforts to save the small wild cat from extinction.
“Being able to use domestic cats adds another extra dimension to that, being able to produce more,” said Earle Pope, acting director of the center. Only 53 of the cats, which are native to South Africa, live in zoo collections in the United States.
(source for text, images from Dara o’Briain’s Science Club)
This is one of the rarest species of African cats, but most people don’t even know it exists.
So, i want to get my last name changed to my mother’s maiden name, Körtel, or my grandmother’s married name, Lyon.
Aside from them thinking that’s strange, alison doesnt sound good with either of those names. Alison Lyon is cool because it’s perfect for the nickname “ali cat”
Hey here are some quick references to help you determine if you are looking an unethical big cat situation on an internet picture or video:
1. Human beings are coming into direct contact with the animals. Especially kitten/cubs
2. Mixing of species
3. White animals (inbred mess)
4. Any attempt to show these animals as cute and the equivalent of domestic cats
This list isn’t exhaustive, but these are good quick guidelines. If you are skeptical, then don’t share the content because its not worth the risk
wuzzymolecules asked:
My cat used to do the Succ, especially at night. The succ triggers the same feeling I get when people smack and eat with their mouth open, but I didn’t want to kick out my precious kitty just for grooming myself?
everyone makes fun of me bc I say “yum yum in the kitty cat tum” when I give Lilly her food
From @myfosterkittens: “Have you ever seen a blind cat play fetch? Now you have! Meet Wally! He’s my foster kitty who was found living in a tree next to a busy road. He was born blind and suffering from a severe infection. He’s now healthy and happy and was recently adopted!” #catsofinstagram [source: http://ift.tt/2iJQ0J6 ]
Oh my heart.
(To the beat of of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer)
You know Comet, and Big Nut Chuck, Wrym and Bojangles.
But do you recall
The most famous housecat of all
Poofer the Poof-tailed Housecat
Had a very poofy tail
And if you ever saw it
You would even say it poofs
All of the other housecats
Used to laugh and call him names
They never let poor Poofer
Join in any kitty cat games!
The one freezing Christmas Eve,
Tucker came to say,
“Poofer with your tail so floof,
Won’t you cuddle with me, ya poof”
Then how all the housecats loved him,
As they shouted out with glee,
Poofer the Poof-tailed Housecat
You’ll go down in history
Im not happy with any of the final evolution leaks tbh. Popplio’s looks beautiful, but it just doesnt seem fitting. Litten’s is just atrocious. I think that’s the worst possible design that they cpuld have come up with. Rowlett’s is okay.
Sorry for the negativity, it’s just how i feel.
