Maine Coons are the best cats. More kitty to hug! Tiny kittens with big paws, I love those!
But yeah, people who get a cat from a breeder are weird. Most sensible people have cats that literally just showed up. Cats are a lot less domesticated than most other animals we keep as pets. The phenomenon is usually referred to as “the cat distribution system” and it’s… interesting. For what it’s worth, all of my family’s cats have been rescues - not many CDS literally just showed up kitties (the only one of our cats we got that way came from the parking lot at Dad’s work - a scrawny and dirty kitten just showed up, the guys fed him coffee creamer from the breakroom in lieu of milk for a few days, until my mum found out about him and made my dad go bring him home), but they all came from shelters or people who couldn’t have a cat anymore and wanted to give the kitty away to a good home rather than drop him at a shelter.
I know very few people irl with breeder cats. Most people around me get their cats from various rural feral cat colonies (I live in the midwest). Although I maintain that the best cats are plucked from urban streets. My theory is that they had a more significant push to socialize with humans for their survival but those cats are usually ridiculously sweet once you get them inside.
I had a coworker from an old job that had a giant litter of kittens. My spouse said “You can pick one.” She brought the last three boys that hadn’t been adopted. Guess how many cats I have now. Yeah… it’s three. They’re brothers! I can’t split them up! Two stinky mackerel tabbies, and one stinky classic tabby. The most basic cats that exist. I love my cat pile (except in the summer.)
I can’t fault them for that. They’re little desert predators (also dessert predators.) North Amerikkkan human habitation is too cold for them, so they need your heat. Works out in my favor most of the year, summer though… Ugh. And what can you do anyway? Tell your little buddies that “naw dawg, sorry, too much heat.” No you just deal with it and wake up sweaty because you love your little guys (even though one of them poops on the floor in front of the litter boxes, but you still love him even though he’s a dumb boy.)
Maybe. 10 years ago most of the cat owners I knew had pretty standard cats. Now at least half the cat owners have some kind of breed.
I get the appeal of a Maine Coon but paying premium for a British Shorthair seems like a rip-off.
Maine Coons are the best cats. More kitty to hug! Tiny kittens with big paws, I love those!
But yeah, people who get a cat from a breeder are weird. Most sensible people have cats that literally just showed up. Cats are a lot less domesticated than most other animals we keep as pets. The phenomenon is usually referred to as “the cat distribution system” and it’s… interesting. For what it’s worth, all of my family’s cats have been rescues - not many CDS literally just showed up kitties (the only one of our cats we got that way came from the parking lot at Dad’s work - a scrawny and dirty kitten just showed up, the guys fed him coffee creamer from the breakroom in lieu of milk for a few days, until my mum found out about him and made my dad go bring him home), but they all came from shelters or people who couldn’t have a cat anymore and wanted to give the kitty away to a good home rather than drop him at a shelter.
I know very few people irl with breeder cats. Most people around me get their cats from various rural feral cat colonies (I live in the midwest). Although I maintain that the best cats are plucked from urban streets. My theory is that they had a more significant push to socialize with humans for their survival but those cats are usually ridiculously sweet once you get them inside.
I had a coworker from an old job that had a giant litter of kittens. My spouse said “You can pick one.” She brought the last three boys that hadn’t been adopted. Guess how many cats I have now. Yeah… it’s three. They’re brothers! I can’t split them up! Two stinky mackerel tabbies, and one stinky classic tabby. The most basic cats that exist. I love my cat pile (except in the summer.)
Cats love to cuddle, temperature regulation be damned.
I can’t fault them for that. They’re little desert predators (also dessert predators.) North Amerikkkan human habitation is too cold for them, so they need your heat. Works out in my favor most of the year, summer though… Ugh. And what can you do anyway? Tell your little buddies that “naw dawg, sorry, too much heat.” No you just deal with it and wake up sweaty because you love your little guys (even though one of them poops on the floor in front of the litter boxes, but you still love him even though he’s a dumb boy.)