# Breeding British shorthairs



## Myra Ali (Dec 18, 2016)

hi I was just wondering if anyone can help me? I have a chocolate male British shorthair and a black tortie female British shorthair they are still kittens at the moment but if I was to let them mate what colour kittens would they produce


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## havoc (Dec 8, 2008)

Here we go. School must be out now


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## OrientalSlave (Jan 26, 2012)

Are they registered? Are they registered active? I bet not, and if you brought them with a commitment to neuter them please respect it.


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## OrientalSlave (Jan 26, 2012)

PS are they brother & sister?


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## Myra Ali (Dec 18, 2016)

OrientalSlave said:


> PS are they brother & sister?


I haven't decided yet so why would I be in a hurry to register them. They are not brother and sister


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## Myra Ali (Dec 18, 2016)

havoc said:


> Here we go. School must be out now


What is that supposed to mean? If you don't want to help I suggest you keep the silly comments to yourself


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## OrientalSlave (Jan 26, 2012)

Myra Ali said:


> What is that supposed to mean? If you don't want to help I suggest you keep the silly comments to yourself


They are suggesting you are asking a silly question.

If you are in the UK most cats are registered with the GCCF, and only the breeder can register them. Even with other registries where sometimes the owner registers them they still have to have the paperwork from the breeder to be able to do that.


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## Myra Ali (Dec 18, 2016)

OrientalSlave said:


> They are suggesting you are asking a silly question.
> 
> If you are in the UK most cats are registered with the GCCF, and only the breeder can register them. Even with other registries where sometimes the owner registers them they still have to have the paperwork from the breeder to be able to do that.


The guy I bought the kittens from didn't give me any paper work nor did he register their parents he must have at leat 10 female British shorthairs I bought them as pets but my intention is to sell one


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## pipje (Jun 29, 2011)

That's your answer, Myra. I'm afraid your kittens are from a backyard breeder and are not suitable for breeding sadly as you don't know their medical histories (and can't trust their breeder to let you know), they have no pedigrees etc.


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## Guest (Dec 18, 2016)

Myra Ali said:


> The guy I bought the kittens from didn't give me any paper work nor did he register their parents he must have at leat 10 female British shorthairs I bought them as pets but my intention is to sell one


You bought two but you're going to sell one of the two you bought? Why?


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## moggie14 (Sep 11, 2013)

Myra Ali said:


> The guy I bought the kittens from didn't give me any paper work nor did he register their parents he must have at leat 10 female British shorthairs I bought them as pets but my intention is to sell one


At a profit I presume?


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## Myra Ali (Dec 18, 2016)

Does anyone know the answer to my question can you please help


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## Myra Ali (Dec 18, 2016)

pipje said:


> That's your answer, Myra. I'm afraid your kittens are from a backyard breeder and are not suitable for breeding sadly as you don't know their medical histories (and can't trust their breeder to let you know), they have no pedigrees etc.


I've gotten them checked out by the vets both my kittens are perfectly healthy


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## Guest (Dec 18, 2016)

Myra Ali said:


> Does anyone know the answer to my question can you please help


I'm not sure, but I would presume that if you have no pedigree and therefore no idea what colors are behind these kittens, then you have no idea what colors they might produce.

Have you considered the huge number of unwanted cats and kittens that already exist? Do you have any good reason for adding to this pet overpopulation problem? 
I'm not against breeding, I am against breeding irresponsibly, which it appears that you are considering.


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## SusieRainbow (Jan 21, 2013)

I think it's really admirable that you've come for advice before deciding to breed, we get so many panick-stricken owners who are out of their depth when it's too late to do aanything about it !
The answer to your main question is clearly - if you don't know the kittens parentages you have no way of knowing what colour genetics are involved.It's a very complex topic.
Also you have no idea what congenital faults could be present in the parentage /lines , there are tests that can and should be done prior to mating..The cats should also be tested to ensure they are not carrying any diseases that could affect the kittens in any way.
In addition the Cat rescues are full of unwanted cats , I mean full beyond capacity. There is no need to breed any more.
I hope that helps


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## Myra Ali (Dec 18, 2016)

SusieRainbow said:


> I think it's really admirable that you've come for advice before deciding to breed, we get so many panick-stricken owners who are out of their depth when it's too late to do aanything about it !
> The answer to your main question is clearly - if you don't know the kittens parentages you have no way of knowing what colour genetics are involved.It's a very complex topic.
> Also you have no idea what congenital faults could be present in the parentage /lines , there are tests that can and should be done prior to mating..The cats should also be tested to ensure they are not carrying any diseases that could affect the kittens in any way.
> In addition the Cat rescues are full of unwanted cats , I mean full beyond capacity. There is no need to breed any more.
> I hope that helps


Thank you


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## Linda2147 (Sep 26, 2013)

this is why I am a buyer and not a breeder. My bengal is purebred and registered but my siamese is a rescue. So many cats need homes and she was about to be put down because no one wanted her so I took her. My bengal was a mother's day gift but the siamese I got as a companion for him. Of course both are fixed. I don't do baby anything, I will not add to the problem of overpopulation. I know the siamese isn't a purebred but it doesn't matter, she needed a home, she neither knows or cares what she is, she just needed a home.


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## Cookieandme (Dec 29, 2011)

ouesi said:


> You bought two but you're going to sell one of the two you bought? Why?


Very sad. They also look very young


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## havoc (Dec 8, 2008)

Cookieandme said:


> They also look very young


They do don't they. Both look the same age too but as they aren't brother and sister presumably not from the same litter?


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## simplysardonic (Sep 1, 2009)

Myra Ali said:


> Does anyone know the answer to my question can you please help


I suspect nobody is willing to answer your question because your kittens don't meet the criteria for responsible breeding.

Colour (unless there are health implications such as merle/merle or high white/high white breedings) is really one of the less important considerations when breeding responsibly, especially very young, unregistered kittens, with little or no background on their ancestry, that potentially came from an unethical breeder.


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## chillminx (Nov 22, 2010)

I agree with the others, your kittens look very young. The chocolate one looks as though his eyes are still slightly blue which means he could be as young as 6 weeks, probably no more than 7 weeks.  Very upsetting they have been taken away from their mothers so young, poor little mites.  Good practice kitten care would mean they stayed with their mothers until at least 12 weeks old.

As others have said you would be unwise to breed from these kittens when you have no idea what genetic health risks they are carrying. Any kittens you breed will not be pedigrees but moggy kittens and the Rescues are full of those anyway.


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## QOTN (Jan 3, 2014)

You say these kittens are British Shorthair but how do you know this if you have no paperwork? If they are the breed you claim they need a DNA test negative for PKD. If you were able to buy them before the age of 13 weeks they were not bred by a reputable breeder so you cannot know they have been reared properly. Although they are very sweet kittens they do not look good enough for breeding.


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## buffie (May 31, 2010)

Myra Ali said:


> View attachment 293919
> hi I was just wondering if anyone can help me? I have a chocolate male British shorthair and a black tortie female British shorthair they are still kittens at the moment but if I was to let them mate what colour kittens would they produce


Just to add something which I am sure I have read previously,forgive me if I'm mistaken.
Blood types are important when breeding BSH cats,I don't breed cats so have no knowledge of the ins and outs of this only that it can be dangerous for the kittens to suckle from mum for a period of time after birth if the blood types don't match.


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## SusieRainbow (Jan 21, 2013)

That's a very good point.
http://www.catvirus.com/Blood groups.htm#B queen to a blood group A tom cat depends
This explains it well.


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## spotty cats (Jul 24, 2012)

Always BSH, must be frustrating being an ethical breeder with so many bybs in the breed


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## OrientalSlave (Jan 26, 2012)

spotty cats said:


> Always BSH, must be frustrating being an ethical breeder with so many bybs in the breed


More BSH registered than anything else in the UK - over 28% - so there will be more BSH BYB. Suspect proportionally Ragdolls (14%) have more.

http://www.gccfcats.org/Portals/0/Analysis of Breeds 2015 by ranking.pdf?ver=2016-08-01-100706-223


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## havoc (Dec 8, 2008)

OrientalSlave said:


> Suspect proportionally Ragdolls (14%) have more.


I think you're probably right.


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## Squeaks (Oct 16, 2014)

Off topic but I suspect our neighbours are BYBs who breed two breeds: BSH and Ragdolls.


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## Little-moomin (Sep 28, 2008)

Please don't breed them. Get them spayed and neutered when old enough and just cherish them as loving pets. So many kittens in this world, rescues are full. And there are plently of very good breeders who know what they are doing, health test, and have money aside if something goes wrong. Can you afford a c section if needed?

And why sell one of the poor mites, after you've just bought them?!


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## spotty cats (Jul 24, 2012)

OrientalSlave said:


> More BSH registered than anything else in the UK


Yes I'm sure that's why, it's just a shame that most threads in this section are on breeding BSH, and so rarely by anyone who should be breeding them.


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