# Blood typing British Shorthairs



## becbec31 (Jun 26, 2009)

Hi,

Is there a right age to Blood type a kitten? And roughly how much should I expect to pay at the vets?

I appreciate any help and advice.


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## spid (Nov 4, 2008)

Do it via these guys, Cat Tests you just need a cotton bud and take a swab - much less invasive and los less stress for you and your cat. Costs about £25 which is cheaper than the vets too.


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## colliemerles (Nov 2, 2007)

i have been reading about the blood groups, how in the british short hair you cant breed certain blood groups together, is it only the british short hair that you have to blood test, and how do you know which ones you can and cant breed, is there a book or something that tells you,


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## spid (Nov 4, 2008)

It's mainly BSH I believe as they have a large amountof B blood groups about 45%. Basically there are two MAIN blood groups A and B, breeding A to A is good as is B to B. Problems come when mum is a B and Dad is an A, then you have totake the kittens away for the first 18 hours as the mums milk will kill them cos if antibodies. You can do an A mum to a B dad but then you could end up with B kittens if mum carries for b (ie is Ab blood group) and have kittens carrying b and so you need to know that in a breeding program, cos you don't want to lose kittens through lack of knowledge. 

In the Birman world a lotof the red series are B group. It just means you need to be more careful with the studs blood group. Testing just takes away the uncertainty.

EDIT: no 'right' time to do a swab test


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## bimbleweb (Apr 15, 2009)

If you have a group B cat, it's recommended that you don't breed from it or B's should only ever be mated with B's. A's or A + AB or AB + AB is fine x


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## colliemerles (Nov 2, 2007)

wow i never knew all that, you learn something every day, thats why you gotta know what your doing when you go into breeding,


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## becbec31 (Jun 26, 2009)

Thanks for all that guys, wow this forum is brill only joined a couple of days ago! I know all about the Blood typing and incompatability in BSH. Its a B stud cat that I am after but wasnt sure of the best way to get it done and if there was an age limit on how old the kitten should be before you do it. The kitten I am looking at is only 3 weeks old now.

Thanks again x


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## becbec31 (Jun 26, 2009)

Spid - I have been looking on the website you reccomended and it looks great do you just swab inside the kittens mouth no need to take a blood sample? 

Thanks Bex x


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## spid (Nov 4, 2008)

becbec31 said:


> Spid - I have been looking on the website you reccomended and it looks great do you just swab inside the kittens mouth no need to take a blood sample?
> 
> Thanks Bex x


That's right - just a quick swish round the mouth.


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## messyhearts (Feb 6, 2009)

I've spoken to quite a few Birman breeders asking if they are strict with their blood group breeding as cross breeding causes the fading kitten syndrome - the symptom that is almost getting away with it is losing part of their tail or at it's worst is death. Most do this as it is a serious problem. So it isn't just BSH. It's caused by a litter of mixed blood groups suckling on a mother that has a blood group that doesn't match where antibodies cannot be passed on so kittens slowly "fade".


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## Saikou (Apr 2, 2008)

This site has really good explanation on the problems of different blood groups in a breed, together with details of the groups found in certain breeds
Dr. Addie - Feline Blood Groups


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## colliemerles (Nov 2, 2007)

Saikou said:


> This site has really good explanation on the problems of different blood groups in a breed, together with details of the groups found in certain breeds
> Dr. Addie - Feline Blood Groups


thats really interesting, i have saved it,so i can read it all properly,


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## Cerridwen (Jul 26, 2008)

A note on Dr. Addies information on A females bred with b males, there's NO risk for neonatal isoerythrolysis when breedind an A female with a B male! I don't know why Dr. Addie points it out as a risk, a good friend of mine is trying to get her to explain why but according to Dr. Urs Giger who's done a lot of research in feline bloodgroups (and blood transfusions) there's NO risk breeding an A female with a b male.

Knowing that I've bred my A female (b-carrier) with b male, having had b kittens in every single litter without any problems.

When it comes to blood typing I still use blood, not DNA. This due to many faulty DNA tests coming back from the various labs. Mostly on color tests but also in HCM tests and I'm not willing to take any chances with blood groups. I blood typ at my regular lab.


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