The Elmarlay "A" Litter of Siberians

Well the kittens are five weeks today and I thought I would try and take some pictures they are not the best as both Alyssa (Pic 2) and Airlia (Pic 4) were having more fun trying to destroy the surroundings than actually pose for Pictures, Aviv (Pic 1) & Akimsa (Pic 3) were a little more reserved. Aviv is the only boy in the litter and he is turning into a handsome fellow. Alyssa is staying at Elmarlay as she just has something about her that makes me stop and look at her, she is the larger of the girls and she looks quite similar to her dad. See what you think.

Kindra

Well Kindra has bounced back in Kindra style, she had her stitches out on Friday and has a rather neat battle scar, the only reminder of her ordeal. She has settled back into life with the other girls. I still wish that she could have continued the Elmarlay lines but I have my beautiful girl and she is fit and healthy.

Her babies are starting to catch up with the other kittens, her little girl is a Tortie like mom but where Kindra is a Lilac Tortie, little bit looks to be either Blue or Chocolate. Her brothers colours are seal and red, they are looking to be both nice examples, with dads build starting to come in. Zahara & Phoenix are doing a great job in raising not only their kittens but Kindra's as well.

Kindra will be looking for a new home in a few months as I have decided that it is unfair on her to share her me time with all the other cats when she would be much happier as a lap warmer, and as she is only two she has a lot of love to give someone for many years ahead.

Cat breeding at its worst!!!

The weekend should have been a happy event for Elmarlay but it has been the most distressing and upsetting few days possible. Kindra my wonderful home bred girl was expecting her 1st litter and I was so looking forward to the mating as it intertwined both Brodie and Lexx's pedigrees with my own foundation lines the resulting kittens were to be my 4th generation. Disaster struck on Tuesday when Kindra went down hill rapidly and she was rushed to the vets where it was discovered that a small piece of placenta had broken away during delivery and caused a Pyometra infection she was close to deaths door and it was touch and go whether I would have my beautiful girl at the end of it, thankfully she has bounced back well but is unable to rear her kittens, so these kittens are being fostered by my other girls, but I am not hopeful that they will make it, so eight years of breeding cruelly cut short.

Zahara and Phoenix decided that they would deliver their kittens on Sunday and produced five each, Sadly one of Zahara's didn't make it but the others are doing well, Phoenix has also given us five as well three red boys and two seal tortie girls, these little ones came a few days early but are doing really well with good birth weights. They are also fostering Kindra's three surviving kittens and they are fighting a brave battle, only time will tell what the future holds.

I am so upset by the turn of events and considering what the future holds for Elmarlay, as it stands these are the final litters for us for the forcible future and could well be the final ones to be born here.

Sad times.

Champion Elmarlay Babbling Brooke

Brooke doing a bit of modeling at the Northern Birman Show on the 17th April 2010, photo's courtesy of Woozles Photography.

Time goes by

Well with the crazy weeks that have being going on a few decisions have been made, our final 2010 litters will be born in coming weeks and then Elmarlay is taking a twelve month break from breeding in the interim. I hope to continue to show if the cats are in good enough condition but 2011 will see us kitten free till very late summer or best case scenario 2012.

The girls have all started early this year and continuously called since early December so have either been mated or have been put on Ovarid to delay things, for some this hasn't even worked. The youngsters have also started calling but they remain far too immature to even contemplate kittens they have been ignored. I am in the process of assessing the two Birman girls that I ran on from last year who as six/eight week old kittens looked promising sadly now is a different story at twelve months they have gone off big style, I will monitor them till summer then if still not happy they will be neutered so we may have two girls looking for pet homes in coming months.

Roll on the coming months then peace and tranquility!

SIBERIAN CAT CLUB - Working Hard to Progress the Breed under GCCF

As a member of the Siberian Cat Club Committee, I have the task of putting together the extensive document that GCCF require to get the breed from Provisional status to the next rung on the ladder of Intermediate status in order to achieve full champion status under GCCF. The latter is a long way off as we have much work to do, the paperwork currently is progressing well but the area that it lacks is the need for GCCF prefix holder breeders to sign up to say that they are working with the breed. If we don't have the breeders then the progression stalls and we don't go forwards, would be a shame for the Siberian not to have the accolade of achieving a tittle under all the registries.

My plea is simple if any Siberian breeders are reading this please contact me for a form to fill in and send back to me or if you are at a Show and know other breeders are at the show take a few forms and get the signed the more breeders we have the better, it shows that the Siberian breed is being developed within the UK.

Contact me on - baxtella@yahoo.co.uk

Mixed up few days

Well it has been quite a rollacoster ride here, River our wonderful Birman girl decided to go into labour on Friday, this was not going be a joyous birth from the start as the 1st kitten was stillborn, she delivered her 2nd kitten a lively girl who was very much alive, River sadly then went into distress and was rushed to the vets where a rather weighty lad had got stuck and was blocking the birth canal for the others, so an emergency C-section was performed to help mom and babies the big boy was sadly also dead, but two other kittens were fit and well and came through the operation with mom. River being a natural earth mother took to her brood with no fuss and is happily feeding and sorting her babies.

We have two girls and a boy and looking this evening at the colours starting to appear I think we have a seal tortie girl, a Chocolate/lilac Tortie Tabby girl and possibly a chocolate series tabby boy, but these are only my guessing at this time, I will be able to confirm the colours better in a weeks time.

We are also dealing with a family bereavement so anyone emailing me things may take a bit of time to come back to you sorry.