Purebred vs Moggie
Two Purebreds and a Moggie Boy
What is a moggie? It is a fun way to say domestic long/medium/short hair cat. Or like my ma said a Heinz 57. In the United States we call any cat that is not a purebred a DSH, DMH, DLH. Across the pond in the United Kingdom, they call them moggies, and I love that! We have a moggie boy named Frank. He is a Black Domestic Short Hair. We have Louise who is a classic tabby Domestic Medium Hair. Doesn’t it sound way better to just call them a moggie boy and a moggie girl? Frank and Louise are no less special to us than our purebred residents around here.
A purebred is a cat whose ancestors all come from the same recognizable breed, resulting in predictable characteristics and temperaments. To be considered a purebred its lineage is formally recorded and verified by a cat registry like CFA or TICA.
Why do we breed? Why don’t we let cats be cats? The predictability is one reason. Let me tell you a story from personal experience. When Frank was about 2 years old, we decided to take in a rescue kitten. This baby was found inside a brick wall and had to be cut out. He was about 5 weeks old. As he grew, he became a wild child! He was an orange tabby DSH.
Frank was born mostly blind and gets around marvelously. After we had this kitten for a few months we noticed a significant decline in Franks general health. He lost weight and stopped grooming himself. We took him into the vet and ran about 1k of tests to find out what was wrong. The conclusion was that the orange tyrant was making Frank beyond miserable. He took to hiding because he didn’t know when the next banzai attack would be dropping in on his head.
We had to make a decision quick as Frank had lost a lot. We found an amazing home for this orange guy. He is the king of his very own castle. He runs it just like he ran Frank- with banzai attacks. The difference is he isn’t doing it to a blind cat anymore.
The point of this story is we were resigned to have only Frank. Then it came to me! Reliable, predictable characteristics! A ragdoll would be a probable companion for Frank. Charlotte came to live here and they are best friends! Jack integrated in beautifully! Ragdolls are playful but they are gentle with their playtime. Careful breeding and proper socialization help to ensure gentleness in ragdolls. Their temperament is in their breed standard. I think one of the only cat breeds to include it.
Moggies are the wild wild west! I adore my moggies; Frank is one of my very best friends. Ragdolls are the best cat friend for Frank. We all live together happy and healthy. I have Frank and he has Charlotte and Jack! We all have each other.
