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Listed in this article are some axioms that I have created as a learning tool.
These axioms are reflections of the temptations we face on a daily basis as cat
breeders. If one were to make a similar list for any human endeavor, I doubt it
would differ much from what I have listed. I think this list is one that we
should all review from time to time, for it requires maturity and
self-confidence to master - something we all should continue to hone throughout
our lives. The ultimate payoff is the ability to succeed in and to enjoy our
cat breeding careers.
I - Enjoy your cats
The primary reason anyone becomes involved with cat breeding and showing is a
fundamental love of cats. We treasure the companionship, the independent
nature, the delight they exude. We love to have them on our beds. Their
eagerness to face the new day, even when we wake them up at dreadful hours,
provides us a wonderment that brings back the exuberance of childhood. They
bring out the best of ourselves, they nurture the "big" us.
Unfortunately, cat breeding and exhibiting can tempt our "little" selves. It
can feed a fragile ego until it becomes a raging ego. Often, this need to feel
we are better than our fellow man is expressed in our possessions. We need to
have the biggest winner, the producer of the most grand champions, the most
grand champion kittens. We buy, we co-own, we collect. Soon we have no time for
cat pleasures, no time to play or scratch a grateful neck, no time to hold a
cat in our laps and enjoy the time together. Soon we have no room for more
cats; we stack them and crate them and store them as though they were baubles
that have no meaning but to make us feel important. We lose our ability to
love. Cat exhibition and breeding is a great vocation. It is creative and
challenging and very rewarding. But we must never expect our hobby to take the
place of a psychologist's work. We must never expect an unhealthy mental state
to be cured by self-indulgence. Far too many people take to showing and
breeding for the wrong reasons. Their houses go to ruin, their bank accounts
evaporate, their credit hits the skids, their spouses and children are left to
survive on their own as the breeder pursues their own manifestation of what
they perceive to prove their self-worth.
Being a cat breeder is a huge commitment. It means we should assign ourselves
the role of lifetime student. It means we will be humbled in countless ways and
in countless circumstances. It means our lessons will be of the hard knock
variety if we are to truly learn them. It means frustration, long hours, late
nights and early mornings. It means finding friendships - some of which will
last for a lifetime and some of which will founder, being built on social
advantage. It means being quoted and misquoted and having words put in your
mouth. It means being given ample opportunity to be as "small" as a human being
can be. But, hopefully, it can provide an opportunity to learn to be "big," to
be generous, inquisitive, and adventurous. We should never ask ourselves if we
are envied or important or successful. Those questions are meaningless. At the
end of the day, we should ask ourselves, "Am I proud of the person I've
become?" What we must always be are cat lovers. We must be their advocates. We
must ensure the life of every cat we breed and every cat we own is fulfilled
and an illustration of humanity at its finest hour. Our vanity must not be
stroked by having our pictures in a magazine or seeing our name on some ranking
system. Our self-worth must come from knowing we provide our cats a life of
love, of pleasure, and of happiness.
II - Breed for improvement not winners
It is easy to become lost in the purpose of breeding quality cats. For some,
the attraction of the bright lights, the glamour and the glitz cause them to
stray from the path. Developing a bloodline that is well considered and that is
a positive influence for the breed takes considerable discipline. Too often,
the seemingly slow and carefully orchestrated effort to improve a breed is
crossed up with the immediate desire to breed that one big winner and become
famous.
The breeder's pledge must be to harbor and safeguard the breed. No breed is in
perfect shape when the breeder happens upon it and none shall be perfect when
they leave. But to leave a breed in better shape than it was when you came upon
it is the greatest compliment. To improve type, temperament and health must be
the bottom line for every committed breeder.
Such accomplishment takes a long-range plan that is carefully thought through.
It requires dedication and purpose. All too often, we are sidetracked by our
desire to breed to the latest big winner, and then to the next and the next.
Before long the pedigree is a long list of "who's who" that have no
relationship to each other, other than they found success in the ring. What is
key to learn (and to believe) is that success in the ring is not an automatic
indication of the cat's true quality. We all wish one indicated the other but
that is too easy. It would require the removal of human fallacy to be
accomplished!
Cats do not excel for all the same reasons. Consequently, you can't simply
breed one big winner to another and produce more big winners. Every feature and
their nature of inheritance must be studied and understood before you can
"manage" the inheritance variables. Once you gain this skill, you are on the
road to producing a great line of winners.
III - To thine own self be true
The breeding of fine purebred cats should be considered the pursuit of
perfection - it is not the maintenance of it. All cats have faults; all cats
are less than ideal in some ways and areas. If not, the "ideal" has not been
well enough conceived. It is very easy to fall into the trap of being defensive
about one's own cats. This usually happens because what we assume to be correct
is challenged by another as being less so. This disharmony causes confusion in
our mind and ultimately unhappiness. To right ourselves, we often become
defensive and try to rid ourselves of that which is causing us the discomfort -
namely the opinion that does not complement our own.
We must realize that "truth" is the ultimate standard by which our decisions
should be made. Consequently, the best way for us not to be unhappily surprised
is to pursue knowledge relentlessly to ensure our opinion is as accurate and
close to the "truth" as possible.
This knowledge is gained in many ways, one of which is learning from fellow
breeders. We must fight the urge to make up our minds about something and
refuse to consider another viewpoint. Indeed, we do not make decisions based on
facts when we are first learning; we are depending upon what we perceive to be
the expertise of others to provide that for us. If that so-called expertise
is, in fact, faulty then our whole knowledge base is called into question and
that causes us great anxiety.
The best place to sit is in the seat of the knowledge seeker. Whenever provided
with an opinion that is different than the one you currently hold always seek
to under the viewpoint of the other. Why does that person perceive something
differently than you? Understanding another's point of view can be the road to
greater knowledge. If you shut that door and do not entertain the prospect of
learning something different than what you think is truth you will never
actually recognize the truth and you will not succeed in your goal.
Quite honestly, you should be more critical of your cats than anyone else could
possibly be. That is not to say you should attribute faults to your cats they
do not possess, but your evaluation must be as detailed as possible and you
must strive to see clearly their true faults and virtues; from this comes the
map to success.
IV - Deal with others as you would have them deal with you
Sounds a bit like the golden rule that we learn in childhood. Yet it is amazing
how many people forget this very important axiom. In dealing with others,
regardless of the matter, think always of the other person's position. I have
heard repeatedly people state how they were burned in a breeding arrangement.
All too often the agreement is geared toward benefiting one party (often the
seller) over another. Written agreements somehow are tainted as being only
needed in a contentious situation. This is the first misconception. Not having
a written agreement should be the very rare exception, not the reverse. Too
often should a worthwhile kitten be produced from one of these undefined
arrangements, the fight is on for possession. Before contemplating selling a
cat on a co-ownership or leasing it or offering stud service for a kitten back
you should think through what exactly you expect and desire from such an
arrangement. Too often these business dealings occur in the spur of the moment
during a telephone conversation, and the deal is struck before either party has
really had an opportunity to think it through. For some reason rather than
rethinking the situation, we tend to try to follow through on such an
ill-conceived arrangement only to end up bitter enemies in the end. If people
would stop and think about the likely end result they would realize the best
possible thing to protect the friendship is to have a written understanding.
It is very rare a litter is going to have more than one star if any at all.
Consequently, it is important to understand who is going to own that super
kitten, should it appear. People are too willing to tear apart relationships
should one person seem to benefit a bit more than another. This is too sad and
is reflective of the self-benefit motivation that all too many find as the
driving force for their actions. When pressed, it is far better to give than to
receive. It is far better to let the other seemingly benefit than to destroy a
relationship and acquire the reputation of being disreputable and self
centered, if for no other reason than it makes you grow as a human being, which
is probably a fair trade off in the long run.
V - By giving you have nothing to loose
Another pitfall breeders often experience is the inability to celebrate other's
successes. While certainly we feel the route we are taking is the best way to
approach that utopian plateau of breed perfection, there are actually many
routes to that same goal. It takes nothing at all away from our own
accomplishments to recognize the accomplished efforts of other breeders.
This inability and unwillingness to appreciate other's efforts usually comes
from having made a decision not to breed to certain bloodlines or deal with
certain persons. When such a cattery then produces a success, it is difficult
for us to acknowledge such an achievement for we tend to find that inconsistent
with our opinion of that particular person or family of cats. It takes quite an
honest and secure person to recognize and celebrate the accomplishments of
others.
While it is probably good advice to hold our criticisms closer to our chest,
recognizing another's achievement only brings good things. By being someone who
can see the virtues in breeding lines other than your own, you gain a
reputation of fairness and objectivity that is a very rare pearl in the cat
fancy. You may find, over time, that your point of view and your philosophies
are taken with much greater weight when others do not perceive them to have
originated in a mind consumed with self-aggrandizement. Thus, by doing so you
lose nothing and yet you gain so very much.
VI - Make use of others' achievements
One of the worst situations a breeder can find her/ himself in is to partition
themselves off from another cattery or bloodline. It is highly unlikely that
all improvements toward the perfection of a breed are going to come from one
single cattery or bloodline. Like flowers in the field, they will spring up in
various places. The clever breeder is the one who knows how to pick from all
the field those who will make the ultimate, sublime bouquet. And to do this,
you must be able to use the strengths of other catteries and bloodlines.
Breeders will tend to have certain biases; and quite honestly, there are
certain strengths and weaknesses in most bloodlines. While you may feel you
have achieved the highest ground in certain areas, there will doubtless be
other areas in which your cats and bloodlines are less strong than others. Not
to recognize this fact is to ensure you will plateau quite early in your
breeding career. And by that I mean you will stabilize and go no further. You
must always keep a watchful eye for that very special bloom that will enhance
your bouquet.
It is this sophisticated combining of families without losing the good points
of your own bloodline that strengthen a cattery and move it forward in breed
importance. It takes careful consideration, orchestration and pruning to come
to fruition.
VII - You are only as good as your morals
My last axiom addresses the whole issue of morality. It has many facets and
many ways of expressing itself. Spreading rumors, the accuracy of which might
be doubtful, is one very good example. Selling cats on super restrictive
contracts as a means to control other breeders is certainly another. Accusing
other lines of genetic problems while being less than entirely honest about
your own is yet another. In all, it goes to the very core of who we are. Do we
know right from wrong? Do we practice right in all circumstances? Cat breeding
is not about that one great win or that one great winner. It is about breed
improvement over time, it is about protecting a breed. Too many people are in
search of some kind of sign of their self-worth and they think they will obtain
some special level of respect and honor if they have a big winner. Cat breeding
is a lifetime's work. It is a continuum of which, no matter how quickly you
want to "put yourself on the map," will ultimately be a reflection of your true
character. To wit, you can't fool all of the people all of the time.
There is no honor in "adjusting" reality to give you the appearance of
achieving something you have not. Politicking for wins will not make your cats
any better than they are. Faking your cats will not make them any better than
they are. You may think you can fool the world, but you will ultimately pay the
price. No one wants to be a pretender. And yet some of the worst pretenders are
people who seem to be infatuated with spreading rumors about other people and
cats. These people live in glass houses and invariably they know it. The
breeding of cats is not about how you impress the neighbors, your peers or
anyone else. It is the expression of your love of cats and your personal
pursuit in creating an art. You cannot lie about the art you create; you cannot
lie to yourself.
While this list, I am quite sure, sounds like a sermon from the mount; it
encompasses the many pitfalls that we cat breeders face every day. Some of us
are equipped to navigate these disturbances better than others, but all of us
CAN navigate them. We are all tested from time to time, even the most educated,
psychologically balanced, intelligent and honest amongst us. There are times
when it feels much better to zing someone who has been hurtful, to control
those whom we feel do not have the proper motivation, to become the ones who
attract the adulation. Only through careful thought and well-considered action
can we hope to become better people and therefore better cat breeders.
Author Jon Kimes
Copyright ©
Pluperfect Kennels & Cattery
- 2006
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