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A kitten is a juvenile cat. After being born, kittens display primary altriciality and are fully dependent on their mothers for survival. They normally do not open their eyes for seven to ten days. After about two weeks, kittens develop quickly and begin to explore the world outside their nest. After a further three to four weeks, they begin to eat solid food and grow baby teeth. Domestic kittens are highly social animals and usually enjoy human companionship.
The Manx cat is a breed of domestic cat originating on the Isle of Man, with a mutation that shortens the tail. Many Manx have a small stub of a tail, but Manx cats are best known as being entirely tailless; this is the most distinguishing characteristic of the breed, along with elongated hind legs and a rounded head. Manx cats come in all coat colours and patterns, though all-white specimens are rare, and the coat range of the original stock was more limited. Long-haired variants are sometimes considered a separate breed, the Cymric.
An animal shelter or pound is a place where stray, lost, abandoned or surrendered animals – mostly dogs and cats – are housed. The word "pound" has its origins in the animal pounds of the agricultural communities, where stray livestock would be penned or impounded until they were claimed by their owners.
CC, for "CopyCat" or "Carbon Copy", was a brown tabby and white domestic shorthair and the first cloned pet. She was cloned by scientists at Texas A&M University in conjunction with Genetic Savings & Clone Inc. CC's surrogate mother was a tabby, but her genetic donor, Rainbow, was a calico domestic longhair. The difference in hair coloration between CC and Rainbow is due to X-inactivation and epigenetic re-programming, which normally occurs in a fertilized embryo before implantation.
Trap–neuter–return (TNR), also known as trap–neuter–release, is a controversial method that attempts to manage populations of feral cats. The process involves live-trapping the cats, having them neutered, ear-tipped for identification, and, if possible, vaccinated, then releasing them back into the outdoors. If the location is deemed unsafe or otherwise inappropriate, the cats may be relocated to other appropriate areas. Often, friendly adults and kittens young enough to be easily socialized are retained and placed for adoption. Feral cats cannot be socialized, shun most human interaction and do not fare well in confinement, so they are not retained. Cats suffering from severe medical problems such as terminal, contagious, or untreatable illnesses or injuries are often euthanized.
Purebreds are like cultivars of an animal species achieved through the process of selective breeding. When the lineage of a purebred animal is recorded, that animal is said to be pedigreed. Purebreds breed true-to-type which means the progeny of like-to-like purebred parents will carry the same phenotype, or observable characteristics of the parents. A group of like purebreds is called a pure-breeding line or strain.
A microchip implant is an identifying integrated circuit placed under the skin of an animal. The chip, about the size of a large grain of rice, uses passive radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology, and is also known as a PIT tag. Standard pet microchips are typically 11–13 mm long and 2 mm in diameter.
Commercial animal cloning is the cloning of animals for commercial purposes, including animal husbandry, medical research, competition camels and horses, pet cloning, and restoring populations of endangered and extinct animals. The practice was first demonstrated in 1996 with Dolly the sheep.
Genetic Savings & Clone, Inc. was a company headquartered in Sausalito, California that offered commercial pet gene banking and cloning services, between 2004 and 2006. The company was launched by billionaire John Sperling, the founder of University of Phoenix. Its Chief Executive Officer was Lou Hawthorne.
An animal rescue group or animal rescue organization is a group dedicated to pet adoption. These groups take abandoned, abused, or stray pets and attempt to find suitable homes for them. Many rescue groups are created by and run by volunteers, who take animals into their homes and care for them—including training, playing, handling medical issues, and solving behavior problems—until a suitable permanent home can be found.
In some countries there is an overpopulation of pets such as cats, dogs, and exotic animals. In the United States, six to eight million animals are brought to shelters each year, of which an estimated three to four million are subsequently euthanized, including 2.7 million considered healthy and adoptable. Euthanasia numbers have declined since the 1970s, when U.S. shelters euthanized an estimated 12 to 20 million animals. Most humane societies, animal shelters and rescue groups urge animal caregivers to have their animals spayed or neutered to prevent the births of unwanted and accidental litters that could contribute to this dynamic.
Operation Kindness is a no kill animal shelter for cats and dogs located in Carrollton, Texas. It is a non-profit organization and is funded through donations, receiving no government funding.
Petco Health and Wellness Company, Inc. is an American pet retailer with corporate offices in San Diego and San Antonio. Petco sells pet food, products, and services, as well as certain types of live small animals.
The Missyplicity Project was a project devoted to cloning Joan Hawthorne and John Sperling's dog, a border collie and husky mix. Missy died on July 6, 2002, at the age of 15.
A dwarf cat is a domestic cat with dwarfism due to rare genetic mutations that cause a disproportionate feline body. The mutation usually leads to significant health problems. Unlike undersized cats of normal proportions, dwarf cats suffer from the genetic mutations osteochondrodysplasia and achondroplasia. These genetic disorders of bone and cartilage are typically manifested as abnormal bone shape, poor growth or lack of growth, bowing of the limbs to the side – front legs are more likely to be affected, and spinal malformations.
Cat training is the process of modifying a domestic cat's behavior for entertainment or companionship purposes. Training is commonly used to reduce unwanted or problematic behaviors in domestic cats, to enhance interactions between humans and pet cats, and to allow them to coexist comfortably. There are various methods for training cats which employ different balances between reward and punishment.
Abandoned pets are companion animals that are either inadvertently or deliberately abandoned by their owners, by either dumping the animals on the streets, leaving them alone in a vacant property, or relinquishing them at an animal shelter.
Human interaction with cats relates to the hundreds of millions of cats that are kept as pets around the world. The inter-relationship involves companionship, communication and caregiving. Dating back thousands of years, cats were originally domesticated for their ability to control pests and later became valued companions. Cats communicate through vocalizations, body language and behaviors, forming strong bonds with their human owners. Owners provide the food, shelter, and medical care, while play and enrichment activities stimulate their physical and mental well-being. Despite their independent nature, cats enjoy human company and require understanding of their unique behaviours. Positive reinforcement training can shape desired behaviours, fostering a harmonious relationship between humans and their feline companions, built on mutual respect and affection.
ViaGen Pets, based in Cedar Park, Texas, is a division of TransOva Genetics, that offers animal cloning services to pet owners. ViaGen Pets division was launched in 2016.
References
- ↑ "Pet kitten cloned for Christmas". BBC. 23 December 2004.
- ↑ Miezan Van Zyl, ed. (2014). The cat encyclopedia : the definitive visual guide (First American ed.). London: DK Publishing, Inc. p. 214. ISBN 9781465419590. OCLC 859882932.
- ↑ Casci, Tanita (2005-02-01). "Purrfect copycat". Nature Reviews Genetics. 6 (2): 89. doi: 10.1038/nrg1545 .
- ↑ Anthes, Emily (3 January 2013). Frankenstein's cat : cuddling up to biotech's brave new beasts. London: Oneworld. p. 69. ISBN 9781851689682. OCLC 819521287.
- 1 2 "$50,000 Cloned Kitten Truly Isn't One of a Kind". Los Angeles Times. 2004-12-23. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
- ↑ Jha, Suzanne Goldenberg Alok (2004-12-24). "The world's first cloned pet (cost $50,000)". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077 . Retrieved 2018-01-10.
- ↑ Woestendiek, John (2010). "Chapter 14". Dog, Inc.: The Uncanny Inside Story of Cloning Man's best Friend. The Penguin Group. ISBN 9781101494899 . Retrieved 24 September 2020.