Sunday, October 3, 2010
Friday, October 1, 2010
Registering Mod Daeng - and Kitten Update
Since starting this blog about Mod Daeng, I've been asked by a number of my Burmese colleagues how this Thai import and her offspring will be registered. So I thought I'd take a moment to address what has already been done since she arrived in the United States, and what we hope will happen over the next few months in CFA (the Cat Fanciers Association) and in TICA (the International Cat Association).
This Fall, active members of the CFA Burmese Breed Council will receive a ballot containing a proposal to register Mod Daeng. If approved by a majority of council members, it will then be forwarded for confirmation by the CFA Board of Directors at their February 2011 meeting. Then her registration will be issued.
There are precedents for this action. This same process was used for Thai imports for the Burmese breed in the 1940s, in 1974, and most recently in 1997. Several of these imports, especially Mahajaya Toffee, are behind a significant percentage of the existing Burmese gene pool. Once Mod Daeng is given a registration number, then her offspring can also be registered as long as the sire of the offspring and their descendants are CFA registered Burmese, which is the case with this, her first litter.
Therefore, to achieve CFA registration for Mod Daeng, and to help us take this step towards improving the genetic diversity of our breed, it is of critical importance for CFA Burmese Breed Council Members to vote yes on this proposal. Some members may not want to participate in this project, which is their right, and others may be unsure of its viability. While only time will tell whether this will be successful, we already know that Thai imports in the past have indeed been successfully integrated into our breed. One only has to look at the descendants of Mahahaja Toffee to observe how many Burmese today still carry his lines.
A yes vote therefore will allow us to move forward with these breedings, and give us the time we need to see how today's Thai imports can help strengthen our Burmese lines. Voting no, on the other hand, leaves us in the same state we are in now, which is a precarious one with low genetic diversity and further divided gene pools. With no action taken towards genetic diversity, it is also quite likely the decline that has been occurring over the last decade and more will continue.
In TICA (the International Cat Association), we have already taken the steps needed to get Mod Daeng registered. In July, at the Mid Pacific Regional show in San Jose, and with the help of Dr. Cristi Bird and Kathryn Amann, I introduced Mod Daeng to a number of TICA judges. In TICA you can incorporate a cat without a known pedigree into a particular breed as long as three judges agree that the cat is suitable for use in that breeding program.
At the July TICA show we were able to acquire the three signatures needed to register Mod Daeng as an F1 or "Foundation" Burmese. Her offspring will be registered as F2s, her grandchildren as F3s. Once we achieve the fourth generation -- Mod Daeng's great grandchildren -- they will be allowed to compete in TICA shows. In the meantime, her offspring will be taken to shows at the appropriate age as exhibit only and shown to the judges so they can see the progress we are making from breeding those offspring to TICA registered Burmese. I have received confirmation that TICA has the signed paperwork, and am simply waiting for the formal registration to be issued.
I have also been asked if Mod Daeng's mink offspring could be registered as Tonkinese. All Mod Daeng's sepia descendants in TICA will be registered as Sable Sepia Burmese, and in TICA both Tonkinese and Bombay breeders are allowed to use Burmese as outcross. Some of these breeders may be interested in using her offspring as well for their programs. What I still have to confirm, however, is whether her mink offspring can be registered as Burmese, given that mink is not a recognized Burmese color in TICA. I will report on that when I have more information.
Should the CFA registration proposal fail, because we will have the TICA registration we will eventually be able to register Mod Daeng's descendants in CFA. However, that will take a very, very long time. Currently for Burmese eight generations are required before a cat from another registry can be brought into CFA. Therefore, if you believe that you should not breed a female until she is at least ten months old, and if she gets pregnant on the first breeding, assuming she goes into heat right at that time, then the most optimistic scenario is that you would have one generation produced every year. This also assumes that you have a suitable, fertile female each successive litter. Therefore the minimum before Mod Daeng's descendants could be registered in CFA, assuming all breedings go exactly according to this plan, would be eight years. More realistically it would be 10 - 12 years or more. Thus under the current CFA Burmese restrictions this would mean CFA registered Burmese would be unlikely to benefit from Mod Daeng's lines for quite possibly decades. I am quite certain we cannot afford wait that long to help our breed. Once again, I strongly encourage you all to consider how these changes can benefit our breed and for CFA Burmese Breed Council Members to vote in favor of Mod Deang's registration. It will give those of us fortunate enough to be working with this lovely new mom the chance to breed in the diversity that is so important to the future health of our beloved Burmese cats.
One other idea that I believe should be proposed to the TICA Burmese Breed Committee is to change the designation of Burmese to a "Natural Breed". If we can achieve that change, then future Thai imports could be registered immediately without the multi-generation registration requirement. Certainly it is without question that Suphalaks (Burmese), along with Siamese and Korats and other Southeast Asian breeds, are native to that area and have existed for hundreds of years and more.
KITTEN UPDATE!
I will try and post more photos of the kittens this weekend. Their eyes are opening and I am better able to see their expressions and the different contours of their faces. Some look very much like our Burmese kittens at the same age, others have longer noses and profiles. It will be interesting to watch them develop. They are large, vigorous kittens and Mod Daeng continues to be an accomplished mother. There is very little I need to do other than make sure Mod Daeng is well fed, has plenty of water and a clean litter box, and to change the linens in the nest as needed. I can't wait for these little guys to start walking and exploring -- perhaps I will be able to post some videos when that happens!
This Fall, active members of the CFA Burmese Breed Council will receive a ballot containing a proposal to register Mod Daeng. If approved by a majority of council members, it will then be forwarded for confirmation by the CFA Board of Directors at their February 2011 meeting. Then her registration will be issued.
There are precedents for this action. This same process was used for Thai imports for the Burmese breed in the 1940s, in 1974, and most recently in 1997. Several of these imports, especially Mahajaya Toffee, are behind a significant percentage of the existing Burmese gene pool. Once Mod Daeng is given a registration number, then her offspring can also be registered as long as the sire of the offspring and their descendants are CFA registered Burmese, which is the case with this, her first litter.
Therefore, to achieve CFA registration for Mod Daeng, and to help us take this step towards improving the genetic diversity of our breed, it is of critical importance for CFA Burmese Breed Council Members to vote yes on this proposal. Some members may not want to participate in this project, which is their right, and others may be unsure of its viability. While only time will tell whether this will be successful, we already know that Thai imports in the past have indeed been successfully integrated into our breed. One only has to look at the descendants of Mahahaja Toffee to observe how many Burmese today still carry his lines.
A yes vote therefore will allow us to move forward with these breedings, and give us the time we need to see how today's Thai imports can help strengthen our Burmese lines. Voting no, on the other hand, leaves us in the same state we are in now, which is a precarious one with low genetic diversity and further divided gene pools. With no action taken towards genetic diversity, it is also quite likely the decline that has been occurring over the last decade and more will continue.
In TICA (the International Cat Association), we have already taken the steps needed to get Mod Daeng registered. In July, at the Mid Pacific Regional show in San Jose, and with the help of Dr. Cristi Bird and Kathryn Amann, I introduced Mod Daeng to a number of TICA judges. In TICA you can incorporate a cat without a known pedigree into a particular breed as long as three judges agree that the cat is suitable for use in that breeding program.
At the July TICA show we were able to acquire the three signatures needed to register Mod Daeng as an F1 or "Foundation" Burmese. Her offspring will be registered as F2s, her grandchildren as F3s. Once we achieve the fourth generation -- Mod Daeng's great grandchildren -- they will be allowed to compete in TICA shows. In the meantime, her offspring will be taken to shows at the appropriate age as exhibit only and shown to the judges so they can see the progress we are making from breeding those offspring to TICA registered Burmese. I have received confirmation that TICA has the signed paperwork, and am simply waiting for the formal registration to be issued.
I have also been asked if Mod Daeng's mink offspring could be registered as Tonkinese. All Mod Daeng's sepia descendants in TICA will be registered as Sable Sepia Burmese, and in TICA both Tonkinese and Bombay breeders are allowed to use Burmese as outcross. Some of these breeders may be interested in using her offspring as well for their programs. What I still have to confirm, however, is whether her mink offspring can be registered as Burmese, given that mink is not a recognized Burmese color in TICA. I will report on that when I have more information.
Should the CFA registration proposal fail, because we will have the TICA registration we will eventually be able to register Mod Daeng's descendants in CFA. However, that will take a very, very long time. Currently for Burmese eight generations are required before a cat from another registry can be brought into CFA. Therefore, if you believe that you should not breed a female until she is at least ten months old, and if she gets pregnant on the first breeding, assuming she goes into heat right at that time, then the most optimistic scenario is that you would have one generation produced every year. This also assumes that you have a suitable, fertile female each successive litter. Therefore the minimum before Mod Daeng's descendants could be registered in CFA, assuming all breedings go exactly according to this plan, would be eight years. More realistically it would be 10 - 12 years or more. Thus under the current CFA Burmese restrictions this would mean CFA registered Burmese would be unlikely to benefit from Mod Daeng's lines for quite possibly decades. I am quite certain we cannot afford wait that long to help our breed. Once again, I strongly encourage you all to consider how these changes can benefit our breed and for CFA Burmese Breed Council Members to vote in favor of Mod Deang's registration. It will give those of us fortunate enough to be working with this lovely new mom the chance to breed in the diversity that is so important to the future health of our beloved Burmese cats.
One other idea that I believe should be proposed to the TICA Burmese Breed Committee is to change the designation of Burmese to a "Natural Breed". If we can achieve that change, then future Thai imports could be registered immediately without the multi-generation registration requirement. Certainly it is without question that Suphalaks (Burmese), along with Siamese and Korats and other Southeast Asian breeds, are native to that area and have existed for hundreds of years and more.
KITTEN UPDATE!
I will try and post more photos of the kittens this weekend. Their eyes are opening and I am better able to see their expressions and the different contours of their faces. Some look very much like our Burmese kittens at the same age, others have longer noses and profiles. It will be interesting to watch them develop. They are large, vigorous kittens and Mod Daeng continues to be an accomplished mother. There is very little I need to do other than make sure Mod Daeng is well fed, has plenty of water and a clean litter box, and to change the linens in the nest as needed. I can't wait for these little guys to start walking and exploring -- perhaps I will be able to post some videos when that happens!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)