12 THE DOMESTIC AND LOXG-HATRED CAT 



CHAPTER III 

 Care of Stud Cat 



Never allow the stud cat to run at large, 

 but give him a large comfortable room with an 

 out-door run attached. Be sure that it has 

 windows and light. The room should be at 

 least six by six feet or it may be four feet by 

 eight or ten feet. If you have more than one 

 male, do not have their rooms adjoining, let 

 them be at opposite ends of the building, for 

 sooner or later they will become quarrelsome 

 and injure each other even through the wire 

 partition. It is a splendid idea to keep the 

 room next to the stud vacant for visiting queens. 

 In this way she can recover from her journey, 

 become acquainted with the male, who no doubt 

 will talk to her through the wire partition. I 

 find one-inch mesh chicken wire the best for 

 dividing the rooms, with a one-foot board at the 

 bottom. 



The male should not be bred from until at 

 least a year old, although some are very keen 

 under this age. Never let him have more than 

 one queen a week until he is fully developed. 

 It may be well to add that the male is rarely 

 fully developed until three years old but will 

 sire at an early age, but not to all queens, there- 

 fore if you desire a vigorous stud, do not use him 



