90 



THE BOOK OF THE CAT. 



a new arrival in a room by herself, with a com- 

 fortable bed and conveniences, entirely away 

 from the rest of the cats and kittens, and 

 allow her to become acquainted with the 

 members of the family gradually. Do not 

 allow other cats to come bothering around 

 till the new member of the family is entirely 

 acquainted with its surroundings. Especially 

 be very cautious in introducing two male 

 cats. 



" Sellers must be very cautious in sending 

 out their stock, and buyers must not expect 

 too much. Give the new member of the 

 family a little time to know things before you 

 write your letter of complaint. Be sure you 

 are not expecting too much for the price you 

 paid." 



The question has often been asked, " Can 

 cats be made to pay ? " and, naturally, 

 novices in the fancy wish to know the best 

 way in which to make a good start. 



Here I would say how much may be done 

 by well-known and influential members of any 

 fancy if they will give themselves a little 

 trouble in helping the novice, who, after all, 

 is the backbone, so to speak, of every fancy, 

 and hence it is very essential that beginners 

 should start on the right lines and with reliable, 

 and therefore profitable, stock. Speaking from 

 experience in the cat fancy, I can say that 

 several persons have come into the ranks and 

 gone out of it again, in many cases through 

 sheer disgust because of the deceptions prac- 

 tised, and of which they, as novices, have 

 been made the victims. I hold that if begin- 

 ners are to be retained as members of a fancy, 

 they should be treated kindly and liberally 

 by the experienced fancier, especially when 

 it is a question of purchasing stock. It is 

 much to be lamented that novices are fre- 

 quently treated in a reverse manner, and 

 fanciers (so-called) seize upon an opportunity 

 of getting rid of superfluous and often inferior 

 specimens to those who are unable to discover 

 good from bad in the cats offered to them. 



At the same time, it is a pleasing fact that 

 there are many true fanciers in the feline 

 world who, having made their names as breeders, 



prize-winners, and perhaps judges, put them- 

 selves out to give valuable advice, and often 

 spare no pains in endeavouring to obtain good 

 stock for the novice at reasonable prices. 



Another question often asked is, " Does 

 showing pay ? " In answer to this query, I 

 give an extract from the pen of the clever 

 weekly correspondent of Fur and Feather, 

 " Zaida," who says : " To those who keep 

 their cats for pleasure, who really love them 

 and can afford to despise the small ' takings ' 

 available, keep your cats at home and do not 

 show. Expense does not count with this class 

 of exhibitor, but risk to the welfare of their 

 best-beloved pussies undoubtedly does. To 

 those who are trying to make money by their 

 cats, we would urge : harden your hearts, 

 learn how to show, where to show, and when 

 to show ; and recognise the expense, risk, and 

 trouble involved as part of the unavoidable 

 outlay which is to bring in a certain return. 

 Undoubtedly, a show is a heavy expense, and 

 will always leave you out of pocket. Even 

 if you conduct it on the most selfish terms 

 the ' give-nothing ' and ' take-all-you-can ' 

 system you will be exceptionally lucky if you 

 clear your expenses. You cannot expect to 

 sell your kittens well if you do not exhibit. 



"If you possess a stud cat, he must be seen 

 and known before you can hope to have a de- 

 mand for his services. Your own eye must be 

 continually trained by comparison of your own 

 stock with the prize specimens of others. In 

 short, if you wish to make money, you must 

 spend money. On the other hand, never ex- 

 hibit except at first-rate shows, and never be 

 tempted to show an animal out of condition. 

 If you can afford to buy animals already well 

 known in the show world, cats of renown, 

 for whose offspring there will always be a 

 keen demand, you may possibly abstain from 

 exhibition. This plan, however, involves a 

 very large initial outlay. Then, again, the 

 happy people who have won their laurels, 

 whose names are always associated with first- 

 rate animals of a particular breed, they, 

 indeed, can afford to rest in peace, and show 

 no more. Other people will buy their kittens, 



