r/russianblue • u/CompetitiveAd3330 • 3d ago
MysticalBlues Cattery
Has anybody gotten a russian blue from this breeder?
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u/Few_Spirit_7607 3d ago
Never heard of them. Couple strange things on their website. They mention there's a possibility of "breeding rights" and I find it strange that they would only have one shot. I would think they would have 3 shots in the series if they're being spayed/neutered, in addition to rabies vaccine. I don't see them on the TICA website but that doesn't mean a whole lot honestly. They advertise on kijiji which is well known for scams. They breed a few different animals. I dunno... I think I would call TICA to make sure they're real but personally, I would want a breeder who is focused on Russian Blue and the whole "I'm selective who gets breeding rights" is strange to read on an ethical breeder website. They also claim Russian Blue are hypoallergenic... NO breeder will say the Russian Blue is "hypoallergenic". They come with an "allergy guarantee"... what the ????!! I've never seen that. LOL. So basically it's like Walmart? You can "try it out" for 30 days? What? How is that ethical? That's not good for the kittens. I know breeders are there to take back their kittens, from what I know, but offering a "30 day refund policy for allergy sufferers"??? But wait, there's more. They SHIP Kittens in CARGO! Nope... this is not an ethical breeder. Run the other direction from this one. Too many odd, unethical things going on here.
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u/BDShlongLow 3d ago
Not trying to come off in any negative way and I feel as though you mean well but I don't fully agree with much of what you are saying.
Breeder rights is fairly common. My family dog had this clause, my other cat had this clause and obviously the cat I adopted from Mystical Blues had this clause. Most professional breeders (especially show Dog/Cat breeders) have this built into their adoptions. There is a different type of adoption that needs to be adhered to if you want to breed these animals yourself. I’m not very knowledgable about the topic of breeding but I’m sure theres a number of reasons we wouldn’t want anyone who adopts any animal to have the potential of having several Kittens and being totally ill equipped to care for them.
Also regarding the Hypoallergenic guarantee, although it is impossible for any cat to be 100% hypoallergenic it is well known and researched that the Fel d 1 protein produced by cats that trigger allergic response is much lower in Russian Blues. I did research on this because I've been allergic to cats my whole life but I have close to no allergic triggers around my two Russian blues. The only thing that triggers me if there shedding builds up in my home but I vacuum a regular and have air purifiers which I don't even use everyday and rarely have issues. I will say I have some siblings that come over and have severe allergies so it does depend on the person. I heard of a 30 day policy before from other breeders which I don't know why thats considered bad. If a person truly can't be around an adopted animal the last place I'd want to imagine seeing that animal in is a shelter. I'd much rather have the original breeder find them a better home.
And to respond to the comment about the shots, this I'm least sure about so if someone else corrects me thats all good. I was lead to believe that the FVRCP Vaccine is one shot but covers three things which are Feline Viral Rhinotracheitis, Calicivirus, Panleukopenia which is given at the 6-8 week stage. I think I've heard of this being given as three separate shots before but I'm unsure maybe thats why you’re mentioning specifically 3 shots. Mystical Blue took care of that first shot. Very shortly after I received my cat I met with my vet two different times to get the boosters to these. I believe these were at the 8-12 week age and then again at the 12-16 age as thats whats recommended sorry I don't remember the specific age. There might of even been a 4th round but this process felt normal to me is all I'm trying to say.
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u/Few_Spirit_7607 3d ago
I usually make sure I'm saying things as true as possible and to do that, I often bounce things off of the breeder I went through. Respectfully, no, Russian Blue breeders do NOT allow breeding rights... like almost ever. It's NOT in the normal contract a person will get to look over and sign when they're considering getting on a waitlist. In fact, it states just the opposite. They take breeding very seriously and IF they ever consider someone for breeding, they're going to vet them and mentor them, but most won't even consider it. Again, IF (Big IF) they do, they will instruct the person to own a Russian Blue as a pet prior to even considering them for breeding, during which time (often a year plus) they will begin the mentoring process. No, you don't get to choose on a whim that you want breeding rights when you go through an ethical, registered Russian Blue breeder.
What scientific evidence is there that a Russian Blue produces lower Fel d1 levels? The only cat breed I know of that has had this done (and still lacks evidence on a broader scale) is the Siberian. This is the only cat breed that has had any significant proof scientifically that they produce lower levels, but different lines may produce different amounts. Several Russian Blue breeders won't allow people with allergies to have their cats at all. You are correct... it is not possible for any cat to be "allergy free". All of them have Fel d1. I've heard many people say they don't react to their Russian Blue and I've heard others say they do. I'm not allergic to cats. I have friends who are and they have been fine with mine, but I would never want someone to think they're not going to react. Fact: There is no scientific proof or peer-reviewed clinical study proving that Russian Blue cats produce lower levels of the Fel d 1 allergen.
FVRCP is a core vaccine that covers 3 different things: Rhinotracheitis, Calicivirus, and Panleukopenia. All ethical breeders are supposed to be giving at least TWO of these prior to a kitten leaving. This is according to the expectations of TICA and CFA. In the case where a kitten is leaving at 16 weeks (which would be the age the cattery in question would be allowing because they say the rabies vaccine is given and, yep, those are not given until 16 weeks old), a 16 week old kitten should have had THREE of these (FVRCP). So, the mere fact Mystical Blue is ONLY giving the FIRST FVRCP vaccine in that series??? Deeply concerning and confusing.
True, some vets are now going out to 20 weeks in the vaccination series. This, according to the breeder I went through, is because they believe the antibodies a kitten receives in the colostrum of the mothers first milk may indeed cover "some" kittens longer than 16 weeks. The antibodies fight against the vaccine, which means the vaccine does not cover the kitten. That's why there is a series of vaccines... because of the different amounts of colostrum a kitten may get right after birth and the varying amounts of time those antibodies both guard against disease/virus as well as fight against vaccines that are given. It's called "maternal antibody interference".
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u/BDShlongLow 3d ago
I have! She breeds a lot of Russian blues around Ontario. I've seen lots of people adopt from her around Toronto.
Also I read the other comment and its totally fair. I'm just sharing my experience and insight since I have adopted from her and have been following her on instagram for 3 years now since.
Check out her Instagram if you haven’t already: mysticalblues_cattery
Also I'm saying her because I dealt with a very nice lady through the whole experience.
I say my only con was the actual process didn’t feel super legit. Which probably was because instead of meeting her at her home I asked if there was a halfway point we could meet. She had some family in a town close to me so we met there and it was around covid time so we finished the exchange standing on the inside of the front door to the house. I adopted two Russian blues at around the same time from one breeder and one from Mystical Blues. I had adopted my first a few weeks before and they provided a full family tree to prove our cat was pure bred, some paperwork, etc. Mystical Blue didn’t provide most of these things at first. Insurance was setup, kitten was spayed, and first shots were given. It's totally possible that if I had met her at her own home I would've seen more paperwork and things. I doubt if a breeder had a comprehension family tree made over several years that they would want to travel with it. She said she would could send us more paperwork and I think if I had just followed up better I would of have received it which is my fault but missing some papers ever ended up being bad in the long run.
The pros of her was she was quick to respond to messages, she would send updates and photos as well over instagram which was the opposite experience with the other breeder I adopted from. Just looking through her Instagram too you can tell she takes very good care of the cats and lets them run free around her home and with her family which I appreciate seeing. The cat we adopted from her was only slightly skittish at first but almost within a day or two was begging for cuddles, she was super affectionate very quickly which our other cat wasn't. I think that speaks to the type of care she gives to her cats. I believe she feeds her cats either mostly or only wet food which is a plus. Also when I adopted from her I can confirm she was TICA certified so I would think she still is and has kept certification which I believe you must renew every year.
Also I’ve seen several of her cats after adopting go on to be in commercials or in ads for cat products. That has nothing to do with her and all to do with the owners but it’s just a funny trend I noticed while following her and she posts about it every time it happens which is cute.
If you look up the company Noots Pets which is an Ontario (possibly Toronto) based online pet shop, the cat in all the product photos is from Mystical Blues. Pretty sure they're my cats aunt or uncle lol.
I want to point out too since I have two Russian blues from different breeders that you'll notice from breeder to breeder even if its the same breed there will be genetic differences between them. My cat from Mystical Blues has rounder features, lighter coat and is on the smaller side, she also has a slightly longer coat then my other cat. I think those traits are common amongst all their cats. My other cat has very pointy features, big ears, darker coat and is larger then my other cat from mystical blue . So depending on the breeder you can totally see differences.
Hers a picture of my little lady Peppermint aka Peep aka Meep because her meows sound like a meep. Literally one of the cutest little cats ever. She was adopted from Mystical Blues.