I have been negotiating with a breeder for a kitten. I'm in New Zealand, and we've been communicating via email and photos of the kittens and parents. So far, the parents are great and the four-week-old pictures of the kittens were ravishing. I just got some well-taken photos of my destined kitten at about 10 weeks, and she's looking--not scruffy, exactly, she's obviously healthy and full of personality, but not stunning. Her coat pattern is irregular (well developed on head and legs, vague on rest of body), her tail is striped just at the tip, and her tail fur isn't full. Looking at other Maine Coon kitten pictures, I can't tell if this is normal or not... Is this just the "kitten awkward stage"?

Thanks!

-- Anonymous, December 10, 1998

Answers

As a follow-up to this, after visiting the breeder, I got the kitten. She was one of two available from that litter: her scruffy self and an extremely plushy boy. If I'd just looked at the pictures, I would have taken the boy. The breeder and I had a tactful but frank discussion about her appearance and the possibility of me taking the plushy male. However, after watching the girl kitten interact with her brothers and the toys I brought, she was obviously bright and playful, whereas her handsome brother was more phlegmatic. The breeder had said earlier in our correspondence that she thought I might be "a good match" for this particular kitten. Well, twenty-four hours later, the kitten has shown that she is intelligent, fearless, and loving, with all the charming MC quirks. I'm delighted, the kitten's happy, and I'm favorably impressed with the breeder. Moral of the story: visit kittens if at all possible, and correspond with a good breeder!

-- Anonymous, December 20, 1998

Whoa! One year later...scruffy kitten is a vast, velvety fur boa of a cat, paws the size of Oreos, sulky owl eyes, the lot. An ugly duckling turned swan. So one gawky kitten made a gorgeous puss.

-- Anonymous, January 06, 2000

Hi Emily....I just had to respond to your e-mails here! I am so happy to hear how well things have turned out for you. It is true that kittens can go through "scuffy" periods and sometimes not look as cute and pretty as we hope. However, for MCs, as they turn more beautiful as they grow older (and they can take up to 5 years to mature!), you will probably end up with a glorious cat even from a scruffy kitten! You obviously have a good eye for a cat and recognized one who had the kind of heart you wanted. It is great to hear when buyers and breeders are so sensible about the choices of placement. You must have found an excellent breeder. If you would care to e-mail me privately with who it was, I would be most interested in hearing. I get e-mails from all over the place, asking for good breeder referrals and there is nothing as good as a word of mouth recommendation, like your experience. Purrs to your kitty!

-- Anonymous, January 08, 2000