BIG CATS

[The Sporting Agent 0]

Quote::

It is perhaps just as well that this moggy is happy to eat supermarket cat food.

 

It is the most expensive pet cat on the market – priced at £12,000 – so you might expect it to have more expensive tastes.

 

The Ashera, billed as the world's 'largest, rarest and most exotic' domestic cat, is the size of a small dog and sports eye-catching leopard-like spots and tiger stripes.

 

British businessman Simon Brodie is selling the designer kittens for £10,796 plus shipping costs – and already has a nine-month waiting list.

 

The Internet entrepreneur used a team of geneticists to develop the exotic cats at his US laboratory.

 

They are hybrids, cross bred from two wild c a t s – t h e African serval and the Asian leopard cat – with one type of domestic cat.

 

The bespoke cats stand more than 1m tall (3.3feet) on their hind legs and grow to a top weight of 30lb.

 

Despite their price, Mr Brodie insists the Ashera is a good tempered, low maintenance pet.

 

The London-born businessman, who now runs his company Lifestyle Pets in San Diego, California, said: 'The Ashera is unique. It's a beautiful cat, created using our special recipe. 'They are expensive, but we've already sold a lot in the US, in Asia and even in Russia. People who love beautiful pets will spend £12,000 on a cat, others spend that much on jewellery or a big TV.'

 

He began his quest to make the perfect cat three years ago, developing the hypo-allergenic cat priced at £4,906.

 

Why does the Ashera cost more than other designer cats? Mr Brodie said: 'We guarantee every kitten has the same colouring and appearance and we hand deliver it.'

[Guest Ditch_Shitter]

So, what are ye suggesting, TSA? People are buying up £10K + cats and releasing them into the british countryside?

[Guest manda]

Thats one lovely looking kitty! but dont think id pay 10k+ on one unless it was the worlds best hunter and could catch everything and anything, maybe if i won the lotto lol and had a big enough garden.

 

amanda

[twins 0]

So, what are ye suggesting, TSA? People are buying up £10K + cats and releasing them into the british countryside?

Sounds about right Ditch,they let them go haven't you seen the price of kittykat, them big cats must eat at least a couple of dozen tins in one sitting,cheaper to let them find their own grub

 

twins

[The Sporting Agent 0]

So, what are ye suggesting, TSA? People are buying up £10K + cats and releasing them into the british countryside?

 

 

Yeh....of course; you got a spare £10K???

 

Just thought it was interesting; there are a number of types of cat out there that we know very little about, the fact that this guy is cross breading is also a valid point as "experts" believe that many of the so called "big cats" that are reported today are just that; crosses of domestic and ferrel or larger wild cats released into the countryside decades ago.

[Guest manda]

Ud have to buy about 2 whole cows a week lol

[Dawn B 212]

So, what are ye suggesting, TSA? People are buying up £10K + cats and releasing them into the british countryside?

Just to say, Bengal, Ashera and Savannah Cats are all "domestic" but are all notoriously difficult to keep in. They climb and are relatively "wild" in their behaviour compared to other domestic Cats. Bengal rescue has the biggest problem of all pedigree Cat breeds, for finding them homes, they are inundated with Cats that try to escape and act "wild." Its very likely, that many of this "type" have escaped and indeed do live as wild Cats.

[Guest Ditch_Shitter]

Its very likely, that many of this "type" have escaped and indeed do live as wild Cats.

 

 

And what if I say, Dawn; You're wrong. I don't accept your hypothesis for one moment, untill you bring me a dead body, a govt. sponsered genetic result of proof of their presence or other concrete evidence? How come fox packs never find them? Why don't all these people out lamping ever come upon them? Why are large, exotic, escaped pet cats (worth thousands and never publicly heard of as having gone AWOL in the first place) not found as road kill?

 

Sound vaguely familiar? I wonder what Drops's view is, of your view?

 

Surely what's good for ones ideas is good for the others?

[The Sporting Agent 0]

I'm not arguing for one side or the other; they do exist, they don't, they are cross breads etc....I'm open to learning on this one.

 

But as for why have we not seen proof??? We have evidence of prints and kills etc; that may or may not be said pussycats. But take a look at how any wild cats in Africa or South America live; if they don't want to be seen they dont get seen, its that simple. The Snow Leopard as an example; we know its thare but despite many many efforts there have only been a hand full (if not less) of sightings..........

 

Also on the subject of proof; I have a book, quite old from the 70's I guess knocking about by a guy called Shucker I think. Think he lives in Ludlow. I was given the book, which is a research of big cast in the UK, by an old chap who was/is a friend of Shucker's who used to visit my shop. No idea where the book is at the moment, but if I can dig it out I'll post some of the info from it here. Anyway, I'm sure part of the story was that this Shucker chap has or had a carcass found on Much Wenlock or nearby, with pics of it in the book; and I think if I remember rightly it was used and tested on by some department or other back in the 60's/70's when the Maries were brought in in the South West to try and find a "cat" that was causing huge destruction. I know the whole thing was in the papers for months.

[Guest Ditch_Shitter]

Never mind me, TSA. I'm just winding our Dawn up a bit by tossing her own 'argument' (against anything she refuses to believe) back at her It's an old game by now. Getting a bit 'Old' too. But one has to play ones part.

 

 

Carl Shucker (or how ever the hell it's spelled)? I'd dearly love to read that book! I've been hearing about it for decades now and have never yet come across a copy. But I've heard the gist of his own base theory and, from what I know, I tend to agree.

[Ossie 11]

So, what are ye suggesting, TSA? People are buying up £10K + cats and releasing them into the british countryside?

Just to say, Bengal, Ashera and Savannah Cats are all "domestic" ...

...Its very likely, that many of this "type" have escaped and indeed do live as wild Cats.

 

 

And what if I say, Dawn; You're wrong. I don't accept your hypothesis for one moment, untill you bring me a dead body, a govt. sponsered genetic result of proof of their presence or other concrete evidence?

 

ditch, the breeds dawn mentions are not genuine "wild" cats, they are designer hybrids, created by crossing domestic breeds to wild breeds, and are fairly common as pets in the UK now. there were 2 litters of Bengals in the local Ad Trader this week, one week there were ten. being so heavily based on wild species, they will revert to a wild state quicker than a domestic breed, and be more reluctant to return to a home situation. i don't think people who are spotting wild cats are actually seeing pet bengals running around, as they aren't much bigger than a domestic cat.

[Ballybricken 1]

Ive read somewhere that the odd asian water cat has been hit by a car and same with a leopard cat , but there not massively different to a domestic cat so cant really see them bringing calfs and sheep down and are far from these labrador sized beast roaming the country. That coupled with the fact that the brunt of these released exotics were actually released way back in the 70's surely they'd all have died out by now, unless there breeding?? Its a topic that i'm very interested in but its one of them things i'd need concrete evidence before I believed it.

[The Sporting Agent 0]

Never mind me, TSA. I'm just winding our Dawn up a bit by tossing her own 'argument' (against anything she refuses to believe) back at her It's an old game by now. Getting a bit 'Old' too. But one has to play ones part.

 

 

Carl Shucker (or how ever the hell it's spelled)? I'd dearly love to read that book! I've been hearing about it for decades now and have never yet come across a copy. But I've heard the gist of his own base theory and, from what I know, I tend to agree.

Carl Shuker; thats him. Its a great book. Clear, no bull shit, plenty of facts and common sence without the whole X Files rubbish. Just wish I knew where it was......

 

The old guy that gave it to me was a friend of his, living on the Shrops/Powys border but orriginally from London. A bloody interesting bloke, shame I lost contact with him really. "All the best to 'ya Harry!"

 

I'll have to dig the book out; cant remember the name of it now; but I can picture the cover. Black hard back with yellow text on the cover and a pic..........!!

 

If I dig it out I'll let you know; otherwise try Coch-y-Bonddu Books in Machynlleth (I think?). That guy will find any book on the face of the planet!

[The Sporting Agent 0]

Ive read somewhere that the odd asian water cat has been hit by a car and same with a leopard cat , but there not massively different to a domestic cat so cant really see them bringing calfs and sheep down and are far from these labrador sized beast roaming the country. That coupled with the fact that the brunt of these released exotics were actually released way back in the 70's surely they'd all have died out by now, unless there breeding?? Its a topic that i'm very interested in but its one of them things i'd need concrete evidence before I believed it.

 

This Shuker book goes into detail about the possibilty of these original cats breeding with native ferrals and domestics, the "wild" cat having a stronger gene than the domestic resulting in the kittens being proportionally more like the wilder cat and obviously down the generations this gets stronger. There was also mention of a ketten pack leader killing its own domestic mother in an atack. All very interesting.

[Ballybricken 1]

I think i might look that book up , and theres another you mentioned it a while ago DS , 'the unatural wildlife of britain' or something similar , I duly googled it and drew a blank I'll try this guy I've bought a fair few books from him over ebay am sure he had a stand at lowther!