BuyersBeware

To all of you interested in breeding any of the Dwarf breeds, please do yourself a favor and check at least three generations of
pedigree prior to purchasing a breeder for your program. And talk to your vet for their opinion. I am far from an expert in the
Experimental Breeds, such as Skooks, Kilts, Kinks, etc. Nor am I an expert in Munchkins, because I do not Show them and do not have
an interest in Showing them. And the Experimental breeds are nowhere near the point of being Showable so this is much less
important to them. The Munchkin and the Napoleon are another matter because both have advanced past the Experimental Status.
These cats stay in Experimental Status until a determination is made regarding the viability of the Hybrid and whether or not it will
produce healthy kittens. As an example, I was intrigued with the Scottish Kilt (Munchkin/Scottish Fold Hybrid). My vet bred Folds and
had them running around her office. I fell in love with their mischievous and adventurous nature and thought what a great personality
mix they would make with the kittenish and playful nature of the Munchkin. I looked for breeders and found one and began dialogue
with her. I then determined to discuss it with my vet prior to making any purchase. She explained to me that the Folds are
predisposed to degenerative spine disease and the thought of mixing that with dwarf legs made her envision a breed of cat that more
often than not would be dragging its back legs from paralysis. It made perfect sense to me thinking about short little legs attempting to
stabilize a degenerative spine. I never thought of the Kilt as a viable breed since. That is only my opinion and years of study may
prove myself and my vet wrong. But, that is what the Experimental Status is for. To find these things out. Also, the degenerative
spine disease is not specific to the Standard Fold (folded ears), it is just as prevalent in the Non-Standard (regular ears). Also, you do
not have to be a genius in genetics to know that breeding outside of the accepted Breeding Program will not benefit the breed.

Because the Munchkin Breed Group and Persian Breed Group make up the hybrid breed of Napoleon, I have done just enough
research to ensure that I am getting what I want for my Napoleon program when purchasing a new cat for breeding. Please educate
yourself on TICA rules and regulations. It is great to be up to date on rules and regs of many of the different registries, but it is TICA we
are petitioning for advancement of the Napoleons and it is their rules we must abide by.

I have heard so many new breeders say that they were told, if it looks like a Napoleon, you can register it as a Napoleon. That is simply
not true. And whoever is telling them that is doing a terrible disservice, not only to the breeder purchasing from them, but to the breed
as a whole.

There are very specific rules regarding breeding to Unknowns and breeding to Unacceptable Outcrosses. So, first, what is the
acceptable breeding program for a Napoleon? Very simple - breeding any member of the Munchkin Breed Group (Munchkin Short Hair
and Munchkin Long Hair) with any member of the Persian Breed Group (Persian/Himalayan/Exotic Short Hair) or with any member of
the Napoleon Breed Group (Napoleon Short Hair and Napoleon Long Hair). That is it. No other breed is acceptable to create a
Napoleon. So, if you are about to purchase a "Napoleon" for your program and you find ANY OTHER BREED within three generations
of that cat, you may not have a Napoleon at all, or you might have a Napoleon without Showable numbers. And that is what we are
working towards - Showing our Napoleons. It takes three generations to breed out an Unknown or Unacceptable Outcross. Do not be
fooled by what the cat looks like. Worry about what that cat's kittens will look like and if you can show them or not, and for that matter
if you can sell them or not. Experienced breeders are going to check the pedigrees.

Unknowns are simple to define. You are telling TICA that you do not know one of the parents or their pedigree. You see this a lot in
Munchkin pedigrees because many breeders take their Munchkins to whatever they want. They do this to breed in a certain look and
define that parent as Unknown. What this means is that the breeder has to breed down three generations of kittens to get a Munchkin
with Showable numbers. What this also means is if they breed one of these kittens to a Persian Breed Group and produce Napoleons
and sell it to you to use in your breeding program, you are still two generations away from having a Napoleon with Showable numbers.
That makes your kittens extremely difficult (pretty much impossible at this point) to sale to any breeder that is interested in Showing
their Napoleons and/or are breeding high-end, quality Napoleons. And as the breed becomes more popular it will effect pet sales also.
Who wants to pay these prices for a pet that is not even Showable. I wouldn't. The same is true for Unacceptable Outcrosses. This is
also simple to define. You are telling TICA that you bred to a recognized breed outside of your accepted breeding program as outlined
above. So, if you use a Siamese or British Short hair or Maine Coon bred to your Napoleon it is an Unacceptable Outcross and it will
take you three generations of breeding inside of the acceptable breeds to get Showable numbers.

If you are unsure about whether or not the cat you are interested in purchasing will provide you with kittens that have Showable
numbers, please call a Napoleon Breed Group Committee Member, which as of now consists of Margie Gardner, Chair; Peggy
Chenault, and Dawn Lott. Our only mission is to advance the Napoleons and to do that we need responsible breeders out there
breeding towards the Breed Standard and breeding inside the acceptable Breeding Program.

Please do not let someone sell you a round faced kitten as a Napoleon to find out later that it is not even a Showable Munchkin. TICA is
very specific in the Munchkin and Napoleon rules that breeding to any recognized breed other than those within the Breeding Program
is an Unacceptable Outcross and it is easy to understand that breeding to an Unknown will not net you Showable kittens. Also, make
certain to see pictures of the Dam and the Sire. Of course, if the breeder you are purchasing from is unscrupulous, they can and will
show you pictures of whatever cat they think will make you happy. Again, a warning to only do business with reputable breeders. In
the past eight months, since I have been involved with this project I have heard of breeders falsifying registration documentation,
which is last thing we want to see in our Napoleon programs. The scariest part of this is that many breeders do not see anything wrong
with this. There are things you can do to assure you got what you paid for. Say, you purchase a Munchkin and you are given a three
generation pedigree showing nothing but Munchkins and a litter is delivered and right in the middle sits a Kink kitten. Obviously, there
is a Curl somewhere in the kitten's background. You can request a 10 generation pedigree and see if you can find it. If not, then you
have been taken and someone falsified a registration certificate. You can also pay for DNA testing for parentage on a kitten you are
concerned about. These are time consuming and expensive tasks, to what end? Never ending battles with the breeder you purchased
from? My advice would be to alter the cat in question and sell it and all of it's kittens as pets and move on. Then never do business
with that breeder again and let them know how unhappy you are with them and warn any other breeders you know about what
happened. It is the only way to shut these people down. If you ask a breeder for photos of the Dam and Sire and a three generation
pedigree and they cannot or will not give it to you for any reason at all, then move on to find another breeder. You know all you need
to know about that one.

I was asked to add this to clarify the above information. Mutated genes do not jump generations. Either the cat carries it or does not.
In other words, you cannot breed two Non-Standard Napoleons and get a Standard Napoleon or two non-standard Folds (regular ears)
and get a standard Fold (folded ear). However, there are many times (especially with new breeders) that the gene is not instantly
recognizable. I have seen a Fold with one ear flopping and the other ear straight. Neither ear was folded properly. Someone not
familiar with this breed would see that ear and think it was an injury or birth defect or whatever. However, this cat does indeed carry
the gene. He was bred to a NS Fold and half of the litter was born with perfectly folded ears. I have seen a Kink-a-Low with only a very
slight curl that to someone unfamiliar with a Munchkin might be mistaken for another Munchkin feature, rather than a second mutated
gene that will indeed throw curled eared kittens. I hope this clarifies any misunderstanding above.

If you are only interested in breeding for pet quality kittens and do not care about the Showable numbers, that is great and there is a
huge market out there. Just be up front and honest with your customers that this is a pet quality kitten, not breeder or show quality
and price your kittens accordingly. And, of course, those breeders who breed the new Experimental Breeds are doing us all a favor,
because that is how you get a cat like the Napoleon. Just make sure they are reputable breeders that are putting the cat's best interest
first.

Information is your best weapon against purchasing an unsuitable cat for breeding Napoleons. Ask a lot of questions and check
references. And always remember that your Committee Members are here for you. You can find their names and email addresses on
the Home Page.

And remember - do not believe everything you read or that a breeder tells you. Ask for client references prior to purchasing a cat.
And then check with other breeders. Please help us maintain the integrity of this beautiful new breed of Napoleon. Stay away from
breeders who want to keep us (Napoleons) in the experimental phase of breeding.

CHECK YOUR PEDIGREES PRIOR TO
PURCHASING A CAT FOR YOUR BREEDING
PROGRAM

THINGS TO CONSIDER PRIOR TO PURCHASING A KITTEN:

1.        What will you do with kitty if you or a family member develops an allergy?

2.        Do you have the space for a bed, storage for toys, litter pans, food containers, scratching
           posts, etc.?

3.        Are you financially able to provide adequate housing, food, litter, and veterinary care?

4.        What will you do with kitty if it becomes destructive (sprays/scratches/breaks items)?

5.        What will you do with kitty if you find that you are not compatible?

6.        Who will have primary care duties (clean litter box, feed and water)?

7.        Have you done your research on cat care (poisonous house plants, pest sprays, cleansers)?

8.        Have you done your research on cat breeders (experience, willingness to answer questions,
           recommended)?

9.        Are you ready for many years of pleasure and love and devotion and tons of fun?

SUGGESTED QUESTIONS FOR BREEDER:

1.        Is there a contract for you to review prior to purchase?

2.        Is there a health guaranty for you to review prior to purchase?

3.        If purchasing a cat as a breeder, is there a three generation pedigree for you to review prior to
           purchase (avoid inbreeding)?

4.        How does the breeder socialize their kittens in their program?

5.        What is the breeder's program like (everything from housing, feeding, health care, etc.)?

6.        What are the breeder's goals for their program (what are they trying to produce in their
           kittens)?

7.        Does the breeder Show some of their cats?

8.        Is the breeder a TICA Member or a member of any other Cat Registry Associations?

9.        Is their cattery registered with TICA and/or other registries?

10.      Is the kitten registerable as a Napoleon with TICA?

11.      If purchasing a cat as a breeder, will the kitten have a Showable registration number with
           TICA? (This indicates whether there are unknowns or unacceptable outcrosses within the
           past three generations and whether or not the cat will produce Showable kittens. This
           information isn't necessary if purchasing as a pet only.)

12.      Is this cat PKD clear? PKD is a kidney disease prevalent in the Persian Breed
           Group/Hybrids, such as the Napoleon. All breeders should be able to show proof that the
           kitten's parents are PKD clear, which makes the kitten PKD clear. Please note that PKD is
           found in any breed that might have a Persian Breed Group cat in it's background.

None of these questions or considerations alone, should deter you from purchasing a kitten from a
particular breeder if you feel comfortable that you are getting the kitten of your choice and that you
have enough information to base your purchase decision on. This information is provided more as
an educational tool, rather than a guideline by which to choose a breeder. It is meant more as hints
and tips about purchasing from any breeder and come away feeling happy with your choice of kitten
and knowing the decision to purchase a kitten was an informed one.