A lot of people around the world just love having a pet around.
It’s not something that’s limited to developed countries because even in the most isolated backwaters of the world, you will see at least one family that calls a dog or cat a pet.
But for some people, just owning a pet isn’t enough. They want to spread the love and joy of having one and that’s how breeders came to be. It’s not just about making money although that’s a very good motivator but rather having the satisfaction of seeing other peoples’ eyes light up when they come to pick up their new pet. There’s also the comfort in knowing that your beloved pet’s genes will continue on to the next generation.
Take a look at these cats!
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Video credit: Rumble
But one woman from Russia has gone a step further by using selective breeding to produce some unusual-looking cats.
To be fair, selective breeding has been practiced for generations and has produced various breeds of dogs and cats. The origins of selective breeding are actually more practical as people tried to come up with farm animals, for example, that were tougher, more resistant to illness, and so on. Science just took it to the next level through genetic manipulation. But the basic concept is still there.
For Tatyana Rastorgueva, 44, from Moscow, Russia, she painstakingly uses selective breeding in order to produce cats that have eerily human faces.
Tatyana started breeding cats in 2002 and the felinologist has used father cat Vatican and mother cat Lucien in order to produce a litter of Maine Coons that are not your run-of-the-mill kittens because they all have recognizable “faces.”
Tatyana even takes videos of her kittens and posts them on her Instagram account which has 80,000 followers.
Tatyana said: “I really love animals, cats have always been a part of my life.
“But I began to professionally breed cats in 2002, I have been working directly with Maine Coons since 2004. I like what I do, I can say that cats are my calling.
“Each breeder has his own vision of the breed and selects individuals for further selection according to those traits that are important to him.
“I can say that while working with the breed, I focused on the type of Maine Coon that I like, that’s why I now have a recognizable ‘face’ type of kittens in my nursery.
“This is just a long painstaking work of the breeder. I love all animals, especially cats. Maine Coons captured my heart completely.”
Replaced!