What am I missing? Apparently the prices of these are sky high - £1000 for a breeding girl, £850 stud fee, but as far as I can see, all they are is a cross between a Burmese and an Abyssinian x Moggy. The Australian registration policy specifies that the foundation breeds must be present in the proportions 50% Burmese, 25% Abyssinian, 25% Moggy (with various rules about what colours can't be used / carried). GCCF don't register them, I can't find anything about TICA registering them and they are only in the very early stages with FiFe. So unless the original breeder has managed to get some sort of international patent on the breed as happened with Ragdolls, what is to stop anyone else starting up a new line from foundation breeds?

Liz

Hi Liz
I asked about this breed a while ago on the cat chat forum (I think). Some people did know a little about them if I remember correctly.
They seem huge in Australia.
Em x

I think the people have spent a considerable time trying to perfect the coat on these cats. Just because they have used a moggie doesn't mean the breed is inferior.BSH were only moggies until the breeders started to work to perfect them and have them registered at GCCF.In some breeds years of planning and dedicated hard work have gone into perfecting the breeds established and some of the newer ones.Loads of money is lost by breeders when doing this as they have to pet out at a lower price all the original cats used to get the breed to the standard they have set themselves..Penny

No implication of inferiority was intended - and I do understand the difficulties - I just wonder what it is that makes one breed sell for three times the price of another breed that looks very similar, took just as long to develop and is already at Championship- status - perhaps it's down to the ability or otherwise of the initial breeders to market their "rare breed" product?

Liz

I agree that some of the breeds look similiar at a first glance until you look at them objectively and seriously.. I think that most breeds when they first come into the UK have a higher price tag. Sometimes it is based on attracting really serious breeders/new owners and put the cats beyond the BYBs.However come what may they will get their hands on them and they will become another cross breed for money.I am not knocking cross breeding or outcrossing if it has an objective, most of the new breeds have their roots their until they have what they consider the final look of the new cat breed.
Most people working on new breeds lose money hand over fist, as all of the progeny as they work along the pedigree, have to be petted out, usually at a loss, neither, would be, new owners or established breeders are interested in pedigree cats that have yet to have a proven market place and easily recognised name in the cat kingdom,
I agree the use of term rare breed if used in the wrong context can smack of get your cheque book out we're possibly going to fleece you. However in most cases it means if you are looking for a different breed to show off, or are enthusiast about embarking on a new adventure come on board ours.
Penny

I have been looking at these cats on kittenlist, they are very pretty cats, but as to the prices, remember how much bengals were when they first became popular, well over £1000 sometimes up to £2000 ,for a stud cat AND sold with restrictions,
I didnt expect to find at least 4 breeders of Australian mists already ,and although they might have a different temperament ,they look very much like Egyptian maus to me

It is the coat that is different and the colours. Penny

i think that people realy ought to learn a little before coming out with silly statements, It is not as simple as crossing 3 breeds of cat and getting an Australian mist, The breed creator in Australia has spent 30 years of her life creating what was originaly to be an enviromently friendly cat although it has gone way past that. She has a degree in genetics and spent many years with with an experimental licence under strict control of the NSW governing council breeding out all the traits that wern't wanted before anything like todays Australian Mist was created, They are realy special cats. And as for the cost has anyone everstopped to think just how many thousands of pounds have been spent just bringing them over from Australia and the months of work involved in each shipment?Please think before making silly statements and calling them inferiour, there are 6 breeders and all have links to Trudas website in Australia try reading and finding out about them first

Not sure what you are getting so defensive about Misty
May I politely suggest you drop the attitude problem. There are many experienced breeders and cat lovers on this forum, none of whom are critisizing this breed, just discussing it
Em

No-one has called them inferior. I for one very much like them.

A breed has to have a registration policy of some sort. In TICA the category VI registration rules (Australian mists are included in this category) allow free outcrossing of category VI breeds, no permission is needed. FIFe has a mechanism whereby a cat that is outcrossed can be moved to the breed it is supposed to be as soon as two judges think it is good enough. That only leaves GCCF who might, once the breed is granted preliminary status, totally ban all outcrossing - or they might not, since they are actively trying to widen gene pools.

So the bottom line is that whatever Australian Mist breeders might want, there is no way to stop anyone else registering a Burmese / Abyssinian / Moggy cross as an Australian Mist - and no way to stop them bringing in other breeds to the mix either. That answers the question I originally asked more than a year ago. I don't imagine the answer will be popular, but that is how I read the TICA and FIFe rules.

Liz