Your cat may be born with an excellent genetic makeup by the luck of the draw. Some cats are born with a fantastic ability to cross the road without getting run over. Several generations of kittens will inherit the ability to cross the road without any problems for generations to come. After five to ten years, this remarkable trait will slowly disappear due to a new Tomcat on the scene or too much inbreeding.
Genetic mutations will generally show up as your cat becomes more mature. I have had cats that inherited lung, anemia, breast, eye, ear, and liver cancers. Sometimes it does not matter that you diligently take your cat for his yearly checkups. The best taken-care cat in the world can inherit some genetic mutation that has kept quiet in his body for years until something stimulates it to rear its ugly head.
I had a Maine Coon cat given to me by one of my cousins years ago. She lived to be about ten years old. I had not had a Maine Coon cat born on my farm for almost thirty-five years, and then one of my pregnant female cats gave birth to a male Maine Coon cat. I gave him to one of my cousins for a house cat. She is delighted to have him as one of her pet cats.
Rex cats or hairless cats are a result of a genetic mutation. A farmwife discovered two furless kittens in her barn one day. She decided to keep the skinless kittens, and now we have a new breed of house cats that do not shed any coats in our homes.
We never know when some horrible genetic mutation might pop up and take the life of our beloved house cat or pet.
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