Breeders Profile

Lyndongraey Maine Coons & Siberians

Name:

(Photo credits as follows: Magic, Chilli, Willow & Bailey, Merlin – Lynne Geary; Erin, Anya & Kittens, Peaches with Dogs – Valentina Koulagina & Anatoli Krassavine; Vassiliy as Cat of the Year – Bob Fox; Vassiliy & Lynne – Beryl McMillan)

Tell us a bit about you:
I live with my other half, Ray, five Field Spaniels and 10 cats in a small village on the borders of Surrey, Sussex and Kent. I work for my local Council in the finance department part time, which allows me a bit more time with our four-legged family. We have had Field Spaniels for over 17 years and our first Maine Coon arrived in 1999, closely followed by our one British Shorthair in 2000 and then in 2003 our Siberians arrived. You will probably know me as I do a lot of stewarding at most of the shows.

Why did you choose your breed(s)?
Well, our breeds came about by chance, we used to live in a large maisonette and I was always promised that I could have a cat once we moved to a bigger house.  Well that finally came about in 1997, we already had four dogs at the time so thought we should have a big cat that wouldn’t get bowled over in the rush.  So we visited a cat show and we immediately fell in love with the biggest cat in the show - the Maine Coon. 

You are probably asking why we have a British?  Well that is Ray’s fault, he always wanted a British Shorthair so I got George (above left) as a birthday present for him one year - not sure if Ray was really taken with him at the time but George follows Ray everywhere! (for my birthday I received a fishing rod, but guess who does the fishing in our house?!)  Then around 2000, I found a picture of a Siberian and just had to have one, so that started my passion for this breed as well.

Why/how did you start breeding?
Once we decided on a Maine Coon I contacted a number of breeders for a suitable silver neuter boy to show.  Merlin (EP Kassaro Texussilver - above right) arrived in 2000 and that is when my training started.  I learnt about the breed, attended cat shows and really enjoyed the company of like-minded people, so the natural progression was to start a breeding programme so I went back to Sandra for my first queen in 2001.  Her name was Chilli (Ch Kassaro Kayla - left) and the rest as they say is history. 

Why did you choose your prefix?
That all started when Ray and I decided that we wanted to start breeding our Field Spaniels as they were classed as vulnerable by The Kennel Club, so we decided to apply for an affix back in 1997.  We tried many different names but they were rejected as they were too similar to affixes already granted, so we decided that unless there was another Lynne Geary and Ray Ogden out there then a combination of both our names was the best option.  Lyndongraey is now registered with The Kennel Club, Fife, GCCF and TICA.

When were your most memorable occasions as a breeder?
Well I guess it has to be my very first litter, memorable in many ways.  Chilli had 3 kittens but we lost the only red boy straight away (what a baptism of fire that was) which left me 2 solid tortie girls, they were both very similar to look at but one had peachy coloured feet, hence her name Peachyfeet (above right, with Field Spaniels Freya and Darcy).  She went on to become my very first homebred champion, Fife EC & TICA Gr Ch. Lyndongraey My Fair Lady.  The joy of watching her become a titled cat and then a mother herself out weighed the heartache of my first kitten death. 

Over the years Peaches has given me some lovely kittens, of which I am immensely proud.  I am also very proud to have been allowed to have a wonderful girl from Ron & Jean Brown, Willow (Lunaris Peggy’s Sue - above left, with her son Bailey) but unfortunately this year has been a disaster as far as breeding is concerned as I had to have both Willow and Erin (Ch. Lyndongraey Winter Wonder, Peaches' daughter - right) neutered and I lost my lovely Siberian girl Anya (GIC Vesna Sibriskaya’s Anfisa - below left, with her kittens) who is now at Rainbow Bridge - and people think breeding is easy!!

Who were/are the most memorable cats you've had?
Obviously Vassiliy (TICA QGC & Fife EC Taurus Goloubchik, DSM - below right) has taken my breath away.  He arrived in the UK in 2004 from Russia via Holland and made himself at home straightaway.  He has made loads of friends and is not easily forgotten, he has many nicknames on the show circuit - 'the cat with no legs' always amuses me as he never stands up, preferring to lay about on the table, he is a right layabout at home too!!  His biggest achievement was when he was Cat of The Year 2007 and then in 2008 he finally achieved his DSM title with 14 BIS wins, not bad for a cat that has only been in the UK since 2004!

All of my cats have been memorable in their own way and I wouldn’t change anything about them.  Chilli was my first queen who gave me my lovely Peachyfeet who in turn has given me Erin, who with her one and only litter has given me my third generation of Lyndongraey cats and the new kid on the block is Magic (Lyndongraey Last Night Special - below left).

What are your hopes for the future of your breed/your breeding programme?
To breed happy and healthy kittens that are well adjusted with wonderful temperaments and full of type and to continue to learn with them.

Is there anything else you'd like to mention?
I would like to thank all my friends that I have meet through my wonderful hobby and the help that I have received when I have needed to talk to someone about the loss of a very precious life.  Also to all the wonderful people who have given great homes to all my kittens, some of which are coming back for a second or even a third!

Thanks must also go to the judges who have thought so highly of my cats to give them the titles that they now hold and of course all the people involved in putting on the shows in the first place.

Lynne Geary

www.lyndongraey.co.uk
November 2008