What does it mean to mentor someone? It means training a person to learn how to proceed in their occupation or avocation and become successful in that endeavor.  In my profession, I mentored a number of veterinarians over the years, teaching them a spectrum of skills, some that I learned the hard way and others I was taught by someone else. In the cat fancy, I had a very good initial mentor in RagaMuffins. As I got more involved in exhibiting and breeding, I learned from a number of different people. Still do!

When I started in RagaMuffins, I showed cats for two years prior to becoming a breeder. The breeder I bought my first muffin from mentored me in exhibiting and later in starting my cattery. I also accepted generous help from other CFA breeders and exhibitors.

For several years now I have been attempting to mentor people in RagaMuffins. I love this breed. In mentoring, it is a way for me to pass on what I have learned to ensure the future of the breed. Unfortunately, I haven’t been as successful as I would like to be. Most of the people I have mentored have discontinued their path to breeding for a number of different reasons that include work conflicts, health reasons, and housing constraints among others.

I’m disappointed when people don’t move forward. I understand it, but am still disappointed.  Being involved in any passionate hobby takes energy, money and time. There is no doubt the RagaMuffin breed needs good breeders. Unfortunately, there are too many breeders that are not breeding for what I consider to be the right reasons. In my opinion, the right reason starts with a devotion to the breed. That feeling leads to the desire to do things in the best way possible.

As a mentor, I want to help a person starting with simple basics. The M in RagaMuffin is capitalized. It is a homage to the early contributors to the breed. I want any RagaMuffin that goes to a show to be properly groomed and prepared. How to enter a show can be confusing the first time and someone may need guidance. Once at a show, a newbie needs help on what to do and when to do it. If I am not going to be at a show, I would make sure that person had help there. One thing I love about shows is the fellowship in the show hall. I hang out with the same group of people (all with different breeds). I can count on them to assist as needed.

The really tough mentoring is the breeding part. It starts with getting the right cats to breed. Good quality RagaMuffins with genetic diversity are not plentiful. And, when the cats are available, they are not inexpensive. There are also breeders that are willing to sell a male and female half siblings or even littermates and make it seem a great choice for a breeding pair. I recommend starting with a good male. It is easier to locate two females that are genetically diverse and therefore compatible with the male than the opposite. In addition, when acquiring the males first, it is more likely that he will be ready to breed when the queens are.

Assisting a new breeder through the steps of setting up a cattery is more than choosing cats. Deciding how to house the cats, when to do genetic testing and echocardiograms and even proper terminology for social media and websites is important. The latter is a pet peeve of mine. I see too many breeders using the term “king” for a male in the cattery. While the term for a female is queen, the correct term for a male is a tom, or simply male.

When kittens come, a good mentor will help through the process. There will be surprises. Lots of handholding may be required. After practicing veterinary medicine for thirty years, I found I had a lot to learn. One amazing revelation for me was that neonatal kittens hiss! When I first saw a kitten hiss, I thought it was having trouble breathing. I took a video and sent it to my mentor only to find out it was hissing.

One of the things I have routinely done as a part of my RagaMuffin mentorship is write blogs. An aspiring exhibitor and/or breeder can easily read through the blogs I post for information on showing cats, breeding cats, etc.

Bottom line, mentoring is a commitment to educate and provide support. It does not mean spoon feeding every bit of knowledge to a mentee, but it includes directing an aspiring exhibitor/breeder to a place that has the desired information available. The relationship requires work by both people involved. The RagaMuffin is a young breed. Each breeder can make a difference by ensuring health, temperament and the development of a consistent appearance.