genetically keeping a kitten a kitten forever????

[sujean]

has anyone heard about some sort of shot or genetic engineering that keeps a kitten a kitten for the span of its life???

i recently heard about this and didn't think it could be true but you never can tell these days!

i just know that if it does exist, that's just terrible...

[melanie]

never heard of it, i imagine it would be only a theory or suggested/potential method, i just cnat see how with gen engineering in its current stage that they could get so far, when they are still having trouble isolating many genes and patterns, but you never know, but there are many scientists competing for funding out there so it could be another wild claim to boost someones funding, tht seems to happen alot these days, dont know.

but gen engenering is great stuff and fantastic for humans, today i read that aussie scientists have isolated the gene that casues the symptoms of REETs disease, an awful degenerative disease that affects 1 out of 10 000 little aussie girls, so it has some amazing and life saving applicaitons also. that is the best news i have had in a long time, oh and they also isolated the fat geen last week which may have amazing applications also. yay for those amazing aussie scientists.

but that would just be cruel and ego fueling to do that to an animal, ah humans can be so strange, at times its like they are another species of animal altogether.

[anniebananie]

YUK! How could anyone think of doing something like that? I have one born this way - he's the size of a full grown cat - but mentally still about 6 months old. He's 6 years old. Drives the other two cats I have, totally nuts. But apparantly now they can clone animals, I don't see why this shouldn't be possible

[sujean]

my sister who is in medical school informed me that this was something that was being done...she thought it was a cool idea and that she would like do to her cat if she ever got one until i informed her that

1) a kitten is a handful. the playfulness gets old after awhile...
2) what kind of develoopment would this kitten have? will it forever be clumsy and have eternal kitten curiousness??
3) would you feed it kitten food forever?

she has since changed her mind about it. she decided that it would be similar to having a downs syndrome child, for example.

i think it is a horrible thing to do to any animal! if i hear anymore, i will post it!

[lilith_rizel]

Suejean, you would never believe some things that have happened. With what James has told me, about things done back in the 40's, I have no doubt that they are able to keep a kitten a kitten. I mean back in the 40's, there was an actual invisible ship created!!! It is true, James even did research on it. If I ever happen to find the site we looked at, I will post it.

[anniebananie]

I can tell you living with a cat that never grows up is mentally exhausting. My *Peter Pan* cat (as I said is full grown) but mentally challenged - and you never know where he will ambush you or guests - has his tail permanently in *the naughty* position. Meowws nearly all the time - (his voice never broke - just got louder) needs petting to feed - finds objects to play with that he shouldn't at 6 years old - plays with water. I adore kittens - but am thankful they grow up to be adult cats. Oh, and he also hisses and spits at things real or imagined and leaps in the air if surprised. This morning he created havoc when one of the other cats was in the litter box because it HIS litter box (all 3 are his) and the other cat didn't appreciate beibng jumped on and bitten.

[sujean]

annie, i sympathize with you! when my youngest was still a kitten i couldn't wait until he grew up so he would settle down! we called him "freak" for the first month we had him b/c he had sooooo muhc energy and was so rambunctious!

(ever have one of those days that nothing you spell looks right and you have no idea if you spelled something right??-one of those days for me...)

well, some people like to have their little ones stay little forever...

[anniebananie]

Can you imagine some one wanting a Kitten cat forever? I cannot, and to think they might be genetically changing cats to be this way. They can have some of Churchill's genes if they want - maybe they'd change their minds then Sir - is at this moment lying on his back holding his tail which he is attempting to bite. Mind you I am sort of used to him, and the grandsons love him to bits - because he wants to play with them when they visit - so wouldn't change him. Just at times I wish I could - especially when he leaps in the bath with me

I wish this forum has spell check

[lilith_rizel]

I love kittens, but I would never want a kitten to stay a kitten. Not is it only inhumane, but they would miss out on alot of thinngs, plus who would have the energy to take care of a kitten for it's entire life, when it would never grow up, and remain in it's kitten ways. Annie, I don't know how you can take care of peter pan. He sounds like a handful.

[GsdDiamond]

That's just plain wrong. Here goes man playing God again just because the technology is there. There's no need for a kitten to remain a kitten for it's life span, no benefit at all. So why fiddle with nature? If it's possible to do this, all we're doing is creating a newly genetically engineered cat. Not good I say...not good at all.

[melanie]

why wouldnt you just get a small breed of cat, surely there are some out there, then it owuld be small forever. but throught this sortof tiral and experimental ideas we never know what other applications it might have, it could say preserve i dont know, an unhealthy organ in a human and keep them living (this is a theory or idea, not real) or have other applicaitons.

[GsdDiamond]

Originally Posted by melanie

why wouldnt you just get a small breed of cat, ...we never know what other applications it might have, it could say preserve i dont know, an unhealthy organ in a human and keep them living (this is a theory or idea, not real) or have other applicaitons.

I agree. If someone wants a "kitten-like" cat, then get one. Science has no place messing with evolution. If it's possible to breed the cats, without genetically altering them, to get a "kitten-like" cat, then so be it. But don't start messing with test tube # 1 and saying "I've got a 50 cat in the making here", then messing with test tube # 2 saying "this tube contains the genetic material to create a 20 rat. It's not something we should be messing with.

If there's a sound medical reason for doing something like this, like Mel said, then that's something completely different. But subjecting a poor, defensless animal to this experiment, is just plain wrong.

[melanie]

sadly that is how most of our medical discoveries and treatments were found, by tourturing animals.

[sujean]

Originally Posted by melanie

sadly that is how most of our medical discoveries and treatments were found, by tourturing animals.

that's exactly it

[anniebananie]

Are the sciencests looking for a small breed of cat - or keeping the cat a kitten (in personality as well a body) forever. Is this just another ploy to find the *fountain of youth*? I know that science does use animals (and this oincludes humans) for testing - and they have to - personally I don't like it, but will accept that. But why alter a cat for no reason? If people want kitten - and that (according to the shelters is what is happening by the dumping of a six and over month old kitten) is already taking place - then use a human and keep them a baby forever? My daughter would love that - she has just discovered what an 11 month old daughter can be ( ) and wishes she was still at the real baby age. I am still ROTFL at that one. Live with a mentally challenged cat (he was dumped over the fence on us b4 he was old enough to show the signs - like 4 weeks) and you find out the reality. If it is human *fountain of youth* I would offer my sorry 60 old'ish body