# Mutant kitties **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 30, 1999, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mutant-kitties/5190 "1999-11-30T20:51:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Akatsukami](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ea666f/32.png) [@Akatsukami](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Akatsukami)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 1999, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mutant-kitties/5190/21 "1999-12-01T22:41:00Z")
AWB writes: > [@](#): > > But a chihuahua is still a functional creature; it can still run and hunt if it needed to. I believe that you may have watched a excessive number of Taco Bell commercials. * * * “Kings die, and leave their crowns to their sons. Shmuel HaKatan took all the treasures in the world, and went away.” ---
**Author:** ![Rysdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7cd45c/32.png) [@Rysdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysdad)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 1999, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mutant-kitties/5190/22 "1999-12-02T02:48:00Z")
What does that little pooch say? “Yo quiero toka bowl?” ---
**Author:** ![Mojo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Mojo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mojo)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 1999, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mutant-kitties/5190/23 "1999-12-02T03:44:00Z")
I had seen the original “twisty cat” page a while back and remember it being more disturbing than the link provided above. For all of you who think that they shouldn’t allow those cats to breed, you’ve got it wrong- they shouldn’t allow that **lady** to breed. ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 1999, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mutant-kitties/5190/24 "1999-12-03T01:12:00Z")
It’s true; the inbreeding **has** made the chihuahua small; & hairless; & ugly; & useless for any concieveable purpose whatsoever. **But hey!–The damn thing CAN talk.** Give it some credit, man. It’s even bilingual. 😃 * * * Save The Endangered Jackalope! Send Cash Now! If You Do This, I Will Use The Cash To Save Any Jackalope That I Happen To Find! Send Cash Now! Before It’s Too Late! My Bills, I Mean **The Jackalope’s Bills** Are Due The 15th Of The Month! _This has been a message from the Illuminated Committee To Save The Jackalope. Fnord._ ---
**Author:** ![moriah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b2d939/32.png) [@moriah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moriah)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 1999, 6:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mutant-kitties/5190/25 "1999-12-07T06:45:00Z")
Comedy Central’s _The Daily Show_ did a ‘piece’ on this woman and her twisty cats. It was the correct forum to do so – TDS mercilessly made fun of her. Seeing those cats on video would multiply hundredfold the pain you feel from just seeing the photos. Most of the twisty cats sit up on their hind legs because of how useless their forepaws are. And their limping is horrific to behold – and not because your heart goes out to a creature that is unfortunately disabled, but because they were purposely made that way. The worst part is how this woman is so cheery about how she thinks this deformity is endearing. \ Obviously, the woman has mental problems. And, though you all don’t know me, I can professionally spot such things with acumen. She is in the class of squirrel ladies, and purple ladies, and conspiracy loonies. She is living a delusion that has some deeper origin. And, so, while I share your anger at her and would like to see a legal intervention to make her stop this; I also recognize she’s not fully mentally cognizant at this point. She is sadder than the deformed cats. Oh, BTW, on a related point with dog breeding: The breeding for certain traits, like a pug nose, is almost as criminal as breeding for twistiness in cats. The pug nose (on Pugs, e.g.) makes breathing difficult (that is why they wheeze) and exposes the dogs to all sorts of respiratory problems. The farther you breed for traits that are dissimilar to the original ‘natural wolf design,’ the more likely you’ll breed in medical health problems. Nature has had a few million years to weed out bad designs. Humans are building in and nurturing bad designs – some that cause pain and mental anguish (mentally retarded dalmations and anxious miniatures) in the animals. Pure-breeding is a euphemism for inbreeding. Peace. ---
**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 1999, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mutant-kitties/5190/26 "1999-12-07T15:34:00Z")
_moriah: Oh, BTW, on a related point with dog breeding: The breeding for certain traits, like a pug nose, is almost as criminal as breeding for twistiness in cats. The pug nose (on Pugs, e.g.) makes breathing difficult (that is why they wheeze) and exposes the dogs to all sorts of respiratory problems._ I do agree, moriah, that pug noses are akin to "Twist"ed limbs. I was referring to general characteristics, like fur color, length, quality; or non-physical traits like intelligence or temperment. Thankfully, whoever it is that decides what characteristics are desired for show cats has stated that polydactyl feet are _not_ desired. Otherwise there’d be more Frankensteins out there inadvertantly making “Twisties”. I’ve learned since the time I started this topic that breeding for pure white cats also increses the likelihood of deafness. Pure white is actually a dominant trait in cats. So by breeding pure-white to pure-white, any recessive hearing problems that are associated with the “white” gene are more likely to appear. ---
**Author:** ![Gr8Kat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gr8kat/32/18668_2.png) [@Gr8Kat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gr8Kat)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 1999, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mutant-kitties/5190/27 "1999-12-07T17:25:00Z")
If anyone is interested, here’s a Twisty Kat protest page: [http://www.delmars.com/kitcats/twisted.htm](http://www.delmars.com/kitcats/twisted.htm) The first time I heard of Twisty Kats was about a year ago when A. Whitney Brown interviewed the Twisty Kat lady for The Daily Show. The piece was quite disturbing. * * * “I hope life isn’t a big joke, because I don’t get it,” Jack Handy [The Kat House](http://members.aol.com/gr8kat1/KatGen/home.htm) [Join the FSH Webring](http://members.aol.com/gr8kat1/KatGen/fshwebring.htm) ---
**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 1999, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mutant-kitties/5190/28 "1999-12-07T19:19:00Z")
_ **I just sent the following letter to this Twisty Cat breeder** _ > [@](#): > > \*Did you enjoy the scene in the movie “Misery” where Annie Wilkes hobbles Paul Sheldon? Didn’t Paul look so much cuter when he couldn’t walk straight anymore!? I think you would, see as you like playing God and creating your “Twisty” cats. > > I saw your page months ago, and once again recently. I see you “improved” your page by omitting the pictures of Flip’s first twisty/twisty litter. Just like criminals, to hide the evidence! When I first saw those kittens who couldn’t walk normally, I almost cried. All kittens are cute. There’s no need to infirm them to make them cuter. > > I see you raise horses as well. Would you ever imagine breeding twisty horses? Of course not, because it’d be cruel! > > Please spay & neuter your cats and quit your Frankenstein-ish experiments!\* ---
**Author:** ![torq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dfb087/32.png) [@torq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/torq)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 1999, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mutant-kitties/5190/29 "1999-12-07T20:57:00Z")
The pictures on the original page were considerably more disturbing than those on the current page. I didn’t see the TV show, so I don’t know how well they can walk, but that one with the sideways foot HAS to have problems. I keep thinking about the cat-tails in _A World Out of Time_. They seem functional enough in the book, but you have to wonder what the intermediate steps were like (for those who haven’t read it, a cat-tail is basically a furry snake with a cat’s head). ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 1999, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mutant-kitties/5190/30 "1999-12-08T01:08:00Z")
She only had one unsterilized cat last time I looked. The back feet are the elongated ones. The front are normal. What do you want her to do? Kill them them because they must suffer so. It’s much better to kill those afflicted than to leave them live. Seen any disabled people lately that need to be put out of your misery. ---
**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 1999, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mutant-kitties/5190/31 "1999-12-08T03:29:00Z")
No, I don’t want her to euthanized them. I just want her to stop making new ones. ---
**Author:** ![WhiteNight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b38774/32.png) [@WhiteNight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhiteNight)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 1999, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mutant-kitties/5190/32 "1999-12-08T15:04:00Z")
It’s not enough to get people to stop making totally deformed cats like this, ‘regular’ breeds like Persians have severe, often life-threatening defects. It’s not that these cats, as individuals are a bad thing, but the breeds as a whole are, when the animals are deformed in such a way as to cause health problems. Whose bright idea was it to breed a cat with a human-like face? There’s some real freaks out there. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mutant-kitties/5190.md?page=1)