Breeding stunning Maine Coon Cats for health, temperament, and joy
Our Story
From the Beginning...
Several years ago I bred beautiful Persians. But after a few years of marriage my husband joined the Army. With all of the moving the military life-style brings, I made the decision to stop breeding and find new, loving homes for all of my cats except for my old, retired Queen who was my baby. I missed all of my cats and having kittens running around the house and always secretly wanted to get back into breeding. But then my husband and I started having children, and with difficult pregnancies and small children, the timing was never right to jump back into the cat world.
Now our children are a little older and our family is happily settled in Michigan. My dream finally came true and I was able to get back into the cat world! My 2019 Mother’s Day present was Astrid and Awesome. My husband and I have been captivated by Maine Coons and their sweet, fun personalities. I just adore the breed and want nothing more than help better the breed with my kittens. I could not be happier to be on this journey, and I hope you will join us!
Blessed by the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort.
II Corinthians 1:3
Why New Mercies?
“Great is thy faithfulness.
Great is thy faithfulness.
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed thy hand hath provided.
Great is thy faithfulness Lord unto me.”
This is the old hymn, Great is Thy Faithfulness. I love this song because it talks about how God is always there for us…for me…helping me and guiding me. Morning by morning I wake to see new mercies and new blessings from God.
Mercies can also be replaced with the word compassions. God longs to be compassionate to us and give us blessings. And each cat and kitten in my cattery is a special blessing from God to me.
So I chose the name New Mercies because I want to share my blessings with others. I want my kittens to bring their families continuous joy. Each morning I want you to wake up and see new mercies.
Being a responsible breeder is something of the upmost importance to use at New Mercies Maine Coon Cattery. We desire to breed healthy, friendly, well-adjusted, beautiful Maine Coon cats and kittens. Being thought of as a kitten mill or backyard breeder would be devastating for us. Therefore, we make every effort to stand apart from bad breeders. But, the responsibility of raising healthy kittens doesn't stop with us. Our kitten's new family must pick up where we left off to ensure our kittens stay healthy. This is just one reason we have an extensive interview process for each person interested in our kittens.
Being a responsible breeder means caring more about the cats and kittens than money...
Breeders are often accused of only caring about the money they can make from their kittens, and not the breeding cats and kittens themselves. While this is true of kitten mills and backyard breeders, this is not true of a good breeder.
At New Mercies Maine Coon Cattery, we do not make much from our kittens. In order to have a healthy, well taken care of cattery, we health test and give vaccines to our breeding cats yearly, take each litter to see the veterinarian for a check up and vaccines twice, and then there is food, vitamins/supplements, cleaning supplies, birthing supplies, countless other supplies that need to be replaced and upgraded, and business expenses. It may seem like we must be "raking in the money", but in reality it goes out much more than it comes in!
If you would like more information on breeding, or how we do things, you can click here.
Being a responsible breeder means finding good homes for your kittens and setting them up for success...
Good breeders want good homes for their kittens. Homes that are going to treat their kittens better than they did. Letting kittens go can be very hard for a breeder to do. But there is so much joy in watching a kitten go to a great home! Part of being a good, responsible breeder is finding amazing homes for our kittens, and then helping the kitten and their new family start off on the right foot. That is why we provide a list of recommended supplies, make sure kittens are going to be fed right, and that all of their medical needs will be taken care of. Our application process may seem excessive, but we are just trying to do all we can to make sure our babies are going to be given a great life.
A Note About Scamming...
To do our best to help cut down the amount of scamming there is in the cat world, you will never see a picture of one of our Maine Coons on the internet without our watermark on it. Every picture posted anywhere on the internet will say “New Mercies Maine Coon Cattery” on it, in a way that cannot be cropped out to the best of our ability. If you ever see a picture claiming to be our cattery without our watermark on it, please double check to make sure it is really from our cattery. There are many people out there preying on the love of Maine Coons. I would never want one of my cats to be used to trick someone.
We understand that purchasing a kitten sight unseen can be a nerve-racking experience. With the change in technology, many people are choosing to purchase animals this way, seeing only pictures and talking with the breeder before sending a large amount of money to a near stranger. New Mercies Maine Coon Cattery understands the anxiety this can cause, so we will do everything we can to ease those fears should you be unable to come and see your kitten in person.
Check our Facebook page for videos and Facebook Live videos that are posted of kittens. We also can set up a time to have a phone call or Facetime/video chat. Also, copies of genetic tests on my breeding cats, as well as my registration with TICA are available upon request.
For more helpful tips on how to avoid scammers, click here.
The Benefit of Shopping not Adopting
We've all heard the phrase "adopt don't shop" as a means to encourage people to adopt animals from shelters instead of buying a pedigreed animal from a breeder. While adopting from a shelter is wonderful and needed, it isn't necessarily for everyone.
When you purchase a pedigreed animal from a good breeder, you are likely getting a younger animal that will grow with your family. But even if you are getting a retired breeder, you will still have that animal's entire medical history that will prove invaluable to you. This is not the case when you get an animal from a shelter.
When you purchase a pedigreed animal from a good breeder, you also have the benefit of knowing exactly what you are getting. The breeder should be able to tell you about the animal's personality, likes, dislikes, and any little personality quirks he/she may have. When you get your new pet home, there should be very little surprises. However, since you likely will not know the history of an animal you get from a shelter, you might run into some unexpected issues that could even lead to injuries of yourself, family or new pet.
These are just two big reasons why shopping verses adopting may be better for some people.
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