In 2004, a company called
rel="tag">Allerca started taking $250 deposits for
cats
that it intended to produce. It said that the cats would not
provoke allergies in humans. In a CNN
href="http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/10/27/biotechnology.cats/">article:
Cat allergies are caused by a potent protein secreted by the
cat's
skin and salivary glands. The allergen is so small it can remain
airborne for months.Using "gene silencing" technology, Allerca is able to
suppress the production of the protein.The
first breed of hypoallergenic cats will be href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_shorthair" rel="tag">British
Shorthairs, [link added] which
are considered to be ideal pets with friendly, playful and affectionate
personalities.Allerca expects the first kittens to be born in early 2007
and is already accepting $250 deposits from interested customers.Allerca
president Simon Brodie told The Associated Press that he ultimately
hopes to sell 200,000 of the cats annually at $3,500 each in the United
States.Brodie said the cats would be spayed and neutered to prevent
breeding with naturally born animals.
Now, Allerca has announced that they are now taking orders for the
cats. I'm not sure what the difference is between
"taking deposits" and "taking orders," but they imply that there is a
difference. Plus, they provided a picture:
Photo
supplied by Allerca
Continue reading below the fold...
The company says that the cats are not
href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transgenic" rel="tag">transgenic,
thus sidestepping the potential controversy about genetically-modified
organisms. However, they are tight-lipped about the exact
technology they employed. According to
href="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/06/060609-allergies-cats.html">an
article on the National Geographic
website:
Megan Young, Allerca's CEO, said that the firm has
simply "taken selective breeding to the next level."
Allerca officials are closely guarding their scientific data, and
independent parties have yet to publicly verify the cats'
hypoallergenic status.
Don't plan on starting your own colony: Allerca is going to spay/neuter
all of the cats before they are sold.
As it happens, many people who think they are allergic to cats,
actually are allergic to pollen and other material that cats being in
with them from outdoors, or from somewhere in the basement.
But for people who have true cat allergies, this could be
helpful.
Update: The Washington Post is reporting that the cats will sell for $7,000 each. That's considerably higher than what National Geographic reports. It sounds as though the $3,500 figure is the estimated price for when they are shipping in volume, whereas the $7,000 price sounds like the initial price.
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There was already a breed of no-allergy cats before this new mysteriously bred line. "Siberians" they call 'em. I know some folks who have some.
http://cat-breeds.cats-central.com/siberian-cat-breed-guide.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_cat
ej -- Thanks for mentioning this. I suspect that part of what they are up to is marketing hype, not substance. But I would like to see whatever data they have.
I'd heard about this program before, but I'd never seen a picture of the cats. I assumed they would be hairless (and ugly). Not only does it look cute and normal, it looks just like my cat.
Poor cats, having to be shipped all the way from Europe to the US. :(
This cat is very cute!
^^
this is for you sleepi:-) I miss you
i really like the cat!!!
it"s so cute,
This cat is very cute!
ilove the white kittens I buy one
oooooo! the kitten it is very small and ilove it very mush
ihave 8dogs and 9cats and ilove them very mush yhea I feel cool
I have a white and small kitten
I have read a few articles about this company. I am getting the feeling that there is a lot of variability in what has been reported on price. They don't seem very honest and upfront on their company, how it works and what their plans are. My gut feeling tells me that they are just looking at making a lot of money on people who actually think that spending $5900.00 on a kitten that is suppose to be "hypoallergenic" is worth it. I am going to have to wait and see how this company and their ideas evolve. I know I certainly would not buy one of their kittens. Because I'm not foolish to believe the price can be justified when they are probably using the Siberian blood line somewhere in the breeding process.
Can anyone perhaps identify the breed of cat shown in the picture in the article. My cat looks identically like that one, except for the eyes. My cat has green/grey eyes. I would appreciate it if someone can help?
I do not agree with the fact they artificially breed these cats. i know these hypoallergic cats aren't as bad as the new darwf cats (which is cruel) but i think messing with cats genetic genes.
i love cats........and the photo of that cat is just ....no words!!!
this cat is really really cute! looks alot like my cat!!!!!!!!
Hey i want you to feel what a laser is like...
I have a baby cat available. He is declawed in the front and neutered. He is an indoor pet only. He's very sweet. Prefer a home with no other pets except cats.
Could you please post a link on the study that shows that people who think they have an animal dander allergy are actually just allergic to the pollen on the animal's fur? Because frankly, I think that a lot of people are just allergic as hell to cats. Would that it were otherwise.
I'm VERY allergic to most cats. But my wife loves them, so...
I was so allergic to the cat she had when we first met that all it had to do was nuzzle its nose on my bare arm and I would break out there in a few seconds. It was his saliva that did it. Long sleeves and making sure he didn't nuzzle my face were the order of the day.
I am not anywhere near as allergic to our current cat - other than washing my hands after petting him and changing my shirt before going to sleep to take care of his shed hair I haven't had to take any special precautions.
I've become quite allergic to cats over the years. I have a theory that they can sense this and therefore love me. I love 'em too, though, which means that every time I encounter a cat I'm tearing out my contacts half an hour later.
i like this cat very much... i like here color and i want that i have own pic this cats because i want to put in my whole....
really cute cat...dont u think its kind of sick to genetically modify such a beautifull creature....in other words, leave the cats alone. If people really want cats but have alergies make them take allergie shots.
that cat looks like my cat angel
i like this pics.
i love cat and dogs
i luv cats i hav the same(4) cat at my hm
i dont like cat couse they areb very disgusting
i like cats because there not as much trouble as
dogs. i have two cats and there trouble but not as much as
dogs.cats there very cute at least this one and some
other ones to.
I have a Hypallergenic cat his name is casper he is 2 years old
think this is just a scheme to get mucho bucks,I`ll just take my allergy pill, thank you
kook at this
its very cute,,..
i love that caaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat, anyone has a cat like this email me please ehabo.haddadin@yahoo.com
hello EHAD i am happy to your messge I CAN SE SENT ONE OF MY LOVELY CAT TO YOU IF YOU INTEREUS SE MY MORE THANTK YOUR EHAD
HELLO I HAVE A LOVELY CAT FOR SALE THANK
hey peeps i have a site called www.clanoftheblackcat.webs.com and we need more members pleas go to the goin page
I had to get my beautiful cat MOG put to sleep two
months ago it broke my heart she was 16 i miss her so much
i feel so guilty she was my best mate!
so adorable!
xyjxrkk
You know this irritates me so much!! Just leave the cats be...if we humans have allergies to cats then just stay away from them or else take allergy pills..after all the person that suffers from allergy should be tempered with not the cats themselves!!..You see i have an "allergy" towards most humans...does that give me the right to temper with the genes of these humans im allergic to!!!!...JUST LET THE FELINE SPECIES BE AT THEIR NATURAL SELF WILL YOU!!!
i wanna know wat type of cat is this ?
really cute cat.
Find all you need to know about cat food and breed information at http://www.catwebsite.org
I love the pic of this cat, I actually have one that looks exactly like it. I got mine at an animal shelter. Is this cat a pure bread? If any one know the breed of this cat can they please email me. Thanks.
My cat looks just like the one in the pic except my cat has less black hair on the top of her head. She is very beautiful and has huge green eyes.
hey guys i found a cat just like the one on the picture just like it. It even has that only gray spot on its head.. Its buggin me out to the max.. even the pattern of the eyes and hair on the ear seem the same. i really thought some one took a picture of him and posted it on the net. However, only i have pics of him and thats on my phone.
I lost my cat who sounds like your description, 'specially the smudge on top of his head. He is all white, tuffs in his ears, beautiful sleek body, very long body. Please e-mail me if you live in lemon Grove,California, which is where we live. My older cat is a Tuxedo cat and misses him very much. Thanks , Dee
My cat is also white and very big male cat.
But my cat is not brave.
i love the cat. go a ya si he good.
do you love him. i do
What Breed of Cat is that? I got 2 cats and I'm not sure what breed they are but they both look just like that.
OMG! THAT LOOKS EXACTLYY LIKE MY CAT EXCEPT SHE HAS GREEN EYES! whats funny is that someone above wrote a comment about their cat looking identical to it but having green/gray eyes and they posted it on July 18, which is my cats birthday!
The breed of this cat looks like a Maine Coon...you can identify it by the cat having the shape of the letter "M" on its forehead, and the long beautiful furr.
The breed of this cat looks like a Maine Coon...you can identify it by the cat having the shape of the letter "M" on its forehead, and the long beautiful furr.
My older cat is a Tuxedo cat and misses him very much. Thanks , Dee
my cat likes to play with marbles and balls strings. my cats favourt food is cat food its names :freskies . shes 8 months old. her birthday is june 27. this sounds weard but somtimes i play with her socre and she dosnt ever like baths
Iwantto know how can I clean my cat & food like it
i like cats so much, ilike this one because of its white coior
i live on a farm and i have soooo many animals! this kinda looks like one of the barn cats in the horse stable that we own!!! ours has blue eyes though!
Is that cat lost? I have a cat that looks just that one. My cat is a girl and she was in a box at a store with her brother. This is so weird!!!
That's a picture of her. Her name is Bella.
White Cats with blue eyes are usually deaf. This cat is either drugged or terrified, you can tell by the size of it's pupils. It appears to be domestic short hair with some background of Persian (longer hair). I am allergic to cats and I have ended up with 6 of them.
cutest thing EVER!
NICE CATS
I love this picture!!!!!!!!!!!!
This looks just like my cat!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Cats. You gotta love 'm.
There are a lot of suckers/hypochondriacs in this world, as the report confirms.
i like cats also theyre sooo adorable !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
this is a Spiting image of my buttons {alias Junior} because he's the smallest of the 3, My largest raised him from a pup/handful and they are best friends, mine is around 6-7 ish and has the EXACT same markings on the head and has pink ears as well. pure white as well too scary,
Soooo cute!!!!!!1 i jus love cats........
very very cute,nice bad lovely cat
hi do u have this cat up for adoption. i love cats
I love my cats.
You made a clone of my beautiful Sir Haley.
you know i have same cat but the eyes is blue
fuck this mother fucker
That is my cat
This is my cat do not buy it.
i love cats n i hope u guys do the same.
i love so much this kind of cats please would email me thanks i have also very cute cats
I HAVE TWO MILES AND I RAISED THEM FROM BOTH AND BOTTLE THEM THERE MOM WAS KILLED WHEN THEY WAS BORN AND I FIND THEM AND NOW THEY ARE GETTING BIG BOUT I DONT NOW HOW OLD THEY ARE AND I HAVE ONE THAT WHATS TOO SUCK ON MY WOOL IN MY COAT AND I DONT NOW WHY I IF ENEY ONE NOWS WHY HE WOULD DO THIS PLEASE EMAIL ME I AM TRYING TOO LEARN ABOUT THEM AND I WOULD LIKE MORE INFORMATION ON THEM THANKS ANNETTE RUTH
Was downloading some cat pics to save as wallpaper when i saw this pic. Just read thru comments above. Seems so wierd that there r so many people who have this exact cat. Totally floored me as i cud not figure how a picture of my beloved simba who passed away 2 yrs ago at 13 yrs got on the net. This cat even has the exact patch of grey on top that simba had. My cat was born of a black persian and a white chinchilla.
I have a cat but its an outdoor cat. It used to like indoors but when she saw her first male bammm- she was outdoors for the rest of her life
I WANA SEE PYAR KI YE EK KAHANI
do you like cats becourse we have lods cat dogs rabits and my cats pregnert so itlooks haveing more cats i dont no aye thats all my mum wonts cats dogs rabits by alix.....
awwwww its so freaking cute and fluffy i love it i wanna squezze it !
Complex 41
Complex 41 DoÄal Saç Bakım Seti
Kadın ve erkeklerde, çok çeÅitli sebeplere baÄlı olarak ortaya çıkan saç dökülmesini engellemek için iÄne, ilaç, ameliyat gibi yöntemler dıÅında, etkili yardımcı bir çözümde; Complex 41 solüsyon ve Bitkisel Åampuandır.
Complex 41 Solüsyon ve Bitkisel Åampuan, saç problemlerinize yardımcı bir çözümdür. Düzenli kullanım sonucunda dökülmeyi engellemeye gözle görülür yardımcı olduÄu , saçların çıkmasını hızlandırmaya yardımcı olduÄu gözlenmiÅtir. Saç dökülmesi sorunu olan ve buna çözüm arayan kiÅi sayısı ise oldukça fazladır.
DOÄAL YAÅAMIN SIRRI bitkisel organik sarayı ürünü Complex 41 solüsyon ve Bitkisel Åampuan ile Saç problemine yardımcı , saçlarınızın tekrar eski güzelligine kavuÅmasında lider, ayrıca düzenli kullanım sonucunda dökülmeyi engellemeye gözle görülür yardımcı oldugu , saçların çıkmasını ve hızlı bir Åekilde tekrar uzamayı hızlandırmaya yardımcı oldıÄunu göreceksiniz
I so love cats!!! :)
OK, I'll come clean: this reminds me of an embarrassingly recent conversation with my materials science-trained boyfriend.