Grey shared our house with Rock, who was a four and a half year old Maine Coon cat. Sadly Rock was recently diagnosed with feline HCM and passed away suddenly on Weds morning at home. I got a call just as Grey and I were getting in the car after his dental visit to adjust his plate in Hastings. Rock was very patient with Grey and his bouncy antics. Grey never did fully understand that his big brother was much smaller than him and not up for the same kind of games. Although we did share some nice quiet moments, all sat down together sharing chicken tidbits.
Night night Rock. Sleep tight.
Hi,
ReplyDeleteI was so sorry to see in your forum post that you lost your Maine Coon, Rock, to HCM. Hcm is a terrible disease that researchers are still trying to understand. I am a pet-owner of two Maine Coons, both of whom are heterozygotes for the recently discovered MyBPC-3 genetic defect which causes HCM in Maine Coons. As a researcher by profession (though not in medicine), I have begun researching HCM in various lines of Maine Coons in an effort to correlate DNA status with clinical disease. The purpose of my research is private: I am merely seeking to trace current Maine Coons who are positive for the MyBPC-3 defect back through lines that may or may not have presented HCM in the past. None of my data will be published or disseminated in any form.
I was wondering if you would be willing to give me the names of the parents & grandparents of Rock? It is very helpful in studying HCM to have ancestral information on cats who might have had HCM - sometimes it is even possible to hazard a guess as to whether or not the cat might have been positive for the known defect (which was identified in 2005.)
Any information you can provide would certainly be appreciated. Again, I am so sorry for your loss. Breeders have better tools now to control HCM, but there is still much work to be done to eradicate this terrible disease. I am grateful that research continues on the genetic defects that can cause HCM in Maines. Hopefully, some day soon we will be able to screen genetically for HCM and thus sharply reduce the number of cases among Maine Coons (and other breeds including domestics as well.)
Sincerely,
Ellie Kimmel
Charleston, SC
Ekimmel43@yahoo.com