Welcome to LUNA-LAGUNA Cattery, Tampa, Florida ... 

       Luna-Laguna means where the moon (luna) meets the water (laguna). Luna raises Persians and Exotics and strives to produce kittens that are healthy, sociable, active, intelligent and well within the high standards of CFA excellence. This requires lots of human interaction.

LUNA'S PHILOSOPHY:

          The Cattery remains small and personal. Luna's philosophy is not to cage, but rather to give a cat its own space within the house. Luna cats that have settled in live downstairs, but cats having issues (moms close to birthing, cats new to Luna, newborn kittens and mom, recent moms not quite ready to birth again, supervised breeding, rotation of males to avoid stress, fighting or spraying) live upstairs. Luna is never stagnant but constantly changing. Luna's cats are encouraged to interact, investigate, play, ride in the car, watch TV, squirrel watch and show emotion.

          Luna's philosophy was developed from studying the cat in the wild. Luna believes that a non-stimulated cat in a cage is a boring pet. Cat play should not only be passive play (batting a toy mouse around the floor) but also thinking play (creating a new game or toy from household items, figuring out how to open a door, unrolling the toilet paper, trying to touch TV animals by pawing the screen).  Thus, a 9-week Luna kitten is confident among adult cats, has free roam of the house, plays interactive cat games and cuddles up to its humans freely. This is a well-adjusted kitten that will soon be ready for a new home.

          How did Luna become so well-tuned to raising happy cats? It all began one rainy night in Gainesville, Florida when a scraggly cat came meowing at my door. Here's the story of my first pet cat.

THE STORY OF TIFFANY

          I first became fascinated with the Persian breed when I was a Journalism student at the University of Florida. I shared an apartment with three roommates; we all had busy schedules. One rainy night I heard a "mewing" outside on the porch. I opened the door and there was this ratty-coated silver(?) doll-faced Persian with bloody paws. I picked her up and brought her inside. All four paws had been newly declawed (more like butchered) and she pulled away as I tried to examine them. She seemed hungry so I fed her canned tuna which she devoured. For three days, her stools were runny and she often did not make the litter box. My roommates started to lose patience with her.

          Meanwhile, I named her "Tiffany" and she became the focus of my world. For my final senior Journalism project, I created a flyer and magazine for Meow Mix thanks to Tiffany. Tiffy (likewise) adopted me and began to let me groom her and tend to her sore paws. When I started dating a guy (who became my husband for +20 years), Tiffany would growl and hiss at him--even though he was a cat person.

           After I graduated and we married, Tiffany moved with us throughout eastern United State during our early years together. She was still protective of me and my relationships. By this time, I had a two-year-old that Tiffany did not like because he would hold her and lay his head on her back to use her as a pillow. One day Tiffany got out an open door and never came back. I guess she had grown tired of the living arrangement, particularly the frequent moves and new people in her household. I never forgot her though because she was my first pet cat.

THE CREATION OF LUNA

          After having Persian pets for quite a few years, I decided to begin breeding Persians. As a breeder/hobbyist, I wanted to keep my cattery small because I wanted to focus upon supreme health and personality and intelligence development. I have been breeding for about six years now. Recently, I have become interested in breeding my Persian girls to a beautiful black young Exotic male named Othello. Consequently, my kittens (CFA-registered Persian long-haired Exotics) have wonderfully-improved personalities, almost at times comical. They dearly love humans and are not aloof, as some Persians tend to be.

          I am hoping to eventually breed pointed Exotics to my CPC Persians and Tabby Exotic. My goal is to produce lynxpoint Exotics and Persians.

          I am currently using some wonderful old lines: Madame Nu, Prancenpaws, Pajean, Marhei, Oakheaven, and Huggies. Their pedigrees contain Grand Champions, Champions and Distinguished Merits. I never cage. Cats are groomed weekly and bathed monthly. I groom and bathe them myself and administer their yearly vaccines myself. They are free of all diseases and parasites. They eat Natural Balance and a Nutro mix.  They are our pets first and most have free roam of our two-story home. They even sleep with us in our beds at night.

          Currently, I am writing a few stories and articles- -hopefully to be published in cat magazines. I will keep you posted as these projects progress. I am also writing a children's play about cats. So c'mon in and make yourself comfortable with a cup of catnip tea (just kidding) as you explore my website. Write me at bookablue@hotmail.com even if you just want to say hello. I answer all e-mails. But, before we enter the world of Luna, I want to share with you a wonderful 100-year-old nonsense rhyme by Edward Lear about a cat and an owl:

THE OWL AND THE PUSSYCAT

The owl and the pussycat went to sea in a beautiful pea-green boat.

They took some honey and plenty of money wrapped up in a five-pound note.

The owl looked up to the stars above and sang to a small guitar:

"Oh, lovely pussy. Oh, pussy, my love, what a beautiful pussy you are ...

You are, you are, what a beautiful pussy you are!

Pussy said to the owl, "You elegant fowl, how charmingly sweet you sing!

Oh let us be married; too long we have tarried. But what shall we do for a ring?"

So they sailed away, for a year and a day, to the land where the bong-tree grows.

And there in the wood a piggy-wig stood, with a ring at the end of his nose ...

His nose, his nose, with a ring at the end of his nose.

"Dear pig, are you willing to sell for one shilling your ring?" Said the piggy, "I will."

So they took it away and were married next day by the turkey who lives on the hill.

They dined on mince and slices of quince, which they ate with a runcible spoon.

And hand in hand, on the edge of the sand, they danced by the light of the moon ...

The moon, the moon ... They danced by the light of the moon.

Edward Lear, 1846