A Little About Us ………

We are David and Sherrie Ceja.  We, along with our two children, reside in the beautiful moderate climate of Monterey County California.  We established our cattery in March of 1995 with The Cat Fanciers Association (CFA), the largest registering body of pedigreed cats.  We have been actively showing our cats since 1996 and really enjoy the friendships we have developed there.  Showing can be very enjoyable and exciting.  However, making sure the cats are the ones who enjoy it the most is our main goal.

When I finally convinced my husband to attend a cat show to see “a really big breed of cat” I knew I had him hooked.  Having bred and shown already another breed it wasn’t long after he fell for them that we were “hooked” on the breed.  We met Geraldine Martin of Tabbypatch Maine Coons and instantly began finding out all about the breed and what to look for in a show/breeder cat.  Without Gerre’s mentoring and direction as to which catteries to start our base from I know we could never have been this successful.  We have enjoyed several Regional Winners as well as many, many Grand Champions and Grand Premiers.  Perhaps the most touching and proudest moments are watching the “new family” taking one of our beloved babies to their new home.  Even now with watery eyes, for me to know they are appreciated is the biggest prize ever.

About Our Cats ………

Our breeding program consists of having our own studs and females.  We hope to minimize any infectious diseases this way as well as knowing the health history of each cat involved.  All our cats enjoy a secure run outdoors that they enjoy daily as well as the run of the house.  All our cats are pets first so they really enjoy “their” house.

We primarily breed the colors of brown tabbies with and without white, blue tabbies with and without white and solid whites.  All our adult cats are checked via Ultrasound at UC Davis by Dr. Kittleson, the leading authority on Feline Heart Disease, HCM (Hypertropic Cardiomyopathy) can happen in any cat, purebred or domestic.  * Please note: Screening for HCM is currently the recommended method to aid in reducing the incidence of this genetic condition in our cats.  Breeders cannot guarantee that their cats will not have this condition.  However Black Tye does guarantee against any genetic defects in our cats for the first 12 months of life.  You can read more about our health guarantees in our contract linked below.

As Maine Coon breeders we take great pride and considerable care in making sure that our breeding only strengthens the breed as a whole.  Even though we are successful in our showing efforts our greatest endorsement is letters and emails from our pet buyers.  The raising of very social, healthy, out-going and well tempered kittens is our MAINE goal.  All our kittens are held as soon as they are born.   They are constantly talked to and stroked throughout the day.  The cats/kittens enjoy my two children as well as our dog, a Harlequin Great Dane.

Our cattery is Feline Leukemia and Feline Aids free and a blood test is taken prior to them leaving to assure you of this. All vaccines are included (done at 6, 10 & 14 weeks) as well as two physicals done by our vet at 6 and 14 weeks of age. All kittens/cats are sold to approved homes with a health guarantee which includes a spay/neuter agreement. Our contract does not allow for cats to be de-clawed or allowed to roam outdoors. You can see a copy of our contract by clicking on this link SALES CONTRACT.  Our kittens are allowed to go to their new homes at 14 weeks of age.

 Thank You’s ………

We wish to thank Geraldine Martin of Tabbypatch Cattery for our first Maine Coon “Big Bopper” and the tremendous mentoring as well as lasting friendship we have maintained throughout.  The fun we have competing against one another has been priceless!

We would like to thank Debbie Smith of Cancoon Cattery for our first Distinguished Merit girl “Norma”.  She was the purrfect match for our boys!

We would like to thank Donna Hinton of Nascat Cattery for “Sarsaparilla” the biggest girl we have.  She is well on her way to a DM herself.  Her size and type adds greatly to our program.

We would like to thank Mark and Jean Ward of Katz Domaine for “Shelby” a half sister to Sarsaparilla.  Her boning and coat is beyond believable and love just pours from her.  She is exactly what I love in a Maine Coon.

We would like to thank Susan and Thom Shambough of Noogats Cattery for our white girl “Tina”.  She is a wonderful addition and gave us two great babies, “Marilyn” and “Morse”.  We would also like to thank them for the use of their stud “Stevie”.

We would like to thank Lynn Hofstetter of Irishcoons Cattery for our endless friendship as well as support.  We wish to thank you also for the use of your stud “Shamon” aka “Smudge”.

A big thanks goes out to Becky & Dave Lovall of Coonwyck Cattery for our lovely Aurora, who will be bringing the much missed blue tabbies to our cattery once again and who are home to our beloved Kona who we miss very much but know she's in great hands.  Thanks also to Becky for her fantastic job on our web page and keeping it up-to-date.

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