About Me
Melissa Ryan
Melissa Ryan was born and raised in a tiny town outside of Paterson, New Jersey. When she was 15 yrs old she moved to Seaside Heights, NJ. Melissa has had a love for all animals alike since she was a baby. Her first pets were a hampster named Zima and a guinea pig named Charlotte. Throughout the years she began realizing more and more she had a love for reptiles and started breeding them for friends and pet stores. She specialized in breeding Leopard Gecko’s, Fire-belly Salamanders, Pond Newts, tadpoles, and your average Lake Frog. She loved everything reptile. Then she got her first cat at 14, named Tipsy. She was a very loyal, loving, and your average temperamental Tortie DSH. She would only let Melissa handle her. Melissa also had a wolf growing up. It was a hybrid Gray Wolf, and his name was Pookie. Melissa started branching out as she got older into the wild world of rescue! She not only did your average domestic rescues, but she also helped the rescuing of many ILLEGAL hybrids, med sized cats, and exotics. That’s where she fell completely in love with wildlife. She moved to Florida where it was more lenient and legal to run your own Sanctuary. That is still her dream to this day. She moved out of Florida after completing her Class 2 Wildlife permit courses and hrs. Took husbandry classes and is now in the FCF (Feline Conservation Federation). But she does not use it at all nor keep up with the FCF anymore since she had to move out of Florida, due to the Hurricane Irma in 2017 that destroyed mostly all she owned. To this day Melissa still does domestic and wildlife rescue in her hometown in VA where the animals are just a tad smaller. Melissa also works with volunteering for an SPCA, and also does TNR work for wildlife and domestic animals for the local towns around her home. Every so often when she sees that a shelter may be overloaded, or certain cats may not be getting adopted, she will break out her amateur photography skills and do photo shoots with the whole shelter or just a few certain kitties, and in no time their amazing pictures are up and they then most of the time, have families grab them right up. Some kitties just need that little extra attention for some people to look at them. ☺ That’s one of Melissa’a favorite things to do since photography has come into her life. : She’s perfecting it more and more each day. ☺
Melissa found a gorgeous home that sits on 6 acres of land in Virginia and had to change her dream to something else because of the fact that in VA, it’s illegal to own, possess, or exhibit ANY Wildlife at all. So she then turned her head to an amazing breed of cat that was taking over the internet. The incredible Lykoi breed! They looked like a wolf, but in turn were really just an amazing natural mutation that came from domestic black cats…..this intrigued her even more. Lykoi cats turned out to be strays, barn cats, and when shelters got ahold of them, they euthanized them due to their lack of fur so they were thought to be diseased. Infact, they weren’t diseased at all, but just a single coated gene of their OWN! Lykoi’s turned out to be a second chance breed and Melissa loved that and decided to start her journey as a cat breeder to help make further and perfect this incredible breed. She also shows her cats whenever she can, and has a love for this breed that’s unmistakable. Follow her on her journey as she intends to produce some amazing Lykoi cats that has never been seen before in the show halls….. ☺ ☺
FB: Lykoi_VA
INSTA: Lykoi_VA
ATREYUKATZ CATTERY, LLC
P. O. BOX 21
GASBURG, VA 23857
Why Me
Now I know this seems like such a contradiction…. How can A Breeder be in RESCUE? What? Is she just some backyard breeder? What does she do with her DSHs when they are retired? Believe me, I’ve heard it all. This is not a contradiction because I STILL do rescue, TNR, Wildlife rehab and rescue presently today. I help out wherever and whenever they need me, and if ever any overcrowding or I see some animals needing eXtra care and love to be able to get adopted, I’m right there creating flyers for them, ads of FB and INSTA, and I even break out MY OWN camera to take some good shots of them in awesome clothing or cool positions to give them an extra edge that a potential adopter might not see about those animals before when they are moping in their shelter cages.
My reasoning for breeding would probably be like most other Lykoi breeders though. I initially fell in love because they ARE a Second Chance breed that CAME from the streets as strays and barn cats in colonies. Luckily people saw something in these Lykoi cats that was NOT abnormal and was just a different genetic natural mutation. Lykoi Cats actually received a second chance at life and now I am beyond greatful to help this amazing breed flourish and in more ways then one.
YES, my main focus Will and Always will be the Amazing Health of this breed. My second focus is to further the breed and beyond in the show halls by creating some colored Lykoi Cats that have never been seen before in the show halls, but still maintaining full health focus of course. A breeder can not only be in rescue, BUT donate to rescues, help rescues, and make their facilities even flourish by just inviting more love and affection on those animals in shelters that are starving for affection and attention. I am one of those people. NO, I am not a backyard breeder. I am Voluntarily part of 2 Associations that have “Up To Par” expectations on their breeders. I am in 2 “Voluntary Responsible Breeder Programs” with Ethics that go far beyond your average “Backyard Breeder”. NOT to mention, but I am also currently in the process of becoming a USDA Certified and Licensed Breeder. so I’m Not just another Hobby Breeder adding to the population of unwanted cats in the world. I run my Program more strict then I run my own life. THAT’S what seperates me from other breeders. O, AND the fact that I’ve actually taken Veterinary classes from my very own Licensed and Certified Veterinarian (of 45 years) because he also teaches at the University nearby. I’m pretty sure NOT ONE other breeder out there, has done so much for their breed and their furrbabies.
When my DSHs or Lykoi F1 cats retire in the future, they will be for sale (at lower price for all vetting bills basically plus shipping) just like my Lykoi Cats. The ones that don’t sell, I will be taking MY OWN time and energy on making sure they go to incredible homes by setting up my own adoption days with 3 companies that have let me use a portion of the front of their stores to do this. So, in turn, I have the upmost ethics about the Breeding Program I want to keep. I have contacts in Rescue as well. No cat will be left without a home, nor will one of my breeding cats EVER go to a resue or shelter themselves. I will know exactly where all my Furrbabies go when they leave my facility. I also intend on keeping in touch with ALL the familes of my furr babies and want to know things about them in the future. How are they doing? How are they growing? How’s their personalities? When you adopt kittens/cats from me we become like family at that point. (I mean you have my babies that I raised so I wouldn’t expect anything less.) I even tell my adoptee’s to call me anytime day or night for any issue at all. Again, NO question or concern is a dumb one and I will always be there to help you through anything no matter what. ETC…THAT’S a Responsible Breeder and I intend to be just that.
Melissa Ryan
*Atreyukatz Cattery*
My Children….
