Oh, these people scare me to death. I'm afraid that one of the things they're doing is cross-breeding or out-crossing regular domestic cats with other cat species that are wild. Such a shameful thing to do. I have a couple of suggestions for the allergic and fearful among us:

1) If you're looking for "protection," consider this: Do you actually want the potential malefactor torn to shreds, or would you rather just scare him/her away? If you'd like to simply encourage bad guys to go elsewhere, remember that it's not the size of the dog that will do it. It's the size of the bark. Even a small dog alertly barking at strangers until you tell him to shut up can do a world of good when it comes to "home protection." Alert dogs of all shapes and sizes are waiting to be adopted and rescued from all sorts of places. Take your pick. You don't need a German Shepherd unless you want one. A small terrier will do the same thing.

2) If you're allergic: Allergens come from three places--glands in the skin, the dog's saliva, and the dog's urine. (Yep.) You can do a lot. Have somebody else wash the dog, and do it once a week. Brush and groom daily in an area that's easily cleaned and vacuumed. Use furniture throws or train the dog not to get on the furniture. Opt out of carpets if you can, and into hard-surfaced floors. Don't let the dog into your bedroom--let it be a sneeze-free zone. Use some of the new filtering technologies for furnaces, a/c units, and vacuum cleaners. There is a lot more you can do. Check at the Humane society--just search their site for "pet allergy." Some dogs are less allergenic than others. The same is true of cats. People who really suffer from allergies are probably already doing a lot of these things.

Let's not line the pockets of people who are creating frankencats and frankendogs when there's no need for them.

You want a protector? Go to a shelter, get a dog....any size. Shower it with love and affection and bond with it for a week. After that week, see what happens when someone tries to come in your home uninvited.

Their INSTINCT is to protect the pack. When placed in a home, the family becomes the pack. The people on the waiting list need to watch National Geographic once in a while. Save themselves lots of money.

I'm not sure what's worse, the fact that there is a company pimping out animals like this or that there are people willing to pay for it. Seems to me that these people are the same ones who'll turn the dog into a shelter after a few months because they just don't want a dog anymore.