Why Do People Go To Breeders?

If you are wondering what is the right cat for you, this is the place to be. In this introductory forum we talk about topics such as breed vs. mix, size, age, grooming, breeders, shelters, rescues as well as requirements for exercise, space and care. No question is too silly here. This particular forum is for getting and giving helpful, nice advice. It is definitely not a forum for criticizing someone else's opinion, knowledge or advice. This forum is all about purring and learning.

(Page 6 of 11: Viewing entries 51 to 60)
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Lola

Proud mother of- the Fab Four!

Purred: Tue Nov 30, '10 5:40pm PST


	Since I don't live in America, I don't know much about things like kitten mills (although I've heard that they exist in Japan), and I don't know how popular or common TAs are. More to the point, I'm not sure if kitten mills would be producing them. In Japan, the pet store chain that has a branch in my neighborhood sells only the breeds/colors that are popular with the Japanese. Russian Blues, Abyssinians, silver tabby American Shorthairs, Chinchilla Silver Persians, Norwegian Forest Cats, Scottish Folds, Ragdolls, American Curls, Munchkins, and brown or red tabby Maine Coons are about all you'll ever see. Not all people who sell to pet stores are backyard breeders or kitten mills (although I'm sure it depends on the pet store). My mentor sells to pet stores, BUT only if she has a request for a certain color that the pet store she works with doesn't have. Her cats aren't forced to live in glass cages and have children tease them. I've never seen a Turkish Angora in a pet store, although I do see them at cat shows.

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Apollo (In- Memory)

Love Ya

moderator

Purred: Tue Nov 30, '10 7:35pm PST


	I'm considered a "national treasure" at my house. That means I'm at least part Angora .... yes???

Padfoot

1032354

Purred: Tue Nov 30, '10 9:32pm PST


	I don't go to pet stores that even sell cats or dogs. It isn't too common here. But there are stores that sell them. Don't know what they sell. Needless to say bad place to get a dog or cat. And perhaps part of the overbreeding problem in some places. --des

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Harvard

Regional Winner!

Purred: Tue Nov 30, '10 9:46pm PST


	Hmm...I really don't know. Probably all long haired kitties are somehow related to long haired cats that originally came from Persia and Turkey on sailing ships...er, the sailors sailed the ships, the cats were just there for the ride and for catching rodents. Pet stores still sell purebred animals in Japan, but from what I hear, you don't make much selling to pet stores. My breeder always charged around $800 per cat, regardless of so-called "quality" (show quality, pet quality, etc.). For $500 more, he'd throw in breeding rights as well. Another breeder I deal with charges about the same. I think I've heard that if you sell a cat to a pet shop, you get only around $200-$300 per cat. When you consider all the expenses necessary for keeping a cattery, and for vaccinations and examinations for the kittens, the only way you're going to break even with prices like that is to sell lots and lots of kittens. I don't have the physical or emotional stamina for that. My breeder's breeder produces a lot of kittens, but she has a gift for seeking out excellent cats for her breeding team, and her kittens are all very good quality and well-socialized. Let's just say that she has more energy than I do. She also lives in a house, which helps--it's not impossible to breed in an apartment, but you sort of have to forget about any human-only rooms.

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KuJu Ku

Bobtails Rule!

Purred: Wed Dec 1, '10 6:24am PST


	sitting back reading all these interesting posts thumbs up to all my purebreed friends and HHP show kitties.

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Maple

Pet me. Now.- NOW!

Purred: Wed Dec 1, '10 2:14pm PST


	Oh goodness! Good job to the pure-breeders! I personally doubt I will ever purchase a kitty, just for the simple fact that I don't have a favorite! When we did go looking for a cat we wanted a "classical tabby", the lady at the shelter informed me that she had the most beautiful "torbie" I had no idea what it was. Now i have Maple, a Classical tabby/torti cross in coloring. She has the sweetest personality and I'm happy as a lark. On the other hand, I am a bit more of a "dog" person. I did indeed choose Paisley, my doberman, for her working abilities. And in our area, dogs are very much used to hunt with. I did not purchase either of our pups either though, I still rescued them. I may purchase a dog from a breeder one day, for the simple fact that Dobermans (and other breeds) come with natural health problems and it's very much a crap-shoot when you rescue a dog as to his/her background. I'll be super joyful if Paisley makes it to nine years old. I'll probably do genetic testing to be sure she doesn't have wobblers syndrome or the like A pet from a good breeder will have his/her genetics already proven so I won't have to worry about things like that. I'm sure it's the same in kitties. I didnt know America had kitten mills though, I don't ever see them sold anywhere... BYBs yes, mills?? hmmm...

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Cruiser

Top 25 Winner- Region 1- 2011-2012

Purred: Wed Dec 1, '10 2:57pm PST


	Apollo...... I dun told ya, like about a hundred times, mol, ya ain't, a Turkish Angora, mol. Turkish Angora's got a slim build, kinda like an Arab, you, on the other hand, got a bigger build, kinda like a Quarter Horse. TA's got a narrow face, yours is broad, more like a MC or RD. TA's got bat like ears, your ears don't look anything like that. TA's fur is long, but not like yours, yours is very long and thick, more like a RD. Kitties, beware, if ya ever go on a hay ride, don't let Apollo, drive the horsies, mol. He makes them jump streams, mol, kittens were hanging on for dear life, mol, mol, mol. Hey Apollo!!

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Padfoot

1032354

Purred: Wed Dec 1, '10 5:34pm PST


	Though the pet stores I am speaking of are not charging $800 for a cat. And they churn out kittens and puppies. They don't give a darn about the health of the kittens. Heart problems, kidney disorders, etc etc. will all be in the gene pool. (Same with puppy mills and a pox on all their houses.) Mixing breeds willy nilly (a TA and an MC mix for instance)or down right selling mixed breeds as purebreds are all par for the course. The reason kitten mills aren't more of a problem is that more people aren't interested in purebred cats. AKC (the Am. Kennel Club-- or always keeping cash) has done its share in registering mill dogs, and making a neat $50 or so on each registry. Hermione (the Savannah)'s breeder couldn't have been more different and only because most of the cats raised cost more than Hermione did would she make any money at all for vet bills. If she looses a cat at birth, she'll do research to figure out waht the problem is. This is not the pet store thing. And you would never get a good purebred cat at a pet store. --des

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Umesaburo

I'm a stud!

Purred: Wed Dec 1, '10 7:37pm PST


	Actually, oddly enough, you can get a good purebred at a pet store in Japan, if you luck out. Unfortunately, you won't get to see the pedigree until after you've bought the cat, so it's sort of like Christmas--you might be very pleased or very disappointed. Someone I know got a cat from a pet shop who had parents from one of the best Maine Coon catteries in Japan. And I know that that cattery would not be pleased to know that cats with their name on their pedigree were being sold in pet shops. Pet shops sell purebred kittens (usually around two months of age, too young to be away from Momcat and the sibs) for around $2000-$3000. As I wrote above, the breeder who sells a cat to a pet shop makes only a small fraction of this. If you're a breeder, and advertise on the Internet or in a magazine, you get to keep all the money you charge for the cat except what you owe the advertiser. If you sell through your own website or by word of mouth, you get all of what you charge for your cat. What to charge for a cat is always an interesting problem. If you charge too much, you may have trouble selling your cats unless you're a famous cattery. If you charge too little, people may think you have substandard cats. My own breeder found that when he upped the prices of his cats slightly they sold better. Go figure. Cats are not usually altered before being sold in Japan, but lately breeders require that proof of spay/neuter is provided before a pedigree is handed over. If the kittens are registered with the CFA, for example, you can specify that the cat is "not for breeding," which means that any kittens the cat may produce cannot be registered with the CFA, although they can get pedigrees. This may not be an ideal situation, but it's the way it's done in Japan.

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♥- Roxy- ♥

Polydactyl Maine- Coons Rule!

Purred: Wed Dec 1, '10 8:38pm PST


	That's interesting about pet shops in Japan. My brother told me he saw pet stores selling purebred cats when he was visiting Japan (he actually sent me some photos from one) but I didn't know they actually sell "good quality" purebreds. I don't think I've ever seen purebred cats for sale in pet shops around here. The few pet shops I've seen that had kittens for sale, they were domestic shorthairs, not purebreds. I don't think I've heard of "kitten mills" here either, definitely not to the extent of the puppy mill problem in the US.

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