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- #121
I guess I was a little surprised when this breeder volunteered to pay a house call with her cats but I think she said something about her own house being redecorated, or some such thing.
All of your input about this makes a lot of sense and is very well taken. I've had an interesting week interacting with cat breeders. Some seem eager to unload their kittens while others have given me such stringent lectures on the standard of conduct that they expect from me and my family before they would even consider selling me a cat that it's a bit like undergoing a confirmation hearing for high political office.
My impression is that this lady has two litters, one of which is ready to go at twelve weeks, the other some weeks away from that point. I think she wants to sell the older kittens to a good home because she runs her business by herself and the continued care of a litter of older kittens is probably financially and practically burdensome. Of course, it's possible I'm giving her the benefit of the doubt here and the convenience factor is significant.
The breeder called me last night asking to postpone to Saturday afternoon as she was under a lot of pressure to get another kitten onto an airplane with all of his papers, etc; it appears that a lot of cats are sold sight unseen in the U.S. Anyway, this was welcome news to me. By Saturday, she'll have all the kittens' paperwaork and veterinary records to hand, I will have new screens in place and it will be much more relaxing to hang out over at the weekend as opposed to during the week, for us all to get a sense of each other.
This breeder is registered with the CFA, has bred champion cats and has a pretty well-maintained web site. If she were playing hard to get, making demands, insisting that I come to her, talking to me about all the other people who want these kittens, I guess that, in a perverse way, I'd feel comfortable because a lack of eagerness to actually part with the cats can be seen as a mark of integrity. However, I think I need for the time being to see her as innocent before being proven guilty and to assume her motives to be pure. She hasn't yet neutered the cats because she feels they are a little young, but of course I will be contractually obliged to do so and this is reflected in the price. She's also very attached to the female, which she says is show quality but she feels she dosn't have the time to hit the road and will therefore part with this cat if it goes to a good enough home.
All this to say that I do not think there is an "agenda" here on the part of the breeder that is counter to my own best interests as the buyer but I'm a reasonably good judge of these things and my antennae will be switched on.
I'm going to take the good avice offered here and have the kittens meet my family in a smaller room. I think I will put my old Persian upstairs with her food, water and litter so that there is no contact at all between her and the kittens at this point, although of course she will know something is up and will smell other cats in the house, no doubt.
I have not yet placed all my eggs in the one basket; we are off to see some Burmese kittens in Pasadena tonight and we are still scheduled to ake the long trip south to see Abys on Sunday. But I have a feeling that, if the Ocis check out, if they are confident, healthy, well-socialised and good with the children, this is the way we'll go. The breeder appears to have her heart in the right place and I'll need to trust my own judgement in the matter of whether her kittens are up to snuff. I do not think she's attepting to "unload" cats on me, I just think she may be a little overwhelmed right now, especially as she has a brand new litter of silver Ocis to deal with.
If I have any doubts about the kittens' health or demeanor, I'll hold off and post those concerns here.
All of your input about this makes a lot of sense and is very well taken. I've had an interesting week interacting with cat breeders. Some seem eager to unload their kittens while others have given me such stringent lectures on the standard of conduct that they expect from me and my family before they would even consider selling me a cat that it's a bit like undergoing a confirmation hearing for high political office.
My impression is that this lady has two litters, one of which is ready to go at twelve weeks, the other some weeks away from that point. I think she wants to sell the older kittens to a good home because she runs her business by herself and the continued care of a litter of older kittens is probably financially and practically burdensome. Of course, it's possible I'm giving her the benefit of the doubt here and the convenience factor is significant.
The breeder called me last night asking to postpone to Saturday afternoon as she was under a lot of pressure to get another kitten onto an airplane with all of his papers, etc; it appears that a lot of cats are sold sight unseen in the U.S. Anyway, this was welcome news to me. By Saturday, she'll have all the kittens' paperwaork and veterinary records to hand, I will have new screens in place and it will be much more relaxing to hang out over at the weekend as opposed to during the week, for us all to get a sense of each other.
This breeder is registered with the CFA, has bred champion cats and has a pretty well-maintained web site. If she were playing hard to get, making demands, insisting that I come to her, talking to me about all the other people who want these kittens, I guess that, in a perverse way, I'd feel comfortable because a lack of eagerness to actually part with the cats can be seen as a mark of integrity. However, I think I need for the time being to see her as innocent before being proven guilty and to assume her motives to be pure. She hasn't yet neutered the cats because she feels they are a little young, but of course I will be contractually obliged to do so and this is reflected in the price. She's also very attached to the female, which she says is show quality but she feels she dosn't have the time to hit the road and will therefore part with this cat if it goes to a good enough home.
All this to say that I do not think there is an "agenda" here on the part of the breeder that is counter to my own best interests as the buyer but I'm a reasonably good judge of these things and my antennae will be switched on.
I'm going to take the good avice offered here and have the kittens meet my family in a smaller room. I think I will put my old Persian upstairs with her food, water and litter so that there is no contact at all between her and the kittens at this point, although of course she will know something is up and will smell other cats in the house, no doubt.
I have not yet placed all my eggs in the one basket; we are off to see some Burmese kittens in Pasadena tonight and we are still scheduled to ake the long trip south to see Abys on Sunday. But I have a feeling that, if the Ocis check out, if they are confident, healthy, well-socialised and good with the children, this is the way we'll go. The breeder appears to have her heart in the right place and I'll need to trust my own judgement in the matter of whether her kittens are up to snuff. I do not think she's attepting to "unload" cats on me, I just think she may be a little overwhelmed right now, especially as she has a brand new litter of silver Ocis to deal with.
If I have any doubts about the kittens' health or demeanor, I'll hold off and post those concerns here.
