# What to look for?



## Dicesmom (Feb 28, 2012)

I am trying to look for a Bengal breeder around me and I have found one that I look the looks of her cats. I also emailed her with ?'s and she answered quickly. She also invited me to see her cats but she lives 3 hours away from me, one way. Does she seem responsible? I have always been for rescue cats(well any animal) but I want to give a breeder a chance. I am new at looking for responsible cat breeders.


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## Sol (Feb 20, 2003)

I don't know anything about the specific breeder and I'm not going to try to tell if she's good or not by her website only. I can tell you some of the things you should look for though:

- Make sure she's registered with an official cat registry (such as TICA or CFA).
- Make sure that all her cats seem healthy (clean, alert, clear eyes and nostrils) and well socialized.
- The cats should live in clean quarters. I'm not talking about any extreme cleanliness, just regular cleanliness you would expect in anyones house. One of the most important thing is clean litter boxes. Loads of diseases spread through litter boxes. Clean food trays and water bowls are also very important. A studs quarters may smell stud urine... that's quite normal and hard to avoid.
- The kittens should be vaccinated, registered and checked by a vet before they move.

I'm sure I've missed something but this is a good start.


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## MowMow (Nov 6, 2010)

Personally, the fact that they have upcoming litters from FOUR queens at once sends up red flags to me.

Once again, I don't have experience with cats but in the dog world someone breeding FOUR cats at one time reeks of puppy mill to me. Most good quality breeders focus on a few select animals and breed for top quality....not for quantity.

Granted, if I was determined to get that breed I might go check the place out...but that would concern me.


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## doodlebug (May 13, 2006)

I don't see any red flags on her website, I don't like that she makes you purchase NuVet supplement for the first year and that she gets a commission on it...but that's a nit if everything else checks out.

You definitely want to take the road trip and meet her and her cats before purchasing one. I did the 2.5 hour each way trip Holly's breeder, took a friend with me and made a day of it. You want to meet her cats and see their temperament for yourself. You want to meet friendly outgoing cats, not shy, hiding or aggressive. See their living conditions, the condition of the cats etc. 

Research the medical issues common to the breed and ensure she is doing proper screening (for example; Maine Coons have a genetic heart problem...breeding cats need yearly testing, there is a genetic test that is done before they start breeding etc. I would want to know that the lines my kitten is coming from has been clear of this problem for at least 4 generations). 

Make sure she's keeping the kittens till they're 12 weeks old, anything less is a TICA violation and then you have to wonder what else she's cutting corners on. 

Have fun!


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## Zephyriddle (Mar 28, 2012)

MowMow said:


> Personally, the fact that they have upcoming litters from FOUR queens at once sends up red flags to me.
> 
> Once again, I don't have experience with cats but in the dog world someone breeding FOUR cats at one time reeks of puppy mill to me. Most good quality breeders focus on a few select animals and breed for top quality....not for quantity.
> 
> Granted, if I was determined to get that breed I might go check the place out...but that would concern me.


Normally I would totally agree, but sometimes that's just the timing of things. My great dane breeder ended up breeding four cats close together because a few of them didn't take on the last attempt and a few are getting older and she didn't want to waste a heat, and the girls tend to cycle together. She produces AKC champion dogs and breeds for new pups to show, so definitely not a BYB or mill situation. All 12 of her dogs live in the house. Usually she has one or two litters a year, but this time there were four close together, the oldest litter just hit six months and my pup is from the youngest litter at four months Thursday. Now, I'd have a harder time believing that a similar situation would arise with cats since you're not waiting 6-8 months for a queen to come into heat, so I'd be a little wary of that many litters expected.


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## yingying (Jul 19, 2011)

Part of the contract from that breeder:




> If sold as pet, altering certificate must be received before the kitten is 7 months old. The undersigned buyer agrees that the seller has the right to reclaim the above named cat without refund of purchase price and/or receive additional $1000 as payment for breeding rights if the cat/kitten is not altered before the kitten is 7 months old.


So... the breeder is willing to let his _pet quality_ cat breed if the buyer give him an extra $1000... Seems to me that the breeder cares more about money than his reputation...


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## doodlebug (May 13, 2006)

MowMow said:


> Personally, the fact that they have upcoming litters from FOUR queens at once sends up red flags to me.


It says fall & Christmas...so I don't think they're breeding all 4 at once. But the fact that she's planning a litter for Christmas gifts is a little off putting for me. In general I don't think the holidays are a good time for people to be getting a new pet (of course there are exceptions). 

Another question to ask is how often her girls have litters. I'd prefer to see once a year, but 6-9 months is probably more typical. Less than 6 months is not OK imo. And at what age she starts breeding them...I'd prefer to see 18 months or over, but more typical is probably 12 months. Under that is, again, not OK with me.


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## doodlebug (May 13, 2006)

yingying said:


> Part of the contract from that breeder:
> 
> 
> 
> So... the breeder is willing to let his _pet quality_ cat breed if the buyer give him an extra $1000... Seems to me that the breeder cares more about money than his reputation...


I think that's just contract language to keep someone who wants to breed from paying a pet price and then going ahead and breeding anyway. It's a deterrent to keep back yard breeders at bay.


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## yingying (Jul 19, 2011)

doodlebug said:


> I think that's just contract language to keep someone who wants to breed from paying a pet price and then going ahead and breeding anyway. It's a deterrent to keep back yard breeders at bay.


It can be understanded this way, but also I can say that, if I buy a *pet quality* kitten from the breeder, then later on I decide to breed the cat, all I need to do is pay the breeder $1000 extra. Don't know how that can deter BYB. A good breeder will never give breeding right for a pet quality kitten. 

Also I noticed among all his breeding kings and queens, there is only one show cat, and he is a co-owned cat. Overall, I have the impression that this breeder breeds Bengal not for the intention of improving the Bengal breed, but to take it as money-making business.


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## MowMow (Nov 6, 2010)

Another thing to check out is pedigree. They are breeding 4 queens and have 3 or 4 studs available, the descriptions indicate they are home bred/ raised kittens. I would just be sure to glance at the pedigrees and make sure there isn't a ton of in breeding going on. There may not be, I didn't bother to look who was from/by whom and being bred to whom.


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## Dicesmom (Feb 28, 2012)

Thanks guys! It will be awhile before I get one but I liked the looks of her cats that is why i asked about her. I will continue my search and see if I can find a breeder closer. I am only 15 so still need to get the okay from my parents and I will need them to take me,lol. I know in the dog world you want a breeder that does some kind of Venue with there dog( show, Obedience, field work ect..) and also tests for problems known for the breed. Is it the same with cats?


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## yingying (Jul 19, 2011)

Oh, I see, you are a minor  Did you ask your parents if they are willing to pay around $1000 for a Bengal? Many ppl consider it's crazy to pay that price for a cat (oddly though, they are ok with the same or even higher price for a dog). If they are not ok with the price, then I guess you should start checking your local shelter for a spotted or classic tabby that will remotely resemble a Bengal 



> I know in the dog world you want a breeder that does some kind of Venue with there dog( show, Obedience, field work ect..) and also tests for problems known for the breed. Is it the same with cats?


There is no obedience training for a cat, but good breeder will socialize their kitten. Also there are tests need to be done. Most common are HCM and PKD, and/or any Bengal related deseases. It's preferable that the kittens parents are tested for FIV/FIP/FeLv as well.


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## spotty cats (Sep 23, 2011)

Breeding from 10-12 months us typical for short haired breeds, and 2 litters a year is not uncommon especially for constant callers who are typically bred and retired young

Tests that must happen in bengals are HCM scans and pk-def screening


I like to see breeders who show their cats, neuter, microchip and fully vaccinate before rehoming as well.


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## spotty cats (Sep 23, 2011)

Multiple litters again not so uncommon, one calling girl tends to set the others off and sometimes they'll need to be mated, four is too many for me personally though


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## Sol (Feb 20, 2003)

yingying said:


> Part of the contract from that breeder:
> 
> 
> 
> So... the breeder is willing to let his _pet quality_ cat breed if the buyer give him an extra $1000... Seems to me that the breeder cares more about money than his reputation...


Many kittens that are sold as pets are in fact of breeding quality (as much as you can decide at that young age). It's just that people generally want pets and we can't sell all kittens as breeding cats either.

In my cattery, all kittens that aren't booked by a breeder (or a very, very, very serious person who's interested in breeding) are sold as pets. Neutered with all vaccinations and papers, but they may very well be of breeding quality, just that the right buyer didn't pop up. If sold as a pet it costs about 880 USD, if sold as a breeding cat it costs 1200 USD so I don't necessarily see any problems with the contract as long as the "pet quality kittens" actuarially are of breeding quality and the breeder doesn't sell loads of breeding cats (which may cause inbreeding problems later on).

For me, it's all about the quality of the kitten and the "quality" of the buyer.


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## maewkaew (Jun 27, 2012)

Here are some tips from a Bengal breed club on determining the reputability of a breeder 


I would want to see that they are showing their cats to get an independent judgement of their breeding. 
And while it's not like training dogs for obedience competition , it does require socialization and a friendly , outgoing temperament for the cat to do really well at showing. So if you find a breeder whose cats are Supreme Grand Champions in TICA that's not just a sign of their physical conformation but it usually means they have the desired temperament, neither human-aggressive nor overly shy. Thats both a sign of breeding and socialization. 

and I am always wary of anything that looks like they will sell breeding rights on any cat if the buyer just pays extra. Not every cat should be bred. and not every kitten buyer should become a breeder. If that clause is just in the contract to try to deter people, I think they need to change it somewhat, rephrase it to not give that impression. If I were considering a breeder that had that in a contract, I would try to feel them out about what they really meant, without revealing at the start my own opinion. Like ask "What if we buy a pet kitten from you and then later we want to breed her?" A good breeder will not just automatically say "Fine just hand over this amount more money". She might say "that would depend on how the kitten was turning out as she gets older" or might say " that would depend on if you showed her and got a title on her, and then we could talk about the possibility " Of course this breeder doesn't bother to show their own cats so I doubt that would be the answer . 

& I agree w/ spotty cats that in shorthair breeds, particularly in some of the breeds that are known for being early maturing, it is common that the cats are first bred at 10-12 months. You could not hold off until after 18 months , for the health of the queen. Also, breeding only once a year is not always healthy for cats who tend to cycle frequently. but I would not usually want to see more than twice a year.


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