I've read that the most costly way of acquiring a cat can be to get one that's "free." There's some truth in that. For example, my "free" stray has so far cost me about $500 in vet costs over three months, and he's actually quite healthy, so much of that was just routine procedures from getting his shots to neutering. I guess anyone selling kittens for less is either willfully throwing money out the window or skipping basic vet care.

Ren- GO TO BED
think of that good old saying " same s***t, different day!"

The unsuspecting public really have NO idea at all..
I would reckon approx 80% of them think its the genuine breeders who have got it wrong..
I have had arguements in the past when they say.. " but why should I pay that amount when I only want a pet? It doesnt need to be registered, Im never going to show!"
and then they are willing to take the risk with the health issues.
and seem equally not bothered about the breeding parents of these babies..
its so frustrating.
one time you used to HAVE to have a licence to own a dog..( it wasnt expensive so no issues there)
I say ALL breeders should have a licenceto be screened say every 2 yrs - then all prospective owners of cat/dogs should ask to see the licence.
then in turn, all new puppy/kitten owners should get theyre licence through the breeder.
No licence=big fine ( sue's perfect world of course!!)

Hi all,

I'm glad it wasn't just me that was outraged at the actions of this "breeder".

QueenB - I got the feeling the pet shop owners didn't know the couple and if the so-called breeder is as disreputable as she sounds, then I doubt she'd make herself too widely known! As people have said though, what can you do? There's no law against it unless you can prove that an animal is suffering.

I still worry about the fate of that poor little kitten - but as others have said, the worst thing you can do is buy a cheap kitten with no papers - but at the end of the day we all have hearts and no-one would like to think of any animal suffering, especially not breeds we're all really fond of (or is that obsessed with ?) knowing just how intelligent Bengals are, it horrifies me to think that one could end up in an unloving home, ignored and neglected, and even in pain with untreated medical problems

Teresa x

Well you say there's no law against it - but that breeder got her animals from somewhere, and most people I know have contracts.
I can say for sure that if I find an owner of one of my 'pet' babies breeding him/her then I will be taking that owner to court and suing him/her under section one of my contract which states that the cat is there for a pet and if I find any evidence pointing to the contrary then I will take steps to recover the full breeding cost of the animal.

But that's only a civil matter. The bybs aren't breaking any criminal laws unless they are keeping the animals in poor conditions.

Hi Nicola,

Yes - that's exactly what I meant. There's no criminal law to cover this and it would rely on genuine breeders taking civil action, which would have a serious financial impact I guess as well as being distressing.

Ultimately it's morally wrong as well as being not in the interests of the breed.

It sickens me that people breed cats just to make money, given that from what people have said on the forum, you really have to do it for the love of Bengals, and not for profit. Which is why I could never be a breeder, I'd never be able to let any of my kittens go and I would end up a mad old cat lady

Teresa x

I guess I am kind of bad... When we were growing up I would have never dreamed of paying what I did for Confetti. Even up until we adopted him I was a bit overwhelmed by the fact how much we were paying for him. The logic I used behind the cost is people do it all the time for pedigree dogs what is the difference? I guess I never thought of adopting a pedigree cat since the ones we have owned in the past were either strays that showed up at our door hungry or a rescue from the shelter. Now that I have Confetti -- I don't think we will ever get another shelter kitty. His breeder did such a great job in socializing him and housetraining him my standards of what I expect in a little one has changed.