Tips on Buying a British Shorthair

Female Blue tabby British Shorthair Kitten
Photo by e³°°° (Flickr)

What should you do when considering buying a British Shorthair. Well, I think you have got to try and find the best breeder in your area or you might get lucky and find a purebred Brit SH that needs rescuing. This can happen but unusually because the documentary evidence that the cat is a purebred is probably not available to the rescue center.

It is said that you pretty well have to visit the cattery. This is to check out facilities, ask direct one-to-one questions and to let the cat chose you! One failing I feel of the cat associations is that they take no responsibility to rank their affiliated breeders or to ensure that they meet certain standards so it is hard to know who the good and bad breeders are.

Breeders are usually small businesses (hobby business) and they socialise their kittens by letting them run around their home interacting with other kittens, other animals and people including visitors.

There should not be so many kittens swarming around as to give you a feeling that the breeder is unable to give adequate attention to each individual. Kittens should be seen in the house not in sheds where they are not being socialised.

The kittens should not be fearful of the presence of visitors. Is the house clean and hygienic? Do the kittens look healthy? It can be hard to tell sometimes as some illnesses, even fatal ones, can show few obvious symptoms on first impressions and it is more difficult to be objective and observant when visiting a strangers house to select a cat companion that you are keen to adopt.

Rough indicators of kittens that are not in the best of health are:

• runny noses
• fleas in the coat (black salt and pepper grains in the coat - why not take a flea comb and test!)
• dirty ears
• traces of diarrhea (check the litter boxes and are they full of feces and urine?)
• over-round stomachs
• bare patches on fur.

Esther Verhoef gives the good advice that if there are signs of illness in the cats you should not visit another cattery in the same day to avoid spreading disease.

I would not accept any excuse from the breeder on the subject of apparent ill health in kittens.

Buying a Bengal Cat

Silver Spotted Bengal Cat - Photo copyright Helmi Flick

Buying a Bengal cat is like buying any cat really. OK you'll need to be aware of the characteristics of the Bengal cat - active and intelligent etc. but by and large it is about buying any purebred cat. I have a page and video of a comparison between the Bengal cat and the Exotic Shorthair. It is quite informative, I think you will find. This page on cat personality types might also help.

I would check out the health issues surrounding the Bengal cat but not be put off by them. It is just nice to know about potential pitfalls. Ask questions etc.

As to prices - check out this section of a Bengal cat page I built some time ago. Bengal cats are purebred cats and they will cost the same as any other purebred cat in general. You will be buying a "pet" (not a breeding cat). The contract will specify neutering and if you are in breach of contract damages will have to be paid (if you don't get away with it). Please don't break contracts.

Talking of contracts Wild Expressions in Canada have a nice simply written contract (between breeder and buyer) that tells you a lot about buying a Bengal cat. Please read it carefully it is very informative.

You'll need to know the coat types as well. If you'd like to read what other people think about the Bengal cat and their personal experiences this is a good start.

Penultimately, check out some champion superstar Bengal cats and feast your eyes. This is what they should look like.

Finally please read what Helmi Flick has to say about buying a high filial wildcat hybrid (if you are thinking about that - most Bengals are SBT though). Her experiences on this occasion relate to an F1 Chausie but it applies to all purchases from a breeder. Also this page is about Bengal House Cats and has some stuff on buying and more general info plus pics and videos.

The photo on this page is protected by copyright ©. Violations of copyright are reported to Google.com (DMCA).

Siamese Cats For Adoption

People searching for Siamese cats for adoption are looking for Siamese cats...obvious, I guess, sorry. I won't interfere in that process except to provide my thoughts and perhaps some pointers. They may help. They may not.

Potential adopters should be aware that there are different types of Siamese cat. Personally - and this is personal but based upon sound thinking, I hope - I would chose a traditional Siamese cat (Applehead Siamese). In my opinion they are the true Siamese cat and they are more healthy than the skinny over bred modern version. Please note too that the Balinese is a long haired Siamese cat and the Oriental Shorthair is the same cat but with colors and patterns that you can't get for the Siamese cats. Seal colored pointing is the original pointing and still the best.

As to finding a Siamese cat for adoption I would avoid the cat shelters unless you don't mind a Siamese mix or a Siamese without pedigree papers. A Siamese without evidence of pedigree cannot truly be called a purebred cat and all true Siamese cats are purebred.

That said if you want a cat that looks like a Siamese please go to a shelter. They need you, badly.

So, if I were looking to buy a purebred Siamese cat in the USA where would I begin. Well, I would do some research first. We need to because it will cost £10,000 over the lifetime of a cat to care for him or her. Possibly more for a purebred cat.

The first thing in fact is to look at ourselves. Do we have the right expectations if we are first time cat caretakers? A big question. Please read this (FDF file).

Provided we meet the requirements of a good human companion to a cat. I would contact a Siamese cat club and discuss things. In the USA you will almost invariably meet the modern Siamese cat but there are traditional Siamese cats too. The National Siamese Cat Club has a decent sized list of breeders. This page has contact details.

Please remember that the Siamese cat likes close contact with his or her human companion and is vocal. You really should be around a lot ideally. If you are not you might be better of with a breed that is more suited to being alone - see e.g. cat separation anxiety.

The Siamese Cat Club is for UK residents. This club has a kitten list page. The kittens on this site are modern looking Siamese but not extreme or the result of ultra breeding as far as I can tell.

If you want to research the Siamese cat this website and the pages on Siamese cats that are linked in the navigation bar should serve you well.

I think you might also check out the major cat associations for their breeder referrals. In the USA I would check:

• The CFA referral list - click the required box once you land on their site and go.
• TICA - a short list of breeders.
• American Cat Fanciers Association has seven breeders listed.

For the USA, this website's page has a nice list of contact material. In the UK the Siamese Cat Association has a good list of Siamese cat breeders.

I have found that pricing is the same or similar worldwide. The price will depend on quality and whether you are buying a breeding cat or a "pet". 

Breeders seem reluctant to put prices on their websites. The ones I have visited have no prices, anyway. As at the date of this post I would expect to pay the going rate for any purebred cat, namely  between about $500 to over $1000 (USD - for the USA). In the UK the same numbers can be used for sterling.

I discuss the issue of pricing in respect to Bengal cats. Hope this all helps a bit.