Finding a reputable breeder..

Today I want to talk about scams. There are so many scams out there, and sometimes something happens to remind me just how prevalent they are.  

Recently, I had a woman call me to ask about some strange emails she was getting that were making her question the legitimacy of a cattery she had contacted. Here are the things that set her off: 

1. Kitten price was $300 

2. Emails were sent in weird succession with no professionalism 

3. Too many available kittens and every video had a different background 

This, already, is enough to walk away. Luckily, she was going into this with the right mentality and wasn’t rushing. She looked up the name that this cattery claimed to be under, Maine Coon Castle, and up popped my website! Unfortunately, this could have worked in the scammers favor because I have a very legitimate website whereas they don’t have one at all. 

Luckily, she called the number on the website!! And thank goodness she did because I was able to help reassure her that she was spot on about this being a scam and connect her with my network of reputable breeders. She will get a happy, healthy kitten and not get scammed out of her money because she was patient and able to catch the fishy things she heard. 

After that conversation I took a deep dive into the profile and here are the things I found in addition to what she saw: 

1. MULTIPLE misspellings on every page (example: Pure bread kittens” which is, objectively, hilarious.) 

2. No website 

3. Facebook wasn’t even a profile, it was a group 

4. None of the kittens looked the same 

5. I own the name Maine Coon Castle in TICA so there’s no way she has it as she claims 

It can be hard to spot a scam but here is my recommendation for every situation: ask TOO MANY questions. I promise no reputable breeder will ever get mad at you for asking questions.  Ask the stupid questions, ask the smart questions, ask the silly questions, ask the questions you already know the answers to just to see if they match.  

And don’t put any money down unless you know where it’s going! 

I know from experience when I adopted my first Maine Coon I was impatient as ever. At the time, I didn’t know that there were so many scams and easily could’ve gotten scammed myself. As hard as it is to say, be patient. That doesn’t mean you can’t get a Maine Coon immediately, plenty of reputable catteries may have the odd available kitten for one reason or another. 

For example, I picked my boy up same day and when I asked why he was still available, his breeder told me her daughter was in love with the kitten and kept taking him down off the website! (yes I felt bad, but not bad enough to leave him there 😊) 

But make sure that you aren’t making a decision without thinking it through. The number one thing these scammers abuse is the sense of urgency. Things like, put a deposit down now or the kitten will be gone! Take your time, ask your questions, and hey, text me. I say this to everyone I meet and it will always be true.  

I do not care if you have absolutely no intention of buying a kitten from me. Call me, text me, email me. I can verify your cattery, I can try to point you to a good one, I can answer questions. I would so much rather help you not get scammed and find your perfect kitten than turn anyone away because they aren’t buying.