Why are people trying to sell ordinary kittens and cats?

Question

With so many free unwanted ones needing a good home. Also how many unwanted healthy cats are put to sleep simply because they could not find a home?

Answer 1

I know what you mean.  I see ads in papers all the time, ie, kittens £30.00 each litter trained etc.  When my cat had an unexpected litter, I was lucky enough to get homes for them, but if I was struggling, they would have been FREE not for sale.

I have just adopted 2 kittens that needed homes through the Cats Protection.

Get your cats neutered please, the CPL will do it for free if you are on certain benefits.

Answer 2

Probably because they've already had their first vet check and shots.  That costs money, especially for multiple kittens, so people want to get that investment for having healthy kittens back.

Answer 3

Yes, it's sad that so many cats are bred indiscriminately and left homeless and helpless.

I think some fair-minded people may sell kittens to discourage people who would take a free one for an awful purpose, like to use it in a lab experiment or to kill or torture it. They are looking for "good homes" for the animals.

Also, I bought a kitten once from a lady who had taken good care of her litter, giving themvaccinationss & worming them. She was trying to make enough money to offset the cost of having her adult female spayed. The mother cat was a stray that came to this woman's home already pregnant. I thought it was a good cause and the $20 she charged was less than a vet visit.

Answer 4

To me, there are no "ordinary" cats and kittens, but as a cat rescuer I object to the term "selling" them.  My adoption cats and kittens only go to approved homes - indoor only, no declaw and a written contract promising that the cat/kitten will be returned to me if the owner can no longer keep and care for it.

Regardless of what you think, there is no such thing as a "free" kitten or cat because, if you're a RESPONSIBLE pet owner, the minute you get it you should take it to the vet for a check-up, AIDS and leukemia testing and arrange for it to be spayed or neutered and that costs money.  

I charge $125 for an adoption fee, which includes all vaccinations, spay/neuter, testing for AIDS and leukemia, deworming, flea preventative and micro-chip.  Most vets in my area will hit you up for more than that just for the first visit, so my price is a bargain in comparison.

In answer to your last question, there are about five million HEALTHY animals killed each year because people don't spay and neuter their pets.

Answer 5

I have always had cats.  When we moved to the UK, I promised my daughter a new kitten to replace the one we had that had died of very old age.

I was appalled at how much the animal shelters wanted for a cat.  I mean, we are very responsible.  Our animals get yearly checkups, are spayed/neutered and are microchipped, but unless it has gold teeth and is the only one of its kind in the entire world, I cannot see forking out SO much money for a cat or dog.

I understand the money goes to pay for the care of the animal as it was in the shelter, and to help future rescues, but still I am flabbergasted at how much they wanted me to spend.

Do not get me wrong.  I have donated not only money but food, bleach, towels and other things for shelters.  After the hurricanes in Florida, we bought and donated hundreds of dollars worth of dog cat food AND even hay to help.

Another thing, I understand why they have to come to your house and inspect it, but I find it humiliating.

Instead, we found my daughter a kitten from a local paper for free.  He has a great home, is well fed and cared for, and protests loudly when we take him to the vet.

I think he is worth more then money could ever be spent...especially on a  very expensive 'pure-bred'.

x*x

Answer 6

People probably think there cats will have better home with people who will buy them. I was told to never give away 'Free To Good Home' because people will use them as bait and such... Which in the area I live is completely believable.

Answer 7

Because they're stupid and greedy.

It makes sense to charge a few dollars for a kitten to keep someone from taking it to use in a lab or something, but..

Literally hundreds of thousands of unwanted cats are put to sleep every year because they can't find a home, they are sick from being homeless, or they are feral and can't be tamed. Also, probably just as many get hit by cars, either by accident, or, like where I live, there's always group of rednecks of "good ol' boys" who think it's funny to run over cats.

(Little do they know... I believe that people who run over animals for fun are definitely going to h**l. It's cruel and not necessary, they suffer for a long time and it's not even like hunting where they use the animal for food.

Just my two cents.)

Until there are none, adopt one! Spay and neuter your pets!!

Answer 8

There are different reasons to charge for a kitten.

Sometimes it's because people are just unrealistic and think they can make money breeding cats.

Shelters and foster organizations charge an adoption fee to offset the costs of the care the kittens have already received.  Many have already been fixed and have their first round of shots done.

Some individuals charge to keep them from going to people who torture them, sell to companies for animal testing, or do something else terrible with them.  It also helps keep people from getting a kitten on a whim when they can't really afford to care for it (How many questions do we see on here of HELP my cat is sick and I can't afford the vet).

And to offset charges for vet care they've provided.

Pet stores charge because of the space they take up and the cost to get them.  They generally are poorly cared for and can be the most unhealthy of any kittens.

But the idea that people can make money off selling kittens is ridiculous in most areas.  

There are pure breeds and I guess that makes fair money for people who care about that stuff.  But I've only ever had pet cats, so I know basically nothing about breeding pedigree cats.

We paid $80 to adopt a kitten years ago.  He was neutered and had a round of vaccines.  The $80 went as a donation to the foster organization that cared for him.  I think that was a good use of money.  The rest of my cats were all "free" but of course they don't work out to be free and it all pretty much evens out.

Answer 9

Hundreds of thousands of unwanted kitties are killed every year. Go to any small town to large city in America and you can find 500 or a thousand cats looking for homes.

Join in with those of us who preach spay/neuter to save all those kittys from early graves.