2021 is very bad for scams more than ever before, who have been scammed for one reason or another. We see daily in groups owners falling victim to scams.
********Pets for homes , gumtree and free ads are the worst for fake ads and scammers.
Not all are however you must thoroughly check the breeders out .
Paying deposits for kittens that do not exist happens daily now.
Even with our experience we can see how convincing many are and how easily it is done.
******2020 and 2021 owners fell victim to thinking they had breeding active status and in fact they didn’t , regular ads appear on pets for homes of such things . it is unheard of for a breeder to sell for breeding unless they have a good relationship with the owner and can mentor.
We had two ladys contact us in 2020 thinking they had active status needing stud services . It turns out they didn’t have active status at all.
A breeder wouldn’t sell for breeding either unless they had a male they can come back to the unspoken code some would say in the breeding world .
The saying is if it sounds too good to be true it is.
If you are buying from a breeder who lets you have kittens with no contract its called back door breeding and it’s highly unethical and shamed upon in the breeding world i would avoid at all costs.
Do not believe everything you see.
*********Owners claiming their pets had babies but fully registered siberians.
Breeders would have high compensation clauses in place or would have already spayed or neutered .
This is big alarm bells and if they happened to be telling the truth , they have deceived the original owners’ conditions and are a glorified backdoor breeder.
Says everything on the breeder you are dealing with … do you want to support unethical breeding practices … I wouldn’t .. many are charging more than a fully registered legal business.
It is in our eyes exploitation for financial gain with no comebacks on the breeder .. if you had a problem.. No one is held accountable.
Professional breeders pay tax on each kitten sale.
Back door breeders don’t and more importantly , no paperwork means you have bought an expensive domestic cat .
If you have a problem they have no reputation to care about and even if they did would they? … no complaints service to go through .. they follow no ethical rules which must be followed by a registered breeder otherwise they lose their governing body such as their cattery, and much much more !!
The cats will be used like a breeding machine .
Ethical breeders are a gem to any breed but as owners and breeders we must always know who we are funding and supporting.
The real truth of back door breeding is very sad and cruel and most will not truly realise who they are buying from .
Do not buy into them as many will say these are our pets and we are having just one litter .
We read this tagline so many times and the cat has had 3 litters in one year .
Some backdoor breeders have high profiles with fake self images on social media but use their cat as a breeding machine charging £1500 each for everything that is wrong with breeding animals . Breeders have called people out like this after watching it and they have just been blocked.
Do not support backdoor breeding practices, it’s the only way to stop breeders like this .
Report – do not buy .
They will stop if they have no market .
********Another example of a 2020-2021 scam are gangs buying Siberians from breeders and instantly re-selling on for another £500 – £1000.
People buy them as they dont want to wait 6 months to a year for a kitten.
However you have again no come back and may maybe knowingly or unknowingly supporting the exploitation of animals .
Lucy’s law came in place to stop 3rd selling parties however unfortunately some don’t care for the law .
It’s on a mass scale this is happening .
They are joining waiting lists many of them at a time and this is how they are doing it .
Find out if their story associated with re selling is true .
Because every breeder will always take the kittens back.
IMPORT SCAMS
*****Owners in 2021 have attempted to import themselves and been victim to scams more than ever in the last 2 years.
We think this is now the number one scam for owners.
Even the best reputable breeder can not be trusted in outside countries and more so in these difficult financial times .
Harsh but true.
However we do have personal friendships and relationships with breeders that we do trust and are excluded from that statement .
We think our country is bad for scams. We are LUCKY.
Other countries are lawless and will not get caught. It’s one of the easiest businesses to do for scammers outside of the UK now.
You can not take a breeder abroad to court even if you could. The financial implications would be so high and simply wouldn’t try.
We have imported for 20 years and it still can be a fraught time.
Even if the breeder is real and kittens are real does not mean you are getting that kitten.
If you do get the kitten does not mean they will have legitimate papers and a healthy cat or a cat which is fertile.
Sick cats get sent by breeders all the time.
If you fly in your cats will be assessed by defra often animals are confiscated for fake paperwork if they are ill they will be associated with boarding fees you must pay for release of the cat or animals.
If they travel via car DEFRA always does home calls to check paperwork.
Large fines and boarding are charged even if the breeder is at fault , you are held accountable in the UK.
We are not protected with any bank, paypal anything for animal sales as it is an exclusion of terms and conditions and at our own risk.
The risk now is so high its nerve wrenching.
As we say if it sounds too good to be true it definitely is.
So to conclude there are many more scams out there which we haven’t even gone into.
You must fully research your breeder.
If you have a funny feeling on a breeder or welfare concerns do not take the kitten.
lose your deposit and report.
This the best outcome for the parents and any future kittens and yourself.
Trust your gut feeling
