Buying Cheap Savannah Kittens

Buying Cheap Savannah Kittens?

Buying cheap savannah kittens? So, I have heard several times in the past month that so and so has savannah kittens cheaper than mine. I usually say, well you get what you pay for. By all means go ahead and buy it if the price is that important to you.

However, a few things to remember when getting your “cheap” savannah kitten. Most of the breeders I deal with have been doing this for years. They know what their cats produce, they know their savannah cats lines. Here are a few things to remember…

While buying a savannah kitten from someone who says I am a small cattery and raise kittens underfoot is a good thing, ask how small are you exactly. That comment makes us all feel warm and fuzzy inside, but at the same time savannah kittens are just like humans, we have no way of knowing what genetics will do. The kitten can be fine in 2 months but what happens if something goes wrong in 4? Is that breeder at least large enough to replace the kitten? Does it have 2 sets of bloodlines in case you don’t want to risk the same lines again? This may seem like a crazy thing, but it’s a question that needs to be asked.

I will talk about 2 stories in the past 8 months I have personally dealt with.

1st Situation:

A heart broken woman calls me and says she purchased a kitten who got off the plane with a fever. She took it to the vet right away and the vet did all they could for the kitten. He only lived for a month. She got it “cheaper” because he didn’t work out with a previous family. Hum, kind of makes you wonder why he didn’t work out. Maybe because he was SICK! Breeder went right ahead and sold the kitten again to an unsuspecting person. Breeder says “oh I will replace it” but she only had 1 female that could produce that generation and it wouldn’t be until next year. Really? Seriously?

The Issue I have with only having 1 Female Savannah Cat

I have 2 issues with that. 1, she can’t replace the kitten because she is not large enough to have the ability to replace. 2, I really, really, REALLY have an issue on selling a kitten sick like that. How can anyone put a sick kitten in a crate and send it off. I can’t even imagine what that poor little kitten must have been feeling or thinking to have to endure that plane right and shuffled around on loading belts and tosses around from 1 airport to another. The kitten sits outside while things are being loaded in the heat or the cold. Imagine being sick and going through that.  I was happy the woman that had the kitten when it died loved it dearly and did all she could do. I find comfort in knowing the kitten was in her arms when he passed.
We only ship Delta because Delta is very picky about their animals. They require a health certificate prior to shipping from a Vet. Had that been my kitten, my vet would never have allowed a sick kitten to ship. In fact my vet won’t ok a kitten to ship at 9 weeks and 6 days. They prefer 12 weeks. Delta does charge a little more but it’s better for the savannah kitten to have all the restrictions Delta has. I once got a cat delivered by another airline and the crate was far too small for the cat. He couldn’t even stand up in the crate. The crate was junk and should have been thrown away instead of used for shipping. The poor guy was in that crate for hours. To the other airline the crate was perfectly acceptable. How sad.
2nd Situation:
Woman buys a kitten, gets it home and takes it in for it’s health check. Vet tells her the kitten has a medical issue. Ok, that is a certain death sentence to the kitten. She immediately calls the breeder who graciously allows them to make the many hour drive back to return the kitten. Doesn’t give her a refund, doesn’t give her a replacement kitten. Tells her his vet checked it and said it was clean, however won’t give her any proof he was checked a second time by a vet. She says if the kitten is clean she would like to have it back. The breeder refuses because he had already sold it to someone else.
Long story short she took him to court and with all her proof won in court. Judge did feel the kitten was in fact sick and the breeder offered her no solution. He had no proof any other vet had seen the kitten and cleared it. Now keep in mind someone else now has that kitten. She is still trying to collect her money back. So how much did that kitten cost? I mention this one because I got an email from someone saying my kittens are higher priced and this cattery (*******) is offering cheaper kittens. I thought, I bet he is…. it’s the same breeder that had the kitten in question.

Another question you should be asking is about the pedigree.

Is this a savannah to savannah breeding? Are both your cats savannahs? That’s a simple question and easy to ask. Many times when you find those cheap savannah kittens they will be 1 savannah and 1 (could be anything) Also, make sure the breeder is trying to better the breed or at least keep it as closely to the serval as possible. I like all the colors, but personally I run when I see a marbled savannah queen being bred. There are so many nice spotted savannahs, I see no reason to breed marble colored queens. We may all get marbled babies and that’s understandable, but let them go as pets. Again, my personal opinion.

When buying cheap Savannah Kittens

Bottom line is, yes you can get cheap Savannah kittens. We are well aware of that fact, but as I said in a previous post I live for my kittens.  Many times I take the kittens feelings and needs into consideration before my own. I am not in it for the $$ My cats and kittens eat only the best of foods. I spend all day everyday with them. There are constant things being done for my animals. When I get extra money I don’t buy a new big screen TV, I buy cat trees, cat toys and always rotating my kittens fun things in life.

I do not toss many cats into 1 enclosure. Each cat has their own enclosure. I do not believe in small wire cages. Each cat has their own full size cat tree, feeding dishes and litter box. They get to play with each other and have fun but at the same time they can relax in their own enclosure with no one bothering them.

 

To all my families who stay with me and understand there is so much more to tossing a male and female together and calling themselves a breeder, I thank you. To the people who look for “cheaper” I wish you well. Chances are things may work out for you, but things may not either. Just get to know your breeder, ask questions and above all make sure you don’t fall for any of the many scams out there.

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Buying cheap Savannah Kittens

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