We are often contacted by an individual who, looking for a kitten, asks to buy it without a pedigree, thinking that this would save money; The most common explanation being “I don’t need a pedigree”.

In our cattery, we have chosen never to sell a kitten without a pedigree as it represents the buyer’s right, an official document to prove that an animal is a pure breed and not just the object of a contract.

The sale of a kitten without a pedigree hides a series of advantages for unscrupulous breeders:

• the pedigree really represents the cat’s ID! A kitten sold without a pedigree could be a cross between a pure breed cat and a half breed or it could be a real half breed;

• if, in future, you want to mate your beautiful cat which you have bought without a pedigree, you will not be able to affirm nor prove that the kittens are pure. You will not be able to prove that they carry, within their genealogy, the name (or bloodline) of the breeder. The only person to benefit from this situation is the unscrupulous breeder because he can completely ignore the future of the kitten he is about to sell (and of its owners!) without worrying about his good name, as this will not appear on any official document relating to the cat;

• lowering the price of the kitten by renouncing the pedigree often hides exploitation of the dam. When a breeder offers to sell a cat without a pedigree you must know that, if you accept, you could be exploiting a cat that might be on her third, fourth or fifth pregnancy in one year. This is a practice that MUST be stopped as it put the cat’s health at risk and the health of her kittens!!

- Translation by Claudia Negrelli Edwards -