Winter 2024/2025 - No Waitlist Availability - Third-Party Kittens Only
Winter 2024/2025 - No Waitlist Availability - Third-Party Kittens Only
A third-party kitten is any kitten I post as available that I did not breed/raise here in my cattery. These are kittens from other breeders/sellers. Some are even from my own lineage here from past buyers when I used to offer breeding rights. I am involved to help get them homed, make posts when I can, and to facilitate the contact. I DO NOT purchase these kittens and re-sell them; they are already expensive enough!
Third-party kittens are only posted on my Facebook. Search "pasphynx" or "Bare Necesskitties" on the FB app/website or hit the link on my page.
Note: I consider a *kitten* purchase a "purchase" and not an "adoption" (such as taking ownership of a surrendered pet, a retired breeder, or rescuing from a shelter, etc.), so, you will read this process referred to as a kitten purchase. If you contact me looking for an adoption possibility, I will assume you are referring to an older Sphynx and/or a retired Sphynx. Please be clear in your message that you are looking for a kitten if you do use the term "adoption".
Pros and Cons of Purchasing a Third-Party Kitten:
Pros:
Cons:
Third Party Kittens FAQ:
What is the "third-party" process and how does it work?
I am not a third party seller, so maybe this is not the best term to use, but the kitten is "third-party" to me and you, so that is why I use it. But, essentially, I have a group chat with quite a number of breeders/sellers/brokers I have gotten to know over the years. Many breeders are small and not very good with social media presences and need help from time to time with kittens. We all send each other kitten photos and say something like “Male, 4 months old, XX dollars, available XX date, breeding rights yes/no; pedigree available for purchase yes/no, etc.” That's pretty much it. They're legitimate, and I have been doing this for years.
If I like the kittens and everything sits well with me, I have no problem posting them to my Facebook page as available from another seller.
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*** Winter pick-ups: Please keep your car running and warm if you are picking up from me in the winter months!!***
Third-Party Purchase/Adoption Steps:
Do you have rules for third-party kittens?
Kind-of, yes, but for the seller. Most people I work with know what I ask for. Pedigreed parents, HCM scan history on the parents, at least 12 weeks old, preferably 14-16 weeks (Sphynxes need to be with mom longer than a regular kitten; they are much smaller than you'd think). Must be available soon. Must have a health warranty of some type, even if only 24 hours. By now, this part has been worked out with most sellers. If you are picking up from me or the seller, the onus is on you to ensure you have the documentation and answers you want at purchase.
What is the cost?
Most legitimate standard sphynx kittens are between $1,600-2,000. Elfs, Bambinos, and Dwelfs tend to start around $2,100.
If you see a Sphynx kitten (not an adult) under $1,000, you are looking at a complete scam. Full-stop. $1,000-1,400 is a range I would label as high-risk, unless it is an older cat. I personally do not know nor have seen anyone listing under $1,500 in years, and even the $1,500-1,600 price tag has vanished in many cases. But... I cannot rule out the possibility that some breeder is underselling the market to home their kittens quickly, which is their prerogative, I guess. Just be careful.
Quick advice on this: If you cannot afford these prices for a Sphynx, just stop looking and try to save up. My intent here is not to be rude; I just know those of you with tight budgets are the ones who tend to scour the internet for the best perceived "deal" and are the highest risk of being scammed online. I have been there when I started out with these cats.
Why don’t you post the price?
Couple reasons. First being that Facebook does not allow the sale of animals other than livestock. Their algorithm identifies prices (and other values, labels. keywords, etc.) and tries to move it to their "marketplace"... and when its an animal, it gets filtered and removed against Facebook policy. Second reason is that I do not want you to get the idea that all kittens or similar kittens from different people all have the same price. That would be nice, but all sellers (and even the same seller with different litters) have different prices. Prices can vary depending on time of year, type of Sphynx, skin coloring/pattern, eye color, age, or even just how cute it is. But overall, it is because I don’t want you to assume or expect a certain price when they can actually be all over the place. I also don’t want new visitors to go down my posts to a kitten from a year ago and expect that price when, by today, it could be much different. Average prices just tend to increase. Inflation might be to blame, and rightfully so... Vet costs, food costs, litter costs... all increased pretty significantly in the past few years.
Is there a health warranty?
Yes, most often. They tend to be 2-14 days for overall health (infectious disease), and one year for genetic disease. This 2 to 14-day window usually covers medication costs for illnesses. Anything worse requires a return of the kitten for a refund which as stated on this page, is at the discretion of the seller. A communicable or infectious disease outside of the 2 to14-day window will not be covered. Be sure to schedule a vet appointment for a health confirmation within the window. This is required and should be done by any buyer of any cat.
As hard as breeders try, there are bound to be some kittens with problems that were not apparent until later in the kitten’s first year. If you are purchasing a kitten from anyone, please set up an exam with your own vet within two weeks of the pick up date to confirm its health, even if you trust the seller.
Obviously, as I guess some people don't understand, the health warranty is between you and the seller as it is not my kitten and the money you spent isn't mine. It is important that you ensure you understand the full terms of the health warranty BEFORE you purchase a kitten. Do not make assumptions. Do not wing it.
How do I know you’re not a scammer?
You don’t know, I suppose. But I would suggest you take a look at all my posts/history, take a look at this website; use your judgement. You will be given my number and we can Facetime or talk, etc. I will not have the third-party kitten here for you to meet first (and you can read why in the process steps above).
Why are you doing this? Doesn't it hurt your business?
In early Summer 2021, I retired my oldest breeding queen and had two more females not old enough to breed yet. So, I was facing a long pause in kitten availability yet getting tons and tons of emails and messages for kittens... including sad stories about scams. I decided to connect with people I have met in sphynx communities to help list their kittens and, coincidentally, fight scammers.
I don't look at this as a business in regard of competition and sales. I wouldn't ever be able to have enough sphynx kittens of my own to meet growing demand. As long as I am whole at the end of it, as in… my gas, food, toll money, etc., is covered by the seller, I am fine with this and consider it a hobby that also helps you. I also love spending time with all the various sphynx kittens! SO MANY fun personalities and interesting looks!
Why do I have to PM you (Facebook) or email?
Two reasons. One, I cannot initiate a PM to a personal account from my business page account. It just doesn’t have that option for me. Not sure why. Second reason is so that I have a conversation organized in my history to refer back to and I get a notification of a new message. Replies to posts get messy and Facebook will even sort them into categories where I have to show all to see it under every post.
Why didn’t you respond to me?
I am sorry; sometimes I get as many as a hundred emails or messages a week. I do work full time, have two kids, am an Army Reserve Officer which consists of one weekend away and many, many calls per month, so I tend to be very busy. If I missed you, please contact me again.
Where is my executed contract?
Sometimes there is a contract based on the seller, particularly if you purchased breeding rights. If you got a contract, sometimes the seller’s contract and transfer of ownership is signed before you sign. Sometimes it is not, and I need to send it back signed. If you haven’t gotten it yet, please contact me. I apologize. Some sellers do not have contracts but the verbal communication of a health guarantee may be enough to protect you as a written contract would. However, since there are many sellers, you must make sure your specific kitten has a health warranty and what the length of it is, even if verbal. This webpage is clearly not a health guarantee for the many sellers involved as they are all different.
Where is the pedigree I purchased?
If you got breeding rights, the pedigree transfer can take a lot of time. The people who work at these registries/organizations… it is usually not their full-time job so they are balancing work loads and requests. Then, it has to be officially printed, sealed or stamped, and mailed. If you just purchased the pedigree document as a pet (and therefore not a full name transfer), this tends to come faster as the pedigree stays in the registered breeder's name and you just get the laminated, fancy proof of pedigree. If you are still pending the pedigree document, please contact the seller on your specific contract or contact me and I will assist. Pedigrees are a tough situation overall. For example, a lot of people try to scam sellers and say they are not breeding only to find they are without breeding rights paid for. Huge no-no. So, sellers are hesitant to hand out pedigrees.
I, personally, do not give out pedigrees for my own kittens in case someone tries to take that and register it somewhere using some software and starts breeding. However, you can search my cattery on TICA and confirm I’m registered with breeding cats. I can also show you my pedigrees in person. Pedigrees typically contain 5 generations of lineage, although some organizations only require three generations.
Can I purchase breeding rights for third-party kittens?
It depends. Some sellers do allow it and some do not. They will want more details and do as much as they can to make sure you’re not planning on starting some kind of backyard breeding disaster or kitten mill.
Is there an application process to purchase a kitten?
No, I stopped doing that a while ago. Everyone was telling me what they thought I wanted to hear, anyway. Contracts or warranties lay down the rules. So that, combined with the simple fact that you are spending this much... as well as me making sphynx care info available to you on my page, makes me more comfortable with the process as is. There is only so much you and I can do to feel better about it. I am not an invasive person, I do not need to see your house, etc.
What if I am not happy and want a refund?
Refunds are only issued at the discretion of the seller of the third-party kitten. You may only be refunded or the kitten will be replaced if the kitten dies within the specified 2-14-day overall health guarantee window, or if it dies from a inherited genetic condition within its first year of life. There is no refund of the deposit or any balance payments if you change your mind, do not show up, have issues with litter box usage, allergies, your other pets don't get along with it, your grandma died, etc.
Warranty refunds are strict. If a healthy warranty is for, say, 14 days and on day 15, your veterinarian diagnoses it with a serious condition from an infectious disease, you will likely not be refunded (it is up to the seller at that point). You have to have a diagnosis by 14 days. You cannot just notice it was sick on day 8 and then finally take it to a vet and want a refund on day 20, know what I mean?
Can I contact you with questions about the kitten after picking up?
Yes, fine by me. If there are serious issues, I will put you in contact with the seller.
My kitten is having accidents outside the litter box. My kitten has diarrhea. My kitten is sneezing, etc... What do I do?
First, stay calm. It's quite common and generally due to a fixable issue.
If an illness, and you are in the two-week window after purchase, let the me or the seller know immediately. It is usually something stress-related.
Potty accidents: Please be aware that a young kitten in a new home is going to be stressed and does not know the house yet. If you have done something like put the litter box in your basement, then your kitten, who is now in a new environment, is not going to remember where that is or is too scared to go explore for it. Try putting the litter box somewhere closer to where the kitten tends to hang. It needs to be able to remember where it is and being able to smell it helps. Please reference my “sphynx care” tab on my website. Eventually, it will figure it out.
For diarrhea, this could be caused by a wide array of reasons. Most likely, it ate something its stomach did not agree with, is stressed from the move, or has an illness or infection. Try to rule out some things. Sphynxes have no hair, so they burn more calories all day long regulating their body temperature. They are always hungry. They will eat food you leave out. They will find that old candy that rolled way under your couch. You can also try slowly changing food over a period of days, as some kittens may start to not agree with the food the have been on. If it persists for more than a couple days, please contact your veterinarian.
For eye discharge, sneezing, etc., stress is a big factor. For example, most cats have some form of feline herpes. In fact, as many as 90% of domesticated cats have it dormant in their system. Stress brings out these symptoms. Stressful environments like energetic dogs, other cats, rough kids, too much stimulation, too cold for the kitty… all contribute to eventual illness and that illness is an upper respiratory infection. Sphynxes love people and other pets, but everything at this point is new to your kitten and can be stressful. Eye boogies are normal for Sphynxes. Seeping eye discharge is not. One is just eye gunk when they wake up from a nap, the other is yellow, green, heavy seepage or build up. Consult with your vet if sneezing and eye discharge persists. You may need oral meds or eye drops to help. They will get through it!
What do I do at my first vet appointment with the kitten?
Bring your vaccine history/documentation. This should just be a general health exam and done soon after purchase in case there are any issues. I personally advise that you bring a stool sample for a basic check, in-office. You can do a stool PCR for a whole board of testing, but this has to be sent to a lab and is pricey. You can do a respiratory PCR, same deal as the stool PCR. You can do a snap test for FIP or feline coronavirus. You will likely need a third distemper vaccine. Rabies will be done, due one year from date on record. Many things you can test for. I recommend scanning for HCM after one year old when the heart is fully developed. This is normally done with a pet cardiologist and many tend to go to different vets throughout the month for patients. I recommend doing it every year, once a year, but I realize most of you will not as it is expensive, but please try to do it if you notice issues or at least once in its adult life! HCM is not a certain death sentence, especially if you test early. Heart murmurs: Grades 1-3 in kittens are normal and can be grown out of. Grades 4-6 are not normal, and you need to contact the seller. I am not responsible for any portion of a third-party seller's health guarantee, so you must contact and work with them. Do not take my word for it, do not listen to people in Facebook groups, your friends, your Google searches… please consult a veterinarian!
Okay, I am a zero BS kind of guy so here's the deal:
Brokers/Pet Dealers for expensive pets are everywhere.
I would say US breeders definitely are not fans of brokers because we value the relationship and trust that goes into the breeder/buyer relationship, especially when it comes to the kittens we raise.
However, many, many of you have emailed me about scammers, being scammed, questions about possible scams... and many of you are simply working all kinds of channels to find an available kitten.
I get it - when you make your mind up about getting a Sphynx, you really don't want to wait and it can be a process. But if you really can't wait, I'd rather you not get scammed or face shady people. So, I am sort-of reluctantly putting this third-party option here temporarily as something for you to resort to should you seriously struggle to find a legitimate Sphynx kitten.
Brokers/Pet Dealers work with breeders and consistently purchase the pets at a discounted price. The details of their relationships vary, from family and friends to strictly business. The breeder benefits because he or she doesn't have to deal with websites, emails, calls, contracts, etc., and has a consistent buyer. The broker benefits because he or she then resells each pet at a higher price than they paid for the pet, kind of like wholesale.
It is a viable option, you just need to understand the pros and cons.
If it is still an option for you, and you are having a tough time finding a kitten or facing scammers, I post real kittens from other breeders and brokers who I have gotten to know the ins and outs from.
Please message me on Facebook or email me if interested in any kitten I post and I will be honest about my thoughts and what you are looking for, i.e. pricing, quality, health concerns, etc.