Cattery of Arda

**As of October 2023, Cattery of Arda's normal operations are in a "paused" state. Due to career/schooling transitions, I have closed down until further notice.** 

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If you are interested in a Burmese/Thai imported kitten, PLEASE READ THIS ENTIRE PAGE! It will save us both some valuable time as many of your FAQ and my policies are outlined here! 

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Deposits and cost of kittens (previous)

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It takes time and money to raise quality cats, including the rising costs in veterinary care, high quality food and probiotics that I give to my cats, heating, litter and other needs such as website fees, advertising costs, and ever-increasing taxes all factor into the current price. 

 

Trust me, when all was said and done, I was never "raking in" a lot of profit during the 5 ½ years of this adventure. I did this because I love the breed and I loved enriching people's lives with a Burmese companion or two (or more!). The messages and photos that I still receive from previous buyers are a consistent reinforcement that what I did was worthwhile.  I know that over a $1k may seem like a lot of money for a kitten, but consider that average purebred puppy prices can range from $900-$3,000 from reputable breeders. Also consider what you paid for the smartphone, tablet or computer that you're using to look at this site. These devices can cost anywhere from $1,000-$2,500+ depending on brand and features - which soon grow outdated. A new Burmese member of your family will bring years of joy and will not need to be upgraded every year! (Although, once you start collecting Burmese, it's hard to stop at just one!) :D

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 Also, in order to ensure that you were serious about the commitment to adopt one of these wonderful creatures, I always required a  non-refundable deposit for each kitten after an "application questionnaire" with information about yourself and your situation.  (We needed to make sure that one of these kittens was the right fit for you first. If that made me a picky cat-snob, so be it.) Once we had a chance to email about your situation and we agreed that this is the right decision for you, I supplied my address for you to send in your deposit. Once it was received and the payment processed, you had a secure "spot" in line. You always had the right to decide not to get a kitten later however I in turn reserved the right to keep the deposit. This didn't happen too often :) 

 

After your deposit was received, your preferences for color and gender were noted and recorded.  I made every effort to help you meet your color and gender preferences, but while I was confident about their gender, I could not guarantee exactly what your kitten would look like all grown up. They do darken/change some as they age. I could not predict nor control what the kittens look like due to their diversity (a diversity which kept them healthy!)

 

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Waitlist Process (previous)

 

Once you were on the waitlist, it was first come, first serve. By sending in your deposit/contract, you were stating that you are ready for a kitten - mentally and physically. I always asked folks to please not send in a deposit if you weren't ready for a kitten! When I had a litter, you were contacted in the order that you were on the waitlist and you had the option at that time to choose from the current litter. (I made offers around the 5 or 6 week old mark.) I liked to have plenty of time to see the kittens' personalities and colors, and also to be sure there were no surprise health concerns. As I said on the About page, I will never knowingly sell a sick(ly) kitten. 

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What type of payments are accepted? And what's the final cost? (previous)

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You were asked to send a personal check, money order, or cash for the deposit.  My preferred method of payment for the final payment was a cashier's check.

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Can just anyone get a kitten from this cattery? (previous)

 

Yes! And no. :/ 

 

I got to know the kittens that I raised - I spent a lot of time with them, knew their personalities and I cared about them deeply; if I did not feel that you would be a wise, caring, or loving owner, I reserved the right to tell you "no thank you, please look elsewhere". To that end, I have a contract that I asked all my customers to sign and uphold for the life of their kitten/cat. Please see your signed contract (for previous buyers reading this). Yes, I was picky about what happened to my kittens. I asked questions and asked you to let me know if something changed in your home because I wanted to be sure kitty would be safe and happy later. I asked questions about your home situation/work situation/family/other pets, because these things can make one of my kitten's lives amazing or horrific. I owed it to them to find out all I could before sending them off. 

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Do I have to live locally? (previous)

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No - but I did not ship my kittens. There are many reasons why I did not offer shipping that I won't go into here, but know that if you wanted a kitten from me and were not local, you had to travel for it. I've had some buyers drive across several states and a couple fly to pick up kittens. If flying was the only way for you to pick up a kitten, then there were some other tips and precautions I gave you when we were going through the application process. 

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Ok, but how long do I have to wait? (previous)

 

**As of October 2023, Cattery of Arda's normal operations are in a "paused" state.

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Burmese/Thai imported kittens are still in high demand right now, which makes me sad to take this "pause", but it's the right thing for me to do at the moment.   

 

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Deposits probably not returned (previous)

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To avoid getting your hopes up and then having to return your deposit, I tried to get to know you the best possible beforehand so that we were both saved that awkwardness. Now, if you changed your life situation and it became a potential danger/unhappy scenario for my kittens after we've already made agreements on things, then I informed you that you are no longer a good fit and because I've already invested a great deal of time into you and a potential kitten for you, I may have chosen to keep your deposit without a refund.  

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There are always exceptions in life, but please don't expect to be the exception to the rule. 

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Kitten pick up dates (previous)

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Broadly speaking, the pick up dates were firm. My kittens went to their new homes during their 10th week.  The pick up days were usually Saturdays as they work best with my work schedule. I have had it other days of the week before, but unless it was a federal holiday, I had to take time off work, which was difficult. 

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It's only happened once to me, but I did have to delay the kitten pick up day because a kitten got sick. Kittens, like children, can get sick while they're young and especially before all of their boosters are done and their immunity built up. I made a promise elsewhere in my site that I will not knowingly send home a sick kitten with you. Kittens can get stressed (and then potentially sick) just from moving to a new environment (your home), so if a kitten is sick in any way prior to pick up day, I would have  rescheduled your the date until that kitten(s) was well again. I know that this likely would have been inconvenient, not to mention disappointing.

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No guarantees in life!!! Please read this disclaimer

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Adding to the same topic as previously mentioned on the About page, where I cannot control the health or safety of kittens once ​they leave my controlled environment, neither can I control or safeguard against all dangers that fragile, young kittens face. I have spent a lot of time and resources to make my cattery environment safe, but accidents and illness happen sometimes. I had a clean environment with quality food and supplements, my cats were current with their recommended shots, I limited exposure to the kittens from the outside world (I have always socially distanced my kittens since before that was a common term!), and I took care that there were no great heights/toxic item to ingest or other environmental dangers that the kittens could get hurt from. That being said, however, it would be hubris of me to claim that nothing could ever happen to my kittens/cats. 

 

Previous explanation on the disclaimer I always used: This is the disclaimer that I put on my notifications to all kitten buyers when they are offered a kitten from a current litter:   

Disclaimer: unfortunately, nature isn't always predictable nor controllable, and if something were to happen to another kitten(s) ahead of you in the waitlist, then in the spirit of fairness, I will have to rearrange the kitten options for everyone, which would affect you as well. I have never lost a kitten, and have never had to disappoint anyone in this way, but I want you to be aware of the possibility, just in case. I sincerely hope that this never happens to any of the wonderful families waiting and excited for a kitten, but it's a possibility that you must understand; I have always personally believed that honesty and transparency are important, and I do my best to live that out. The only way to remain fair to everyone on the wait list is to go by order of deposit received in these matters; I would start rearranging kittens, which means that whoever is the last on the list could end up having that kitten spot "cancelled/deferred" until a future date and would not be taking a kitten at the date we had hoped.  Again, this has never happened to me and I hope it never does, but I want to be upfront about what I would do if the unthinkable happened. Please note any concerns about this in your application questionnaire prior to the deposit. 

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