How to Buy a Kitten or Cat in Canada | PetzLover

Which kind of kitten or cat suits your home?

Start with your household, not with a photo. Age, coat and breed change how much time and money a cat needs.

Some looks bring built-in health problems. International Cat Care says breeding for extreme features, notably folded ears, very short legs, hairlessness and extreme flat faces, should be actively discouraged; every cat with folded ears has osteochondrodysplasia, a painful cartilage and bone disorder, to some degree.

Where can you find kittens for sale in Canada?

• Pedigree catteries. The Canadian Cat Association (CCA-AFC) calls itself Canada's registry of pedigreed cats since 1960 and lists breeders. Many Canadian catteries register with TICA or CFA, both US-based registries, instead or as well.
• Home litters: mixed-breed kittens from a family cat, often cheap but rarely sold with full vaccines or a contract.
• Owners rehoming an adult cat; see taking in a rehomed cat.
• SPCAs, humane societies, city shelters and rescues, which adopt rather than sell; see how to adopt a kitten or cat.
• Pet stores, where some cities set limits. Montreal, for example, lets them hand over a dog, cat or rabbit only if it comes from a shelter or a veterinary clinic.

On PetzLover you can browse kittens and cats for sale, filter by breed and location, save the search to get alerts for new litters, and message the seller before you arrange a visit.

Should you buy from a breeder or adopt a cat?

Neither is right for everyone. Humane Canada's 2019 statistics show participating shelters took in more than 78,000 cats, nearly three times as many as dogs, and adoption fees, for example C$75 at Toronto Animal Services, usually include work such as spay or neuter.

A breeder makes sense if you want a particular breed's coat, size or temperament and will pay for tested parents. For one popular breed, the Maine Coon, Dial A Vet, a Canadian online vet service, puts kittens from reputable breeders at about C$1,000 to C$3,000, so a purebred kitten priced far below that is more likely a scam than a bargain.

What should you ask a kitten seller before you buy?

• How old is the kitten, and when can it leave? Expect at least 8 weeks. In Quebec it is prohibited by regulation to separate a kitten from its mother before then, and International Cat Care notes pedigree kittens often leave at about 13 weeks, after their first vaccines.
• Can I see the kitten with its mother and littermates, in person or on a live video call?
• Which vaccines, deworming and flea treatments has it had? Ask for the written vet record with next due dates.
• Has it been tested for FeLV and FIV, and is it microchipped?
• For a pedigree kitten: which registry, CCA, TICA or CFA? Is it sold as a pet on a spay or neuter agreement, or with breeding rights? Which health tests did the parents have?
• Is there a written contract and health guarantee, and will you take the cat back if I cannot keep it?

A good seller expects these questions and asks about your home in return.

What health checks and papers should a kitten come with?

• Vet record: a vet exam, the first core vaccines, deworming and parasite treatment, with the dates the next doses are due.
• Rabies: rules are provincial. Ontario, for example, requires cats over three months to be vaccinated against rabies.
• Microchip: the number, and a transfer of the registration into your name.
• Registration papers for a pedigree kitten, or a written date when they will follow. Papers record parentage, not health.
• A written contract and receipt listing the price, what it includes and any health guarantee.

The CFIA sets no import restrictions on domestic cats under three months, and older cats need only a vet certificate showing rabies vaccination, so a kitten held at customs until you pay a fee is an invented story.

How do you avoid kitten scams in Canada?

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre says animal frauds often begin as classified ads for lower-priced or free animals, most of them puppies or kittens. After a few messages the buyer is asked for one payment after another for shipping, vaccinations, certificates or insurance, and the kitten never arrives. The centre recorded 507 victims of pet scams in 2021, who lost more than C$700,000, and it estimates that only about 5 per cent of frauds are reported.

• The seller will not let you visit or show the kitten live on video.
• The kitten must be shipped, and new fees appear after the deposit.
• Payment only by e-transfer, gift card, wire or cryptocurrency to someone you have never met.
• A reverse image search finds the same photos on other sites.

Use the Report Scam button on any listing that looks wrong. If you lose money, tell your local police and the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1-888-495-8501.

How much does it cost to buy and keep a cat in Canada?

What rules apply once you own a cat in Canada?

• Licensing is municipal. Toronto requires every cat to be licensed and to wear its tag at all times, and allows no more than six cats in a dwelling unit. Calgary requires a licence from three months of age and limits a home to six cats. Montreal requires a licence for every cat, indoor or outdoor.
• Roaming rules differ. Calgary requires owners to keep cats within their own property. Toronto permits cats to roam but warns that outdoor cats face cars, wildlife and disease.
• Spay, neuter and microchip: Montreal requires both for cats over six months, unless a vet gives a written medical reason.
• Care is the law everywhere. The Criminal Code makes it an offence to fail to provide suitable and adequate food, water, shelter and care.

If you are on the other side of the deal, read how to sell kittens and cats.