How to Advertise Your Cat for Mating in the United States

Is your cat ready to be offered for mating?

Before you write a stud or mating ad, confirm three things. First, your cat is registered with a registry such as the Cat Fanciers' Association (CFA) or The International Cat Association (TICA) and was sold with breeding rights; many kittens are registered as not for breeding. Second, your cat is fully grown, in good health and up to date on vaccines. Third, you have time to supervise visits and keep records.

If your cat is an unregistered pet, think twice. Cats reach puberty at about six months on average, and VCA Animal Hospitals notes that most vets recommend spaying around that age. Unplanned litters add to the many cats already waiting in US shelters, so a mating ad for a household pet with no breeding plan is rarely a good idea.

What health tests should a stud cat have before you advertise?

Serious breeders will ask for results before they reply, so have them ready. The CFA recommends working with your vet on suitable breeding cats, checking for infectious disease and blood typing both the tom and the queen.

Ask your vet which tests make sense for your breed and how often to repeat them. The Cornell Feline Health Center points out that echocardiography is the gold standard for diagnosing cardiomyopathy and that HCM gene results should be interpreted with a vet, because a clear DNA test does not guarantee a clear heart. A cat with one copy of the PKD1 variant passes it to about half of its kittens, according to the UC Davis Veterinary Genetics Laboratory.

How do you set fair cat stud terms and fees?

There is no national standard for a cat stud fee. Owners usually base it on pedigree, show record and demand in the breed, and some ask for a kitten instead of cash. Look at what other stud owners of your breed and region offer, then set terms you can stand behind.

• The fee: the amount, any deposit, and when the balance is due.
• Repeat mating: whether you offer a free repeat if the queen does not conceive, and within what time.
• Visit details: where the cats will meet, how long the queen stays, how they are supervised and what she eats.
• Vet costs and liability: who pays if either cat is injured or falls ill during the visit.
• Health requirements for the queen: current FeLV and FIV results, blood type, vaccines and breed screening.
• Paperwork: how you will supply the sire's registration details so the queen's owner can register the litter.

The CFA does not provide a standard stud or lease form, so write your own agreement, have both owners sign it, and keep copies with the test results.

What should you put in a cat mating ad?

1. Breed, color and pattern, age and whether the cat is a tom or a queen.
2. Registry and registration status, and whether breeding rights are confirmed.
3. Which health tests are done, with dates, and the blood type.
4. Temperament and any proven litters, described honestly.
5. General location (city and state), not your street address.
6. Your stud terms in plain words, including what you require from the other cat.
7. Clear, recent photos of the actual cat, not stock images.

Keep the tone factual. Words like rare, guaranteed or champion lines without proof put careful breeders off. When you are ready, post your cat mating ad on PetzLover for free and choose the mating listing type so it appears in cat mating listings.

How do you screen queen owners who reply?

Treat every enquiry as a two-way check. Reply through PetzLover's messages and ask:

• Is your queen registered, and with which registry? Can you send the certificate?
• What are her FeLV, FIV, blood type and breed screening results, and when were they done?
• How old is she, has she had litters before, and were there any problems?
• Does your city require a breeding permit, and do you have one?
• Where will the kittens go, and do you already have a waiting list?

Decline politely if answers are vague, if a queen has not been tested, or if the owner seems to want kittens only to sell quickly. Our guide on finding a mate or stud for a cat shows what responsible queen owners will expect from you.

What legal and safety points apply in the US?

Breeding rules are set mostly by cities and counties. For example, the City of Los Angeles requires cats over four months old to be spayed or neutered unless an exemption applies, and its municipal code says a cat kept in the city may not be bred without a breeding permit. Many other places have no such permit, so call your local animal services to check.

• Meet the other owner by video first, then in person, and keep the cats apart until health papers are checked.
• Do not share your home address publicly; give it only once you are confident about the person.
• Accept payment in a traceable way. The FTC warns that only scammers insist on gift cards, wire transfers, cryptocurrency or payment apps.
• Be wary of anyone who sends more money than agreed and asks for a refund of the difference; the FTC describes this as a fake check scam.