Complaint Review: Brettachtal - Adolzfurt Nationwide

 Hello,

I'd like to share our case / experience with Brettachtal Cattery to warn others not to believe so easely in them as I've just bought a kitten from them and he was diagnosed with luxated patella and bilateral conjuctivis (possibly caused by herpes virus).

I turned to Karinn Sinn about two month ago asking a kitten from her. I already have a cat who has some Brettachtal ancestors and as this cat is my favorite and getting old and I fear the day... so I sent an internet link to her to show my cat, wrote about her temper and asked her to offer me a kitten who has similar colouring (especially eye-colour) and possibly similar temper and I just hoped that she kept that old line. She answered, offered a kitten, sent some photos about him (he was always sitting or lying on photos). I had a special requirement, I did not want kitten to have vaccina against leukemia (we got bad experience like loosing cat because of it and I knew about similar cases) so I asked just for the cat-flu combinate and the compulsory rabbies. She said it was ok. We agreed in price (1200 EUR) I transfered deposit, she asked for 200-300 EUR, I paid 300 and as made a mistake with account numbers of he account I urgently transferred it again not to lose the kitten, but as my bank discovered my mistake and corrigated they transfer the amount twice. Because of bank's fee we agreed with Karin that she keep the money and I pay less when I go to pick up the kitten. Later I asked for new photos and got a video with a long delay (it was typical during emailing with her, eg. I never got the promised pedigree details via emails or photos of parents as they were not on her web site). But she was an experienced and famous breeder and I blindly trust her, was flattered and grateful that she gives me a similar cat to my so beloved one.

This is the video I got from her and later here I shall show the video I made about that kitten to let you see the difference or what can be reached with some powder to hide things like eye-problems or skin-problems or with light to hide true colour of kitten' eyes...

But more important, please have a look at this video (if she will / dare to remove it later I shall upload it under my name!), you'll see that kitten not really moving, he just uses his first legs to play but  not jump after the toy you can't see him walking or running.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UdYCk-zC1lw&feature=youtu.be

And this is the video I made about the kitten - so this is the reality:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCucOKpMq50

But as I wrote I was not suspicious but grateful, trustful. I arranged our way to pick up kitten by car, she made me some other concern not to arrange things in time (or at least I was afraid of but this part is not so important now).

When we arrived after a long drive and being in a kind of hurry because of booked tunnel, etc, they let us wait for a while (guess she was powdering the kitten) but as we were a couple of mintues earlier than agreed time I was not suspicious. When we entered the house smell was bad (poo) but it was clear so we guessed that there can be plenty of cats all around if smell is so strong. We saw a couple of other cats in the 'living-room' some were nice, some were less nice as their eyes and under it was ugly (look liked like lot of gum's footprint) and we could saw ours for the first time in reality. He was cute but had gum-marks, too and this was the point when I became totally suprised as she used somekind of cream and powder to make footprints disappear. (Of course I did not think that it was not the first make-up and there were much more gum-footprints or rather injured skin under his eyes). His eyes were in tears and his pupils were huge, so huge that we could  not see the true colour (and true colour was very different comparing the one I had asked for, the reason I turned to her at all and decided to buy such an expensive kitten), kitten was quite afraid (ok, he did not know us), he spent some time in arms, then went to hide. I realised that his moving was weird a bit but as he got a dose of calm-drops in front of our eyes like 'a last one' we suspected very well that it was not the first dose he got and it was an explanation for his huge pupils and slightly drunk-like moving (he moved like a cat just waking up after anesthesia so we did not guessed that something could be wrong with his leg). Meantime Karin was quite busy receiving calls from South Afrika and we asked about map (our navigation went half-wrong) and family arrived with child so I had not much chance to speak or ask after things and time flied and we were in hurry.  I paid the rest (which was exactly 612 EUR) in cache to her, accepted some starter food (which was some rice powder and something else I think and liquid) she mixed it in a bottle and gave us a syringe. She showed a kitten to us, a new born one and told to us that others died because mother gave birth too early. On this point - I admit - I was about to ask my deposit back and leave the kitten but feared that she could not and hoped that I can cure kitten with a good diet (we do not use stuffs like rice, we use real meat, usually raw meat, bones, inside things so a natural diet and as I have very healthy cats so I am not familiar with other tricks like powder, cream, calm-drops, etc) I finally let it go and picked up the kitten. Was such a mistake!

I should have been suspicios, so in my opinion in a cattery where dead kittens' rate is high (at least to me and part of the story that earlier she wrote about died kittens from another litter after a birth-giving), and seeing powder or seeing that she uses rice to feed carnivores..

We did not get the pedigree. She told us something about that one of her former client died on the way to home or something like this and because of it she struggled a lot to have owner's details modified on official documents she never arrange them while owner arrive to home with the kitten. Yes, this explanation was weird enough but we were in hurry and very tired after driving so much, besides I check details in his passport and it seemed to be ok (expect that he got vaccinas against leukemia too so Karin broke our agreement but in when I checked passport I did not realised it as I was not familiar german vaccinas and names / types so later I googled and found the ingredients of vaccina, it was a 5-combinate...)

We saw on the road that kitten was under the effect of drog, he was very calm, not really moving even when we stopped to put him on litter, later he accepted 1-2 bites (my own food) but I did not dare to be pushy with feeding as was not sure would been safe under the effect of drog.

We left Karin around 4 pm on Friday and arrived around 5 am on Saturday to our home (UK) was very tired, we gave some water to the kitten, put him in a safe beedroom, gave him some food but did not examined him but later.

Suprise: Have you ever seen a kitten who chew water instead of proper cat-drinking? He did  not know how to drink. He bended his head to the bowl, 'took a bite', lifted his head and chew. He was unfamiliar with chewing bits, did  not know chicken (raw and cooked), gulped Orijen without chewing and when he chews it is noisy like sleeping people gnash their teeth. (Never seen this before). He was not even familiar with cat balls, was afraid of them. But at least he had good appetite so I was hopeful that he would be ok. During this afternoon I cleaned the area around his eyes and I was terrified that how much footprint-like injurie was on  his face. I made photos... Also his moving was weird and we started to being suspicious but as he was a cute and a bit frightend little cat in a new place we do  not bother him, just took him delicious food and comforted him, my husband slept with him and so on.

On Sunday  morning I become really frightend seeing how he moved and not understanding it. I made a short video about his face and how he was playing, another one or two where he run and aksed my husband to go to clinic which was open on Sunday to have him examinated.

Diganoses:

- luxated patella and bilateral conjuntivis (they worte that last one probably caused by herpes virus - which was 'great' considering that I had other cats...

We asked to michrochip no. to be recorded (vet read it and they recorded it) and asked written, official diagnose of course.

I wrote to Karin and was really upset. I wrote to her that I do not want this poor kitten no matter how much I sorry him, but  he is nothing like he was on video or photos and the whole stuff, asked his price back and let Karin know that she is free to come and pick him up anytime. I haven't got any answer and have not much hope.

So this is our story with Brettachtal Cattery.