Why do catteries retire their cats so early?

As a cattery, it is standard practice to retire cats after a certain age, however most catteries may also occasionally retire cats early, around the ages of 1-2 years.

From a first glance, one might not think much about it, but another might find it suspicious. You might question--and reasonably so--is something wrong? Is the cat sick? Etc?

And these are all understandable questions, though typically that is not the case at all!

As breeders, you have to understand your cats. You have to understand how to act with them, signs on how they are feeling, and signs of whether they are ready to be breeding cats or not, because not every cat is fit to do so, and that's okay!

Breeding can be very stressful for certain cats. They can be unsure of what to do with their kittens, unsure how to mate a girl or how to sit for a boy, or even just unsure of how to act around other cats, and a good breeder will immediately understand that certain cats just want to go lay down on a couch and be snuggled, and because of this, we often let go of our kitties early, so they can live a life full of constant attention in their forever home.

This decision can be made prior to breeding, or even after a first or second litter. A breeder might see that the cat is too stressed to continue breeding, or that it just takes a lot out of the mom, and putting the cat through another litter is just cruel.

Alongside this, it is also pretty standard practice to keep a few offspring for the cattery as well. So occasionally, a breeder might keep an offspring however closer to adulthood realize that the kitten is not fit for breeding, and put the kitten back up for adoption instead--hence why you might see much older kittens sometimes!

So while seeing an younger adult being retired so early might seem a bit weird or suspicious, it is always good to consider these points! You can also always ask the breeder for specifics, because every good breeder will be more than happy to answer any of your questions!