Decided it was finally time to find a Russian Blue kitten here in NYC. Man, it felt overwhelming at first. Knew I wanted a quality breeder, not some shady basement setup. So I grabbed my laptop, opened up Chrome, and just started pounding the keyboard.
Started My Search Online
Typed “Russian Blue cats NYC” and bam, tons of websites popped up. First few I clicked looked way too slick, like those car dealership commercials screaming “AMAZING DEALS!” Knew it was sketchy. Then stumbled on some older forums. People talking about breeders getting kicked off big directories for bad practices. Took notes like crazy.
Here’s where I messed up initially:
- Only looked at pictures. Cute kittens sucked me in every time.
- Ignored location. Found a “NY breeder” way upstate. Almost 5 hours away!
- Almost fell for a “no vet visit needed” line. Huge red flag. Blocked that number fast.
Digging Deeper & Making Calls
Got smarter. Started hunting for actual signs of care:
- Lifetime health guarantee? Real breeders usually offer this. Sketchy ones avoid it.
- Parents on site? Called one place, asked “Can I see momma cat?” They froze. Yeah, nope.
- Social media history? Stalked some breeders’ Instagram posts back 2 years. Seeing cats age over time? Good sign.
Found a potential breeder in Queens. Emailed asking about their process. Reply took two days! Then another in Brooklyn had active Facebook posts every week. Called them. Lady answered fast, knew her stuff, sounded exhausted – probably cleaning litter boxes. Felt real. Even grumbled about a kitten knocking over her coffee. Authentic! Set up a visit.
The Breeder Visit
Went to the Brooklyn place. Okay, small apartment but clean, smelled fine (just regular cat smell, not that nasty damp basement stink). Kittens playing with actual toys, not just newspaper balls. Big one!
- Saw mom and dad cats. Both looked healthy, chilled out. Dad was massive!
- Asked about vet records. She pulled out actual folders. Kittens had records, microchips scheduled.
- Talked genetics. Knew which lineage her cats were from, talked about screening for common issues. Spoke my language.
- Saw the contract. Full of legalese, but covered spay/neuter agreements and health guarantees clearly.
She offered coffee, seemed genuinely proud of her cats. Showed me old pictures of past litters. The connection felt right. Put down a deposit on a mischievous little grey fluffball. Whole process took weeks of digging, calls, dead ends. Finally found a breeder who felt less like a salesman and more like a genuinely obsessed cat person. Just gotta wait for my kitten now!
