How to start breeding cats and become a successful breeder, where to start a kitten breeding business?

How to combine your love for cats with making a profit? You can start breeding them. In order for cat breeding to become a profitable activity, you need to take into account a lot of nuances: calculate investments in the business and the financial return from it, decide on the breed, buy pets, select and equip premises, advertise your services, determine the price of live goods, resolve legal issues.

Business plan for breeding purebred cats

Breeding cats as a business, although pleasant, is not the easiest activity. To start breeding these animals, you need to calculate all the risks that may arise during the work process. Drawing up a business plan, the purpose of which is to calculate investments and approximate profits, will help to minimize them. It is also important to do your research on which breeds are the most profitable.

Finance: how much do you need to invest and how much do you plan to receive?

A business plan allows you to calculate only approximate costs and profits. If investments at the initial stage can be calculated as accurately as possible, then income can be calculated very approximately. How much money it will take to become a breeder of purebred kittens depends on many factors. This is influenced by the region, the planned number of pets, the value of the breed, whether the nursery will be built independently or with outside labor, etc.

Information on the approximate costs of creating a nursery with 10 kittens:

Based on the figures given in the table, breeding cats at the initial stage will require about 1.5 million rubles. Each of the 8 cats kept in the nursery (the remaining 2 are males) will give birth to at least 4 kittens per year. 32 – number of pets intended for sale per year. The amount of proceeds from their sale will be 1.28 million rubles. (32x40 thousand rubles).

Calculation of business profitability:

• (Income – expenses) x 6% = (1,280,000 – 880,000) x 6% = 24,000 rubles. This is the determination of the amount of taxes under the simplified taxation system (STS).
• Income – expenses – amount of taxes = 1,280,000 – 880,000 – 24,000 = 376,000 rubles. This is the profit for the year.

The most profitable breeds

Having decided to start breeding purebred cats, you need to study which breeds are popular in a given area. You should not focus only on this factor, because, most likely, among the buyers there will be not only local lovers of these animals, but also residents of other regions. Having no experience in this field, it is recommended to start with breeding unpretentious breeds. You need to choose only from those that bring the most profit. These include:

Pitfalls when breeding animals

In pursuit of profit, you will have to work hard. Animal breeders are forced to devote all their time to them, and the more cats you have, the less time you have for everything else. When starting your business, you will have to invest a lot. For example, a purebred Maine Coon will cost 20 thousand rubles and more , it depends on the specific nursery and the prospects of the kitten itself. Breeders usually sell at a higher price for breeding. Here, of course, you can cheat and say that you are taking a cat for the family, but in any case you will need a pedigree and permission to breed if you want the kittens to sell at a high price.

Selection and equipment of premises

The room for keeping animals should be spacious, warm and bright. When living in a private house, it is advisable to allocate a separate large room for pets.

If possible, males, females and new four-legged mothers with babies should be housed separately. So that your children can frolic in the fresh air, it is better to make an open enclosure for them - an area fenced with a net, equipped with a canopy, opaque partitions and equipped with ventilation, heating and lighting.

The room where pets are kept must have:

• cells;
• carrying;
• stable and convenient bowls for food and water;
• trays (it is better to choose models with a grid and without filler, as they are easier to clean);
• cat litter (it is recommended to use granular or wood litter - they absorb odor better, which is especially important when keeping animals in large numbers);
• toys;
• high-quality ready-made food or self-prepared food from good products;
• care products (pet shampoos, combs for combing (they must be selected taking into account the characteristics of the coat of a particular breed), trimmers, toothbrushes and pastes, solutions for cleaning eyes and ears, nail clippers);
• houses where pets could retire;
• scratching posts;
• rugs

Purchasing breeding animals: where, how many, how to choose?

You should buy purebred kittens only from reliable nurseries with a proven reputation. Qualities of an ideal four-legged candidate for purchase:

• age at least 3 months;
• full compliance with breed standards;
• absence of congenital defects and external defects;
• the parents of the baby have good health and a balanced psyche;
• belonging to the breeding or show class.

Nursery equipment

Before you make money on cats, you will have to invest a lot in the business. In addition to building a room where you will keep animals, you will have to spend a certain amount on purchasing the most necessary equipment. You need to make purchases in large brand stores offering high quality products. The minimum list for 10 pairs of animals will be as follows:

• exhibition carriers (4) – 12,000;
• mini-houses (20) – 34,000;
• aviary cages (4) – 4,000;
• rugs (20) – 18,000;
• combs, nail clippers, trimmers (8) – 4,000;
• toilets (20) – 2,000;
• feed (15 kg) – 5,000;
• bowls (50) – 25,000;
• toys and accessories – 5,000;
• toilet filler – 1,000;
• shampoos, brushes, washing containers – 2,000;
• playground (2) – 16,000.

That is, the cost of purchasing equipment will cost around 128,000 rubles. At the same time, it is important not to skimp on the quality of equipment and food, because the level of demand for them will depend on the health and appearance of your pets.

Maintenance of purebred cats (care, feeding, etc.)

What you need to avoid when breeding these animals is trying to save money on their maintenance. Cheap food and poor quality care will negatively affect the appearance of pets, and this, in turn, will affect their cost. Cats should be fed high-quality ready-made food (the preferred option) or food prepared independently from high-quality products. It is recommended to discuss this point with your veterinarian. If necessary, the veterinarian will prescribe vitamin and mineral complexes.

When choosing a feeding method, it is necessary to take into account the characteristics of the breed. You also need to monitor the timeliness of replacement and the quality of drinking water. Trays, bowls, cages, carriers and beds should always be clean. To ensure that the inhabitants of the nursery are well-groomed, they should be regularly bathed, combed, their nails trimmed, and their ears, eyes and teeth cleaned. It is recommended to conduct preventive veterinary examinations quarterly. Regular deworming and vaccination are required.

Matings, pregnancy, birth, care of kittens before their sale

Usually, upon reaching 7–8 months of age, pets are already capable of procreation. The most reliable evidence of their body’s readiness to bear and give birth to kittens is the first heat. However, it is recommended to breed cats for the first time no earlier than 1.5 years. You need to look for a partner for mating (if there was no goal of purchasing a cat pair) in advance in special clubs, at exhibitions or through private advertisements.

Only absolutely healthy, vaccinated and dewormed animals are allowed to participate in this procedure. Mating should take place in a calm environment. If problems arise, you need to be able to help the cat. The duration of a meeting between a four-legged gentleman and a lady is on average 3–5 days.

Pregnancy lasts about 6–8 weeks. It is recommended to isolate a pregnant cat from other inhabitants of the cattery. The expectant mother requires special care and nutrition. If problems arise during the process of bearing cubs (prolonged lack of appetite, uncontrollable vomiting, lethargy, etc.), you should immediately call a veterinarian. The desire to create a “nest”, licking of the genitals, anxiety, swelling of the mammary glands are harbingers of childbirth.

Usually cats give birth on their own, but you need to be able to help them if necessary. New four-legged mothers, who need to be isolated from other animals, take care of the babies and teach them independence. If for some reason she cannot feed the cubs, they are transferred to artificial feeding with ready-made formulas for feeding kittens, dry formulas for children, or self-prepared mash. This should be done every 2 hours. 4 weeks of age is the optimal time for the first feeding.

The kitten is ready for sale after it reaches 3 months. Until this moment, he must be vaccinated, pre-treated against worms, activated or registered depending on which system the club belongs to, and metrics done.

What are the pros and cons of business?

Breeding cats has both advantages and disadvantages. It is imperative that you familiarize yourself with them even before proceeding directly to reproduction.

Important. Any animal, regardless of breed, requires money and attention.

The more cats were taken to start with, the more money will have to be invested in raising them. The benefits noted by business owners include:

• relatively small financial costs for purchasing a female or pair;
• quick payback;
• no need to obtain a license;
• ease of combination with other work.

But there are also disadvantages that are quite significant. Studying them, some novice businessmen abandon their idea. There is always high competition among breeders. Also, when starting a business, you need to have basic knowledge of felinology and zoomedicine. You can't do without them.

It is also important to understand that a cat requires a lot of attention during the period of bearing offspring. Most likely you will have to take a vacation from your main job. No matter how sad it is, there is always a risk that some of the pets or the female herself will die. Even if the birth was successful, you should not relax. After delivery, your cat may experience complications.

Another disadvantage is the irregularity of earnings. There may be only one kitten in a litter, which means that the investment will not pay off. At the same time, a cat can be bred only once every 7-8 months.

Participation in various exhibitions

Participation in cat shows is an obligatory part of the job. This can be done up to 5 times a year. Participation in such events (it is paid) will allow you to establish cooperation, acquire the necessary contacts and exchange experiences with other breeders. In addition, this is a chance to receive certificates and medals for meeting the breed standard and, on this basis, sell kittens at a better price. Animals under 3 months of age cannot take part in exhibitions.

Legal side of the matter: registration, joining the club, taxation

To start this business, you need to register with a club that holds exhibitions and deals with paperwork for animals and nurseries. To obtain breeder status, you need to submit an application to this organization, and it, in turn, will send it to the international federation, where it will be checked for uniqueness and a decision will be made to issue a certificate for opening a nursery. This procedure takes from several days to several weeks.

You should also become a member of the club by paying an annual membership fee. Through it you can issue certificates for adult pets, diplomas, pedigrees, and on its website you can post advertisements about finding a partner for breeding and selling kittens.

According to recent changes in legislation, only legal entities and individual entrepreneurs can breed animals and trade them. This means that every breeder who sells cats is required to pay taxes even if they have one litter per year, otherwise their activities are considered illegal. The most profitable is the simplified tax system with a 6 percent tax rate.

General information

Finding simple income

Therefore, only a large nursery can count on an acceptable profit. For private breeders, cat breeding is more like a self-sustaining hobby than a stable income for a living.

We bought a cat or cat and decided to start breeding

It is not uncommon for communication with your purebred pet, its success at exhibitions and flattering comments from friends to suggest that such a beautiful animal must breed. On the one hand, show champions are regularly invited to breed, especially if they are males. Kitties often remain on the sidelines, since bearing and feeding offspring is work that not every cat owner undertakes.

On the other hand, the success of a cat at shows and his external charm sometimes does not mean at all that he can participate in replenishing the breed base. Sometimes a seemingly ideal cat has hidden genetic diseases that are revealed in the very first litters of kittens and it is obvious that it is impossible to continue breeding with this particular animal.

The cat has to give birth, it's for health

This statement is a myth generated by elementary ignorance. The cat does not have to give birth; there is even nothing wrong if she was sterilized before her first heat. Domestic cats do not pursue the goal of preserving the population, like yard and ownerless cats, because they die on the street faster than domestic cats die, which means that if they do not give birth, they will disappear as a species.

Domestic cats, and especially purebred ones, are not under threat of extinction. They don’t need to give birth “just to have it”; a one-time litter does not affect their future health in any way.

It is even recommended to castrate cats, because their regular rutting is a problem not only for the owner, but also for the animal itself, which suffers from the play of hormones.

I bred hamsters, it's time to start cats

The breeding of each animal species has a number of categorical differences from each other. Starting to breed cats, even if you have already been breeding dogs, is not at all the same thing. Moreover, the experience of breeding ferrets, hamsters, and guinea pigs in “kitten production” is completely inapplicable.

“I have repeatedly kept cats of the same breed, I have exhibition experience, I know many like-minded people and I want to contribute to the development of the breed’s studbook or develop a new hybrid”