What "verified" means here
A badge is worthless if nobody knows what's behind it. So here is the entire standard, in public, with nothing held back. If a cattery on this site hasn't cleared every item below, it shouldn't be here — and we want you to hold us to that.
Read this part first
There are three different things on this page, and the difference matters: things we confirm ourselves, things we require and collect but do not authenticate, and things the breeder tells us in writing.
We are not a laboratory, a veterinary practice, or a licensing body. We cannot tell a genuine PK-Def panel from a well-made forgery, and we do not claim to. Anyone who tells you their badge does that is overselling it. Read our full disclaimer →
1. Registry confirmation We confirm this
The cattery must hold an active, registered cattery name with TICA or CFA. We look it up against the registry ourselves. A screenshot, a certificate photo, or a logo on their website is not accepted — those are trivially faked, and faking them is exactly what scam listings do.
This is the one item on this page we can genuinely stand behind, because the registry is a public source we can check independently of the breeder. It proves a cattery exists under that name and is accountable to a registry. It proves nothing about how they actually breed.
2. Health testing on file Collected, not authenticated
Bengals carry real, documented genetic risk. We require current results for every active breeding cat before a cattery is listed, and we keep copies on file:
| Test | What it screens for | Required |
|---|---|---|
| PK-Def | Pyruvate kinase deficiency — an inherited anemia | Yes, all breeding cats |
| PRA-b | Progressive retinal atrophy — Bengal-specific blindness | Yes, all breeding cats |
| HCM echo | Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, by a cardiologist | Yes, on a recurring schedule |
| FeLV / FIV | Feline leukemia and immunodeficiency virus | Negative cattery status |
Swipe the table sideways to see what's required →
Carriers are not automatically disqualifying — responsible breeders pair around a known carrier all the time, and doing so openly is a sign of a good program. Not knowing is the disqualifier.
What we do and don't do with these documents
We do: require them before listing, check that they name the specific cats in that cattery's program, check that they come from a recognised lab or a named veterinary cardiologist, check the dates are current, and keep them on file so we can produce them if a listing is ever challenged.
We don't: contact the labs to confirm each result, verify that the cat tested is the cat advertised, or perform any forensic check on the document itself. A determined forger could get past us.
You can close most of that gap yourself in ten minutes. Ask the breeder to send the results to you directly from the lab's portal, or ask for the lab's order number and verify it yourself. A breeder doing this properly will not mind.
3. How kittens are raised and placed Breeder's written word
We do not visit catteries. We have not seen these homes. The following is what each breeder states in writing as a condition of being listed — it is their representation, not our observation:
- Raised underfoot. Kittens are raised inside the home and socialised with people, not kept in cages or outbuildings.
- Placed no earlier than 12 weeks. Early separation causes lasting behavioural and immune problems. This one is non-negotiable.
- Vetted before placement. Age-appropriate vaccinations, deworming, and a written vet health certificate.
- A written contract. Including a health guarantee and a clause requiring the cat return to the breeder if the buyer can't keep it.
- Spay/neuter on pet placements. Pet kittens are not sold with breeding rights.
4. Card payment accepted We confirm this
Listed catteries accept credit card payment for deposits and kitten purchases, and we check that the payment link or terminal actually works before listing them. This one matters more than it sounds — and unlike a lab result, it's something we can test directly.
The most common way Bengal buyers lose money is an irreversible deposit — Zelle, Cash App, wire transfer, gift cards. Those methods have no buyer protection by design, which is exactly why every scam insists on them. When you pay a card, you keep your chargeback rights, and a fraudulent seller can't keep your money simply by ignoring your emails.
A cattery that takes cards has also been through a payment processor's own underwriting — a real business identity, a real bank account, a real name attached to it. Scam listings don't survive that.
Catteries pay normal processing fees to accept cards, and some ask buyers to cover them. That's reasonable and worth it. If a breeder only takes irreversible payment and won't offer a card option, treat it as the red flag it usually is.
What we deliberately don't do
We don't handle your money
Kittenry never takes a deposit, holds funds in escrow, or processes a kitten sale. You pay the cattery directly, by card, with your own buyer protection intact. This means we cannot refund you if something goes wrong — we'd rather say that plainly than imply a protection we can't deliver, and rather point you at a chargeback right that actually works than a guarantee that depends on us.
We don't sell placement
No cattery can pay to rank higher, appear first, or get a bigger badge. Breeders pay a flat listing fee or nothing at all. The order you see is not for sale, and it never will be.
We don't decide what's legal where you live
We label every cat's generation — F1 through F5 and SBT — because it's the single most important fact for both price and legality, and most listings bury it. Early-generation cats (F1–F3) are treated as regulated exotic animals in many states and are banned outright in some. Later generations are usually treated as domestic cats.
"Usually" is doing real work in that sentence. Even SBT Bengals are restricted in places — New York City and Hawaii being the well-known examples. Checking your own state, county, and city rules before you pay anyone is your responsibility, not ours. We give you the generation so you can go and check. We do not give legal advice and we are not liable for a purchase that turns out to be prohibited where you live.
We don't guarantee any outcome
Everything on this page is a paperwork and standards check performed by a person at a point in time. It meaningfully reduces the chance you get scammed. It cannot eliminate it. Documents can be forged, breeders can change their practices the day after we check, and living animals carry risk no amount of screening removes.
Buy at your own discretion, and do your own research. Read the buyer guide, get a live video call, verify the health results with the lab yourself, read the contract, and pay by card. Our listing is a starting point for your diligence, not a substitute for it. Full terms are on our disclaimer page.
Re-checking and removal
Every listed cattery is re-checked annually, and must notify us when breeding cats enter or leave their program. We remove a cattery — without a refund — for paperwork we discover to be falsified, selling kittens under 12 weeks, or a pattern of substantiated buyer complaints.
We rely heavily on buyers telling us when something is wrong. If you've dealt with a cattery listed here and it didn't match what's on this page, tell us: hello@kittenry.com. We investigate every report, and this listing means nothing if we don't.
Meet the standard? Come list.
Free for our first 20 founding catteries. Verification takes about a week, and we'll tell you exactly what's missing if something is.