November 2023 by Samuel Lewis
My wife & I bought a year old cat from Blue Duchess in June 2023. This cat was very sick & the symptoms would have been clear to any professional breeder. It took us a little while to realize how serious the symptoms were, but after about 10 days we took him to the vet & he was diagnosed with FIP. I believe Blue Duchess knowingly sold us a sick cat because of the following symptoms: His belly was bloated/distended but he was also somewhat underweight, he didn't eat, his spine & ribs were protruding, jaundice, constant lip smacking, excessive water drinking, dark urine. I could tell the cat wanted to play but he was easily winded. Seemed uneasy on his feet & couldn't jump. His back legs had no muscle. I believe the muscle atrophy in his back legs was due to excessive time being kept in a cage. The living area for the cats was dirty (not just cluttered or messy, DIRTY) dark & poorly ventilated. Admittedly, a smarter person would've ran out the door after seeing the state of this "cattery."I emailed the owner of Blue Duchess to make her aware of the issue & received no response. I've seen another review concerning FIP that appears to be more recent than my experience. I don't think Blue Duchess is interested in addressing the FIP issue. For anyone who doesn't know, FIP is fatal and highly contagious to other cats possessing the gene. Vets cannot test for the gene at this time. Any cat from Blue Duchess is at risk of having or eventually developing FIP. Please save yourself the heartache & avoid Blue Duchess.
