Reintroducing Ourselves — and How We Do Things
This is a reflection on where we’ve been, what we’ve learned, and how those lessons continue to shape the way we raise our cats and work with families.
It's hard to believe we're already starting a new year (is time flying for anyone else??), and I've been in a reflective mood for days.... SO much has changed for us over the past year: We moved into a new home, retired a beloved queen, opened a new guardian home, welcomed three new queens, and this month we’ll be bringing in two new males.
We've had lots of inquiries over the holidays, and while chatting with new customers to explain our current process, I can't help thinking about how different that is from when we started—but I know there are some things that haven't changed at all, things we’ve been very intentional about keeping the same, and always will.
Some things have changed over the years. Some things haven’t. And a few things we’ve been very intentional about keeping exactly the same.
Thing One:
Even as our program evolves, we still think of ourselves as a small cattery, and we’re committed to keeping it that way.
For us, “small” isn’t just about numbers. It’s about how we operate.
- It means one male and one or two females per location. (We tried having more queens in our home and learned that smaller simply works better for us.)
- It means in-person allergy visits and cattery visits whenever possible.
- It means meeting families face-to-face for pickup rather than shipping kittens off into the world.
- And it means easy, direct access to me and to our guardian home moms for questions, updates, photos, and videos — not a chain of intermediaries, just real people you know by name.
If you’re new here and don’t feel like reading the whole post, here’s the heart of it:
- We’re a small cattery on purpose. No matter how many cats you see on our site, we only have one male and one or two females per location.
- We don’t interfere with nature unless it’s needed. We trust our cats’ natural rhythms and focus on supporting them, not controlling every step of the process.
- We offer more options than some breeders because families asked for them. We’re happy to do so, even though it adds complexity. We prioritize transparency, flexibility, and clear communication over rigid, one-size-fits-all systems.
- Our process reflects how we operate. Just like our cat care philosophy, it’s built to support real life, honor natural timing, and stay true to our values — even when that means things are a little more complex.
As programs grow larger, some things naturally tend to change. Communication often becomes more structured. Decisions need to be more fixed. Processes tend to prioritize consistency and efficiency, because that’s what scale requires. There’s nothing inherently wrong with that — it’s simply a different model.
But it's not our model. As we grow, we've made a conscious decision to keep things personal, flexible, and relationship-driven. I still answer every call, text, and email, and don't see that changing. That choice shapes everything else, including how our adoption process works.
Being a small cattery also allows us to stay closely connected to how our cats live day to day. We don’t believe in over-managing or constantly intervening just because we can. We trust that these cats are well designed by nature, and our role is to support them — not control every detail. That philosophy influences everything from how our cats live in our homes to how we think about breeding, health, and long-term wellbeing.
As we move into this new year, it felt like the right time to reintroduce ourselves — to share who we are as a cattery today, what we value, and how those values show up in the way we raise our cats and work with the families who bring them home.
Who We Are (and Who We’re Not)
Not every breeder is the right fit for every family — and that’s okay.
There are a lot of wonderful Siberian breeders out there who use a very simple, first-come-first-served process. Minimal options. Minimal decision points. No upgrades. In fact, that’s exactly how we started, too.
But over time, we realized something important:
We don’t actually have enough kittens for every person who wants a Siberian — and trying to pretend otherwise doesn’t really serve anyone. It tends to create more stress, more disappointment, and more confusion down the line.
So instead of trying to be everything to everyone, we’ve focused on being very clear about who we are, how our process works, and who we tend to be the best fit for.
If you’re someone who values:
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understanding why decisions are made
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having options, even when that adds a little complexity
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lifelong support, clear communication, and ongoing conversation
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flexibility when real life shifts plans
then you may feel very at home here.
If, on the other hand, you’re looking for the simplest possible process — strictly first-come-first-served, no added options, no moving parts — that’s completely valid too—it just isn't our way. There are excellent breeders who do work exactly that way, and we’re always happy to help people think through what kind of cattery might be the best fit for them.
(This is something we’ll be expanding on more soon in a “Choosing Your Cattery” guide.)
Our Philosophy About the Cats
Just as importantly, we want to be aligned in how we think about the cats themselves.
We believe these animals are well designed by nature. We trust their bodies, instincts, and rhythms. We don’t over-manage heat cycles or mating, separate our males from the family environment, or use cages or kennels. We’re conservative about medical intervention — avoiding early spay/neuter, minimizing unnecessary vaccines, and limiting vet visits to what’s truly needed.
Our approach is rooted in support rather than control. We step in when necessary, but we don’t interfere simply to feel busy or “in charge.” That philosophy shapes how we raise our cats and how we run our program.
How We Got Here
When we first started breeding, we dove in headfirst.
We researched obsessively, learned as fast as we could, and figured things out as situations came up. Like most breeders, our earliest systems were simple because they had to be. We built policies on the fly, adjusted as we learned, and did our best with the information we had at the time.
Nearly ten years later, we’re still learning. Still refining. Still tweaking things when something clearly isn’t working as well as it could.
One thing that has been consistent over the years is that we pay attention when we hear the same question or request come up again and again from different families.
All of the options in our current process exist because families repeatedly asked for them — things like the ability to plan for a specific pairing or choose whether you pay more to choose and select sooner, or pay less and wait a bit longer.
Rather than handling those requests quietly or making one-off exceptions behind the scenes, we chose to build them into the process in a way that was clear, transparent, and consistent for everyone.
Why We Offer Options (Even When It’s More Complex)
It’s true — more choices can mean more complexity.
And if I’m being honest, I tend to like systems that are comfortable and familiar. I don’t change things lightly. When something does change, it’s usually because I’ve thought about it for a long time and believe it genuinely improves the experience for future families.
Every change we make applies going forward only — never retroactively. And every change is made with an eye toward fairness — not just for one family, but for everyone.
We also know that flexibility comes with tradeoffs.
Allowing families to change their minds, shift timelines, or respond to life as it happens can reduce predictability. It can also mean that surprises happen — even when expectations were communicated clearly. That isn’t a flaw in the system; it’s the cost of treating people like humans instead of contracts.
Sometimes that means making choices that aren’t the easiest or most convenient for us — like offering partial refunds when plans change, or standing behind our kittens with a long-term health guarantee. Those decisions grow out of the same values that guide how we care for our cats: responsibility, trust, and a long view of wellbeing.
The Tradeoffs We’ve Chosen
Every cattery makes tradeoffs, whether they’re named or not. To help make ours more visible, here’s how we tend to balance some of the competing values that come up in adoption processes:
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Predictability ↔ Flexibility
We lean toward flexibility, knowing it can reduce predictability in individual outcomes. -
Simplicity ↔ Choice
We offer more options so families can choose what matters most to them, even though that adds complexity. -
Rigid Systems ↔ Human-Centered Decisions
We design policies that account for real life, not just ideal scenarios.
None of these choices are “better” in a universal sense — they’re simply the choices that align with how we want to run our program.
Moving Forward — and What Alignment Really Means
Our goal has never been to convince everyone that our way is the only way. It’s to make sure that families who DO choose Spellbound Siberian Cats do so with open eyes, clear expectations, and shared values.
Ultimately, our process grows out of the same place as our cat care — intentionality, and a desire to do what truly feels aligned, not just what’s easiest or most widely used.
That alignment is what allows this to work the way it does. It’s what makes this feel less like a transaction and more like the beginning of a relationship.
When we do things in a way that feels right, we tend to draw the right families to us — families who share our priorities, who value how these cats are raised, and who become part of the extended community around them.
That’s what we’re building here. And if you’ve made it this far, thank you for being here — you’re probably one of us, and we’re really glad you found us.