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Ms. Wang, 25 years old, is a graduate student. She wanted to have a cat in her first year of graduate school. She saw many cat adoption agencies on an online platform and added nearly 10 of them as WeChat friends. She liked ragdolls very much. The cat adoption center in Binjiang mainly sold ragdoll cats. She followed it for more than half a year. In February of this year, she decided to adopt a ragdoll from the adoption center in Binjiang.

Died of sudden illness 4 and a half months after adoption

Even though the cat is gone, I still have to buy 400 yuan worth of cat supplies every month

On March 23, Ms. Wang adopted a 66-day-old ragdoll from the cat adoption center in Binjiang. The adoption conditions were "paying 400 yuan per month for the next 12 months to buy cat food, cat litter and other products from the adoption center", a total of 4,800 yuan, which would be deducted on the 30th of each month. Only after the adopter completed the agreed purchase could they officially obtain ownership of the cat. Ms. Wang signed a relevant agreement with the adoption center.

Ms. Wang's adopted ragdoll cat "Bai Ban"

Ms. Wang said that she named the little ragdoll "White Board". It was very cold and loved to bite people when she first adopted it. It took several months for it to become attached to her. "It follows me wherever I go. Except for sleeping, I spend 5-8 hours with it every day."

"On August 5, I found that Baiban was not right. He hid under the bed and refused to come out. He didn't eat or play. The staff of the adoption center said that he was probably frightened by the thunder the day before. It was okay and we should observe him for a while. Then Baiban vomited. I sent a photo to the adoption center. The staff said that it was cat food that he vomited. Did he have a stomachache? We put away the food and observe him in the afternoon."

"White board" is breathing oxygen

At noon on August 6, Ms. Wang took "Bai Ban" to a pet hospital near her residence. She underwent biochemical tests, X-rays, blood tests, feline BNP (the results showed abnormalities), oxygen inhalation, and furosemide injections. The condition was diagnosed as "cardiogenic pulmonary edema" and cost 1,341 yuan. This hospital did not have a hyperbaric oxygen chamber and recommended transfer to another pet hospital. On the way there by taxi, "Bai Ban" stopped breathing and was pronounced dead after more than 10 minutes of rescue. The medical record read: "Main diagnosis: acute shock due to suspected heart attack." The rescue cost more than 300 yuan.

Filming of "Whiteboard" on August 6

Miss Wang said, it was the first cat I raised, and it took me a long time to calm down... As she spoke, she began to choke and cry.

Each party proposed three solutions, none of which the other party agreed to.

Ms. Wang said that such a small cat has heart disease, which should be hereditary. Will the cat adoption center give her a cat with problems? She asked the adoption center for a health certificate, but they did not provide it. The adoption product purchase in the agreement is to enjoy it first and then pay it back, and the payment will be automatically deducted every month. She has paid 2,000 yuan for 5 consecutive installments, and there are 7 months left for 2,800 yuan. But now the cat is gone, and the automatic deduction every month will not stop. If she does not pay, it will affect her credit.

Ms. Wang said that she proposed three plans to the adoption agency.

Plan 1: The adoption center gave her a free kitten with a health certificate, and she continued to fulfill her plan of purchasing cat products for 7 months, totaling 2,800 yuan, but the adoption center disagreed;

Option 2: The adoption center refunded the 2,000 yuan that had been paid and terminated the 7-month commodity purchase plan, but the adoption center disagreed;

Option three: The adoption center does not need to refund the 2,000 yuan already paid, and only needs to terminate the product purchase plan for the next 7 months. The adoption center does not agree to this either.

The reporter from Orange Persimmon Express contacted the cat adoption home in Binjiang. The staff said that the adoption home also gave Miss Wang three options, but she did not accept any of them.

Option 1: Pay 1,800 yuan to terminate the agreement;

Option 2: Sell a cat to Ms. Wang at a price lower than the market price (Ms. Wang confirmed the price is 800-1200 yuan) and continue to fulfill the remaining 7 months of product purchases;

Option three: Ms. Wang obtains a cat through other channels and continues to purchase goods and services from the adoption center for 7 months.

Ms. Wang said that she called 12315 to complain, but was told that they could not take care of adopted cats, but could take care of cat food and other products if there were problems. She called 12345 to complain, but was told that "after an on-site inspection, the pet store issued a certificate of animal quarantine compliance."

"Now that I have no cats left, I still have to keep buying cat food and cat litter. The cats I adopted before might have problems. I feel like adopting cats in installments is a scam. I must have fallen into a trap..."

Ragdoll cat prices have fallen in recent years

Ms. Wu, a cat lover, told reporters that she spent 10,000 yuan to buy a ragdoll cat in 2018. Five or six years later, it was introduced into the country in large quantities and the price began to fall. Now a ragdoll with good quality costs about four to five thousand yuan, and one with poor quality costs less than 1,000 yuan.

Ms. Wu said that more than a year after she bought her ragdoll, it suddenly fell ill and fell off the windowsill. It foamed at the mouth and convulsed all over, just like a person with epilepsy. She was sent to the hospital for various examinations, which cost more than 5,000 yuan. The diagnosis said that the cat had congenital defects and needed to take a certain medicine for a long time. The medicine cost four or five hundred yuan a month. She bought the medicine and gave it to the cat for a week. The cat began to lose hair severely, refused to eat, and did not move much. She went to the hospital again and was told that it might have "feline infectious peritonitis", which is equivalent to a terminal illness for cats. She had to get an injection, and a course of treatment would cost more than 10,000 yuan. Ms. Wu thought about changing to another hospital. The doctor at the second hospital said that if the cat refused to eat, she should start with the appetite. She gave it an anti-inflammatory and gastrointestinal injection. It was fine after 3 injections. It only cost 500 yuan, and the ragdoll has been fine for so many years. In 2020, she got another British longhair cat. The cat food, cat litter, freeze-dried snacks and so on for the two cats cost more than 400 yuan a month.

Ms. Wu thought that it would be better to buy a ragdoll cat than to adopt one for 4,800 yuan, and she could buy a very good one. Ms. Wu looked at Ms. Wang's ragdoll cat "Bai Ban" and said that it was not in good condition at first glance.

Industry insiders:

True adoption doesn't cost money

It is not recommended to purchase and adopt in installments

Ms. Wang, who has been engaged in the pet business for a long time, told reporters that starting from the second half of last year, this kind of installment adoption model has suddenly become more common, mainly for cats. Young people prefer it and can adopt a cat for a few hundred yuan a month. However, the cost of this consumption model is definitely more than the price of the cat itself.

"Strictly speaking, this model cannot be called adoption. True adoption is free. The animal is handed over to the adopter free of charge. Regular follow-up visits are required. Only after passing the assessment can the life be officially entrusted to the adopter. Generally, a certain deposit is required, ranging from several hundred to a thousand yuan. Once the adopter is determined to meet the adoption requirements, the deposit will be fully refunded to the adopter."

Ms. Wang does not recommend adopting a pet in installments. She recommends buying the pet outright so that the pet can be raised more carefully and the things bought for the pet will not be limited to those provided by the adoption center.

"It is difficult to judge a cat's heart disease. In addition to congenital heart disease, stress response can also induce heart disease. Cats have a strong stress response, much stronger than dogs. The health of a cat can usually be judged by its mental state, eating and defecation over the past 7-15 days. If you go to the hospital for a full physical examination, the cost is relatively high."

Regarding the installment adoption problem encountered by Ms. Wang, Ms. Wang suggested that she should negotiate with the merchant to resolve it. The merchant may not have recovered its costs yet, so see if the remaining fees can be discounted.

(All photos in this article are provided by Ms. Wang)

Chen Weimin, reporter of Orange Persimmon Interactive