Yes sadly-kitten/puppy farms who see these wonderful creatures as commodities rather than beautiful creatures to be nurtured and cherished
I don't know what this woman was up to but at least your friend had the good sense to tell her where to get off, she could have been from some kind of kitty experiment place-i mean usually if something doesn't sit right then it's coz it's not right,however unless your friend has info on this woman, enough to be investigated then no point in worrying or wondering as she did the right thing for her kitts and hopefully the next person/s this woman approaches may be able to get some more info and do something about it
We as 1 cannot stop these things entirely but we can try and maybe make some small difference