The Bengal Cat Thread.

Author
Discussion

Mr Daytona

Original Poster:

221 posts

115 months

Saturday 30th August 2014
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Having noticed that their are at least a few owners of this fantastic breed of cat on here, I thought I'd start a new thread relating solely to Bengals (apologies if this has been done before).

Have now had our kitten Maximus for nearly 3 months now, he really has settled into the family home and my 8 year old son absolutely adores him. Here's an excuse for some gratuitous photos of Max.



Edited by Mr Daytona on Saturday 30th August 11:43

Mr Daytona

Original Poster:

221 posts

115 months

Saturday 30th August 2014
quotequote all

Mr Daytona

Original Poster:

221 posts

115 months

Saturday 30th August 2014
quotequote all

Mr Daytona

Original Poster:

221 posts

115 months

Saturday 30th August 2014
quotequote all

Mr Daytona

Original Poster:

221 posts

115 months

Saturday 30th August 2014
quotequote all

Mr Daytona

Original Poster:

221 posts

115 months

Saturday 30th August 2014
quotequote all

TwigtheWonderkid

43,248 posts

149 months

Sunday 31st August 2014
quotequote all
Fabulous looking beast but I'd be worried about it being nicked. Hence I always go for scruffy moggies when choosing a cat.

Patch1875

4,893 posts

131 months

Sunday 31st August 2014
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TwigtheWonderkid said:
Fabulous looking beast but I'd be worried about it being nicked. Hence I always go for scruffy moggies when choosing a cat.
This is my concern as we already have an outdoor cat it would have to get out also.

Mr Daytona

Original Poster:

221 posts

115 months

Sunday 31st August 2014
quotequote all
You are quite right, it is a worry that if we did let him out he might get stolen, so despite being microchipped he is very much a house cat. We take him for walks on his lead and also have a pretty secure back garden, but even so I do feel guilty that he doesn't get the freedom that other cats enjoy.

Erasmia

56 posts

127 months

Sunday 31st August 2014
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We have 2 Bengals. Sabre is now 11 and his nephew Scimitar is 10. Initially they were indoor cats but after a couple of years they decided they wanted to go out and its very difficult to say no to a Bengal as they are extremely vocal and very determined.

Here is Sabre who likes to regularly patrol the garden and will happily see off foxes if they dare to enter his territory..



Here are the pair of them, plotting world domination…



and finally this is the face you get when you say no to a Bengal.


Jer_1974

1,497 posts

192 months

Sunday 31st August 2014
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Some old photos from 2007 of my Bengal which we still have. We moved to our new house three years ago and it turns out three of our neighbours have Bengals which all get let outside.





Mr Daytona

Original Poster:

221 posts

115 months

Sunday 31st August 2014
quotequote all
Beautiful cats. I did notice though that they don't have any white markings on their chest. Someone mentioned on an earlier thread that as the Bengals get older they gradually lose these markings and become more uniform in colour. Is that your experience from your cats ?

Ps, for the record my cat is only 6 months old. Cheers.

RJD223

251 posts

194 months

Monday 1st September 2014
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Here's a few of our two - from when they were kittens to recently - they're both 9 now!

Love them to bits but the brown one must have been abused when he was a kitten. We've never been able to go near him in 9 years. Tried all sorts but the vet says after 8 weeks the damage has been done :-( It's like having a little lodger in the house - he'll sit away from us all every evening and still acts like he's feral.







Erasmia

56 posts

127 months

Tuesday 2nd September 2014
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We have the same issue. Sabre is very friendly and has to be involved with everything we do and is always looking for a lap to sit on. Scimitar shrinks away from any human contact. I don't think he was abused, just never socialised in the vital early weeks.

S3_Graham

12,830 posts

198 months

Tuesday 2nd September 2014
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how do cats survive as 'house' cats? I have house rabbits and would dearly love at cat but as I live in a second floor flat I'd always thought it was un-workable.

Beautiful cats, like a mini leopard!

Erasmia

56 posts

127 months

Tuesday 2nd September 2014
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I think every cat is different and what suits one may not suit another. Our Bengals started as house cats as we were scared of losing them, but neither was happy and they were fairly destructive around the house. Now they can come and go as they please they are much more content. Our other cat has a problem with her back legs and has actively chosen to be an indoor cat.

J4CKO

41,283 posts

199 months

Tuesday 2nd September 2014
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They look amazing, what are they like compared to a standard Moggy ?

okgo

37,857 posts

197 months

Tuesday 2nd September 2014
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We have two, compared to a normal cat (mine are also house cats)

- FAR FAR louder. And if something happens it doesn't like you'll not have thought a cat would be able to make a noise that blood curdling.

- They are interested in EVERYTHING, they will follow you round like dogs. If you bring a box into the house, 2 minutes before they're in it, on it, scratching it. Same goes for anything. Recently we had building work done and he said the cats were in his toolbox within minutes.

- They have very defined personalities, and do respond to their names. I have one very smart one that causes trouble and one incredibly docile one that just lols around, you could pick him up and put him on something and he would just stay there. The other is the polar opposite.

- If you get a smart one then they're incredibly smart. Our one has learned it can make maximum noise on the kitchen door when it wants to be let out in the morning by hitting its paws against a certain art that echo's more than the rest of the door. It also has learned how to pull the kickboard out from under the worktops to go under the cupboards, no matter what I do, it still manages to get in there.

THX

2,348 posts

121 months

Tuesday 2nd September 2014
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Just to echo the comments re; intelligence, they're emotionally switched on - like dogs. I've had cats all my life but none came close to the way Alfie interprets commands or emotion. He'll follow me around, too. Always wanting to be close. Hugely affectionate. Most times he's after something but sometimes he just wants a hug. He'll have the odd tantrum, too, mind. A Bengal having a tantrum is akin to a teenager having one. And loud. Really loud. Constantly vocal but sometimes loud. Neighbour annoyingly loud. If I tell Alf to 'shut up' he'll adjust his meow to a softer tone.

If I tell the Moggy off for doing something, like clicking the sofa, he'll ignore it until I forcefully remove him from it. If I tell Alfie off, he'll stop. Not that I have to tell him off much (save when he's being loud) As he learns his lessons and sticks to the rules (mostly)










ali_kat

31,988 posts

220 months

Tuesday 2nd September 2014
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Erasmia said:
. Scimitar shrinks away from any human contact. I don't think he was abused, just never socialised in the vital early weeks.
I think Pepi wasn't socialised either. He trusts me & J, and after 5 years living with me he clings to me like a limpet as I'm his 'constant'; J he'll go to when I'm not there. But he runs away when anyone else visits or if either of us move & he's not expecting it, or a car goes past, or there's a noise on TV... He loves other cats though, is desperate to play with them smile

He'll sit on the stairs & watch, you can see the longing in his eyes and he IS getting braver. Once guests have been in the house a few hours he'll come near me & ask to come on my knee.

To answer the OPs questions about markings on the tummy, mine 'lost' them at @ 18ms; they are still there but not as clear as they were, I've always thought it's because they are cross breeds (Bengal, Siamese, Oriental mix called Serengeti)

I'll add some pictures at the weekend (if I'm allowed?)