Community Chat

[sometimesQVCaddict]

Long story short I adopted a pure breed 'glitter' Bengal (absolutely stunning coat) that was living in a hoarders home (filth not stuff) and she was also a purebred cat 'collector'...at one point having 15 purebred cats in her NYC 1 bedroom apt!!!! Anyway, I bonded w/one of the Bengals (and he bonded with me!) and he has now been in my home for a little over a month. I have 4 other shelter cats (2 Maine Coons, a shorthair domestic, and a Tabby/Russian Blue mix). The good thing with him previously being around so many other cats is that my other cats don't even really faze/bother him too much (he is a little skittish but given his background I totally understand why he is this way!)

No worries about space in my home, I have lots of it! But I think w/5 cats I'm at my max! lol

I have read some things online and am familiar with the fact that he is 'different' than my other cats - i.e. that he likes to jump on top of doors or other super high places, he talks a lot, is very active, & VERY strong/muscular (learned this the hard way when trying to give him meds after bringing him home and getting him up to date medically-lol). I've also introduced him to toys which he didn't have at his old home and was a totally new concept for him.....so sad! But happy at the point he is now!

Just looking for other Bengal owners out there who can give me some advice on what to expect or anything I can do to keep him active/social? Any tips/tricks?

I've never had anything remotely like this breed before, so this is completely new territory for me. I'm a lifelong animal lover and owner - but this is completely different! It feels like I have a wild animal to a certain extent! I'm certainly giving him a great home with lots of love! He just turned 5!

Thanks in advance!!

[lolakimono]

My mother has one. He is like a toddler (four years old). He doesn't like it when she talks on the phone, he "attacks" her legs when she walks by, and can scream bloody murder that sounds as if someone is ripping out his claws one by one. He is an only cat, which is probably good, and she's had him since he was a kitten. He does like to be up high and "supervising" everything from a distance. He has a nice tall cat tree where he spends a good portion of the day on patrolling and napping.

They are very ACTIVE, so either you need to play with him a lot (probably 30 minutes in the a.m. and again in the p.m.). She got him a kitty stroller, as he's an indoor cat, but he likes to look at wildlife. Jackson Galaxy has suggested that with such a high energy level, Bengals can benefit from one of those exercise wheels.

You might also spray some Feliway around the house to calm him down a bit.

Good luck! They are very pretty and quite smart, and they'll talk your ear off!

[yellowkitty]

I have a Bengal got her from Jean Mills from Ca. She is something else. But I love her,she will come in the kitchen even when the dogs don't want her to come in! Have 7 Yorkies I breed them. Even tried my hand a breeding the Bengal! They are very active! The house I use to live in was bigger and she could jump on top of the one door! Does like high places. Once peed in my kitchenade toster! Also I saw her peein the bath tub but went over the drain was just a hole . She use to spray when she was in heat doesn't do it anymore. I have to check to see her age she has to be about 7 years old! I do feed her a can of wet food at night about 7 and keep dry food around all the time I give the hairball kind and don't find any around anymore. You can google Jean Mills and find out alot about the cats.

[denisemb]

Here's a link to a great Yahoo group for Bengal Cat Rescue you could join - always discussions going on about behaviors, care, etc.:

http://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/bengalcatrescue/info

We were the former owners of two bengals. Well, technically, one purebred (Millie was also Millwood bred, she was a retired breeder and great-grandma to our F3) and one early generation: Rocko was an F3, meaning he was only 3 generations removed from the Asian Leopard Cat, whereas a purebred must be 4 generations removed. Unfortunately, both have passed on related to kidney and heart disease. We miss them every day.

Sounds like your guy is doing well, a little skittishness at first is to be expected. He'll probably soon find a "buddy" who will play chase with him all over the house (a favorite pastime). We played "catch that kitty!" daily, alternating between being the chaser and the chasee! Riding around on your shoulder was another treat. My husband (the cat whisperer, LOL) swears by hand feeding some tasty tidbits (chicken, ham, etc.) to get them accustomed to being handled and sociable if skittish. Our two were always pretty sociable - they'd welcome EVERYONE at the door like "Hi!! How are you?? Aren't we cute??" LOL

Ours LOVED the feather toys. Could get some really high leaps out of them. Laser pens are good, but I've heard they can be frustrating to cats because they never get to "catch" their prey...DH solved that by running Rocko around and over to his food dish.

Otherwise, to be honest...they find their own toys, LOL. Our F3 was notorious for loving anything metal, so we had to be careful where we placed things...otherwise you'd find yourself missing eyeglasses, key rings, jewelry.

They are amazing, entertaining and rewarding pets and seem to stay active and "young" longer than any of the domestics we owned. Have loads of fun with your new fella and give them all a hug from me!

[sometimesQVCaddict]

Thank you all to your suggestions...any others are greatly appreciated as well!

Denise-thanks for the link-I'll check that out! And so sorry for your loss! I know how hard it must be to lose your 'kids'....did you ever get another Bengal or do you have other cats/pets?

From what I know he has a 'glitter' coat (it does really sparkle/shine in the sun!) which means something special in the Bengal breeder community and he has very distinct spots, he apparently is a very very good 'breeder' cat...she paid a fortune for him as a kitten...I know it was over $2000!!!! He did come from a very well known breeder in CA, but I forgot the name and don't have the paperwork in front of me. I found all this out when I was bringing him home and found some paperwork on him in the apartment of his previous owner. I laughed actually when I found out how 'special' he is.....to me he's just an adorable powerhouse of fun who chose me as his new mommy! Who is gorgeous to boot! He was fixed as a kitten and I would have done the same if it wasn't done prior.

To be honest I wasn't looking for another cat....these cats were with an in-law's relative that I was helping to clean up the filth (let's not even go there!) and take care of the cats...and in the process this little guy and I bonded...well he bonded w/me and I fell in love! So when it came time for everyone to vacate the apartment I was asked to find homes for the cats...and this guy came home with me! So I did get a 'sneak peek' at his behavior/s before...but again with the living conditions in his previous home...I knew it would be an adjustment and he would need time to get 'back to normal'.

I probably spend 4-5 hours a day with him at this point...he follows me EVERYWHERE for the most part! I am also getting used to finding him at practically ceiling height a lot too! lol And he does talk A LOT! I re-named him partly because of all his talking! lol It was a nickname I gave him at his old home and it 'stuck'! Plus I thought he needed a new name for his new life! He does answer to it now so that's good news!

He LOVES a little furry feather toy I got him and loves to also play 'fetch' with his mice! My other cats do this as well so he might have learned this from them. It's cute regardless and since they 'fetch' and bring back the toys to me to throw again, I don't really have to do anything! HA!

I will check out that online group too and see if there's anything else I need to know!

[okBlonde]

On 1/30/2014 yellowkitty said:

I have a Bengal got her from Jean Mills from Ca. She is something else. But I love her,she will come in the kitchen even when the dogs don't want her to come in! Have 7 Yorkies I breed them. Even tried my hand a breeding the Bengal! They are very active! The house I use to live in was bigger and she could jump on top of the one door! Does like high places. Once peed in my kitchenade toster! Also I saw her peein the bath tub but went over the drain was just a hole . She use to spray when she was in heat doesn't do it anymore. I have to check to see her age she has to be about 7 years old! I do feed her a can of wet food at night about 7 and keep dry food around all the time I give the hairball kind and don't find any around anymore. You can google Jean Mills and find out alot about the cats.

Geez....why don't you get her fixed?????

[Catitude]

On 1/31/2014 Indy-Blonde2 said:

On 1/30/2014 yellowkitty said:

I have a Bengal got her from Jean Mills from Ca. She is something else. But I love her,she will come in the kitchen even when the dogs don't want her to come in! Have 7 Yorkies I breed them. Even tried my hand a breeding the Bengal! They are very active! The house I use to live in was bigger and she could jump on top of the one door! Does like high places. Once peed in my kitchenade toster! Also I saw her peein the bath tub but went over the drain was just a hole . She use to spray when she was in heat doesn't do it anymore. I have to check to see her age she has to be about 7 years old! I do feed her a can of wet food at night about 7 and keep dry food around all the time I give the hairball kind and don't find any around anymore. You can google Jean Mills and find out alot about the cats.

Geez....why don't you get her fixed?????

[denisemb]

On 1/31/2014 sometimesQVCjunkie said:

Thank you all to your suggestions...any others are greatly appreciated as well!

Denise-thanks for the link-I'll check that out! And so sorry for your loss! I know how hard it must be to lose your 'kids'....did you ever get another Bengal or do you have other cats/pets?

No, although we talk about it at least twice a week! I keep on eye on the Bengal Rescue group, thinking we may run across an older one nearby that needs a home. We're of the age (with health issues) that we wouldn't want to take on a younger one - as you can testify, even a 5 y.o. bengal has lots of energy! We've also discussed going back to a domestic cat from the shelter, but...I think there would always be comparisons, you know? Those two cats were soooo special, especially the F3.

Lucky you with the glitter coat! Love how they sparkle in the sunshine. Also, I wonder if yours will take to water? Ours didn't, in fact the F3 jumped in a tub with an inch of water once and you'd think it was battery acid. But some like playing in water...

[yellowkitty]

Because I was breeding her! She had 2 litters!