| The Bengal Cat can trace it's beginnings to the late 1960's. The inception of the breed began with the mating of the Asian Leopard Cat with a domestic cat. Many decades of hard work from dedicated breeders, in the pursuit of perfecting the breed have brought us to this point in time where we have a cat that exhibits the look of a wild forest dwelling leopard cat, but retains all the habits, affection and predictable docile behavior that we all expect from domesticated cats. The Bengal Cat gets its name from the scientific name assigned to the Asian Leopard Cat………Felis Bengalensis. The Bengal breed is about 40 years old now….so what can you expect from this cat as a family pet? The first thing that comes to mind, is that Bengals have huge personalities. They are clowns, daredevils, thrill seekers, lovers, busybodies, bossy, affectionate, entertainers, therapists, and sometimes drama queens. These are not cats for timid folks who want a laid back lap kitty to spend lazy days with in the recliner. Bengal cats like to be where the action is. If your bengal is awake and you're doing something, more than likely he/she will be wanting to help, or at least supervise. After all they admire their owners and if you're involved in some task it must be worthwhile and interesting. These cats are extremely affectionate, but they are not usually lap-cats. They prefer to be near you, but not on you. As with anything, there will be exceptions to this rule and some Bengals will seek out the lap of their favorite person when the mood strikes them. These guys wear their emotions on their sleeve, so it's not a steep learning curve for the new owners to figure out what their kitty is thinking. The typical Bengal cat shows that it's happy by head-butting, tail straight up with the base frizzed out, lots of trilling and chirps and of course the purr. This is a happy breed of cat with a steady temperament. However............ Bengal cats are definitely not a good choice for everyone, as they do require quite a lot of attention. Aside from their exotic breath taking looks, they are extremely intelligent, curious, agile and athletic. These 4 major qualities can add up to trouble for the uninformed new owner. Since these little leopard look-a-likes have so much energy, they do need an outlet for it. What that means is………..playtime and lots of it. Bengals like to play hard and they thoroughly enjoy their toys. An hour per day minimum is what these guys need to burn off energy and remain happy. Bengals will entertain themselves if boredom sets in and the results aren't always what the new owner has in mind. Think back to the 4 qualities I've mentioned above! For the majority of people considering a cat companion, the Bengal makes an excellent choice. These spotted and marbled wonders come in a variety of colors and markings, but they all sport that endearing playful Bengal personality. You'll find that Bengals come in two distinctly different patterns as far as coat is concerned. The spotted variety and the marble variety. Both types exhibit all the other Bengal features and it is not unusual to have both spotted and marbles in the same litter. There are also many colors within the breed. The spotted and marble varieties both come in these colors: Brown Seal Mink Seal Lynx Seal Sepia Silver Blue (not a color recognized by TICA) Melanistic (not a color recognized by TICA) The spotted variety also come with different formations of the spots and are distinguished by the following terms: Typical Spotted: Solid black or brown spots on a lighter background Rosetted: Spots are formed by two colors. Lighter color in the center with a darker or black outline to the spots. Rosettes come in a variety of patterns: Closed or doughnut rosettes, Open rosettes forming an arrowhead or paw-print pattern. Combinations of both. |
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