About Bengal cats
Bengal Cats impress us with their beauty and their grace. Their country of origin is USA. The Bengal cats have something mysterious and graceful just as their Asian Leopard ancestors. Once separated by at least four generations from the original Asian leopard Cat and domestic cat crossing, the breeds temperament resembles that of a domestic cat. They are captivating and strikingly beautiful in appearance. Bengal cats have a sleek, soft coat, which is more like a pelt than ordinary cat fur, many claim that the Bengal cat is a hypoallergenic breed.
Facts about Bengal Cats 1: Appearance
Bengal cats vary in size with the male between twelve to twenty pounds and females slightly smaller at six to twelve pounds. Bengal cats are very muscular cats with long bodies, thus appearing larger. Bengal cats have wild-looking markings, such as large spots, rosettes, and a light/white belly, and a body structure reminiscent of the leopard cat. The Bengal is a domestic cat breed developed to look like exotic jungle cats such as leopards, ocelots, margays and clouded leopards. Bengal cats were developed by selective breeding from hybrids of the Asian leopard Cat, Prionailurus bengalensis, with domestic cat, back-crossed to domestic cats, with the goal of creating a confident, healthy, and friendly cat with a highly contrasted and vividly marked coat.A Bengals rosetted spots occur only on the back and sides, with stripes elsewhere. The breed typically also features mascara (horizontal striping alongside the eyes), and foreleg striping. The eyes of a Bengal cat are relatively large and are usually bright blue, amber or green.
The Bengal cat is usually either classed as brown-spotted or snow-spotted (although there are more colors brown and snow are the only colors of Bengal that the Governing Council of the Cat Fancy (UK) recognizes). Within brown Bengals, there are either marble or spotted markings. Included in the spotted variation is rosetted, which consists of a spot with a dark line surrounding it. Snow Bengals are also either marble or spotted, but are also divided into blue-eyed or any other color eyes.
The International Cat Association (TICA) recognizes several Bengal colors (brown, seal lynx point, mink, sepia, silver) and patterns (spotted and marbled) for competition and shows. In the New Traits class, other colors may be shown, as well as longhairs.
Different colors of Bengal cats include
Brown, Seal Lynx, Seal Mink, Seal Sepia, Silver, Charcoal, Blue, and Black melanistic.
Facts about Bengal Cats 2: The Extremely Intelligent
The Bengal cats are extremely intelligent and curious cats. You can train them to open the window, door or even cabinet, in fact they may open doors and cabinets even if you don’t train them! Bengal cats like being up high, there is no need to wonder when you find your Bengal cat climbing the highest places in the house. You will also find that they are very dog-like in personality, following you from room to room in your home and always greeting you with a loving welcome. Whether male or female, this exotic, unique cat will hold a place in your heart forever like no cat as ever done before
Facts about Bengal Cats 3: The Ideal Companion
They will grace any home and be a loyal life companion. They are wonderful with children, other pets! Bengal cats can be the perfect companions for the experienced cats owners and active families. If you have a dog at home, it is okay to have Bengal cat, your cat will not be afraid, in fact he may boss the dog around.
Facts about Bengal Cats 4: The Popularity
Bengal cats are popular due to various reasons. They are growing in popularity due to their beautiful patterns and their fantastic personalities They are very vocal, agile, active, smart and highly intelligent.
Facts about Bengal Cats 5: Shedding and Grooming
As well as being desired for their appearance, they are also known for being a breed that sheds very little to none. Many claim that the Bengal is a hypoallergenic breed.
Bengals are extremely efficient self-groomers, therefore they require little grooming.
Early history
The earliest mention of an Asian leopard cat domestic cross was in 1889, when Harrison Weir wrote of them in Our Cats and All About Them.
However, in 1927, C. Boden Kloss wrote to the magazine Cat Gossip regarding hybrids between wild and domestic cats in Malaya: I have never heard of hybrids between bengalensis (the Leopard Cat) and domestic cats. One of the wild tribes of the Malay Peninsula has domesticated cats, and I have seen the woman suckling bengalensis kittens, but I do not know whether the latter survive and breed with the others!
The earliest mention of a confirmed Asian leopard cat domestic cross was in 1934, in a Belgian scientific journal. In 1941, a Japanese cat publication printed an article about one that was kept as a pet. Jean Mill (ne Sugden), the person who was later a great influence on the development of the modern Bengal breed, submitted a term paper for her genetics class at UC Davis on the subject of crossbreeding cats in 1946.
Bengal cats as a separate species, was cleverly breeding from hybrids of the Egyptian Maui, Asian Leopard cat (the reason of Bengals exotic coloring), Abyssinian, Siamese and domestic cats. The breed was developing by different breeders for almost a hundred years! As a result, weve got kind of a small and domestic tiger.
Bengals as a breed
In the 1970s, Willard Centerwall bred Asian leopard cats with domestic cats to aid his studies in genetics because of their apparent immunity to feline leukemia. Eventually, these hybrids were given to Jean Sudgen Mill because of Centerwalls illness.
At the same time, Bill Engler wanted to preserve the exotic cats genes by breeding them with house cats. Although none of todays Bengal lines originate from these cats, he chose the name Bengal, which was accepted by the American Cat Fanciers Association (ACFA), the first registry to accept the breed.
Jean Mill was instrumental in recognition of Bengals as a breed by The International Cat Association (TICA) in 1983. Her plan was not to keep the breed as a hybrid, but to domesticate these cats by breeding them further with each other.
Greg and Elizabeth Kent were also early breeders, who developed their own line of Bengals using Asian leopard cats and Egyptian Maus This was a very successful line and many modern Bengals will find it in their pedigree.
Temperament
Bengals are a lot of fun to live with, but they’re definitely not the cat for everyone, or for first-time cat owners. Extremely intelligent, curious and active, they demand a lot of interaction and woe betide the owner who doesn’t provide it. If you wont be home during the day to entertain your Bengal, plan to have two of them or don’t get one. When a Bengal gets bored, he is capable of taking things apart to see how they work and opening drawers and cabinets to see what interesting toys or food might be available for him.
The Bengal loves his people and will do anything for attention from them. If he figures out that you don’t like something he does jumping on the kitchen counter, for instance he will start doing it all the time because it will get your attention and force you to interact with him. He also likes to take things and hide them. Put your jewelry away in a place where he cant get it (you hope).
Every cat is an individual, but most Bengals get along with other pets, including dogs. They are best suited to homes with older children who will enjoy playing with them, but as long as they have an escape route from toddlers they should do well with them.
This is a cat that needs a lot of vertical territory. Bengals love to climb, the higher the better. Provide them with tall cat trees and window perches. They are also fond of playing water. Don’t be surprised if your Bengal wants to join you in the shower or bathtub. You may find yourself installing a motion-sensitive faucet in your bathroom or kitchen so he can turn the water on and off for himself. If that’s not on your agenda, he will appreciate having a pet fountain to drink from.
They are also highly intelligent and enjoy the attention that comes with being clicker-trained. Challenge their brain and keep them interested in life by teaching them tricks and games and providing them with interactive toys or puzzle toys that will reward them with kibble or treats when they learn how to manipulate them.
After three generations from the original crossing, the breed usually acquires a gentle domestic cat temperament; however, for the typical pet owner, a Bengal cat kept as a pet should be at least four generations (F4) removed from the leopard cat. Bengals are known for liking water, and require a large amount of attention to keep them happy. Bengals also enjoy playing, and have been recorded jumping over 5 feet from the ground.
We love the cats for their eternal devotion. Further more, these cats will follow all of your steps throughout your apartment to not leave you alone. So, basically, they are really active cats, who just cant live without your attention. Also, it is worth to note their impossibility and amazing leopard coloring, that give them insolence and wild grace. Therefore, if you want to bring this leopard cat home, you cant go without a couple of toys and endless attention to make them happy.