At my wits end with neighbours Bengal - help!!!

[attillathenun]

Any advice on bengals most welcome! Neighbours moved in about 18 months ago with a Bengal boy kitten and initially, he got on really well with our 8 year old boy moggie. But over the last few months, he’s taken to terrorising our boy and I’m at my wits end!

Poor thing is locked out of the house all day come rain or shine with no access back into the house. It is constantly jumping up at our windows trying to fight our cat and no amount of throwing water, shouting and chasing makes it stop coming back. Our boy now can’t go out during the day, otherwise a costly vet visit follows . Luckily Bengal is locked in at night and we have a microchip catflap so our mog can’t be followed inside.

DH is thinking of going to speak to the neighbours, but obviously as cat owners we completely understand that cats roam where they like (it is ridiculous though that he spends all day outside!).

Any advice on how to deal with it??

Cats do roam but I would still have a word because reasonable neighbours should be very apologetic and want to work with you to find a solution. I’d be suggesting to them that they put a flap in so that their cat isn’t always outside as that might give your cat some reprieve.

Should add we’ve also put a privacy film on our window to stop both cats from seeing one another, but Bengal is still jumping up to try and see in the window 😩

You could try. Tell them you'll be invoicing them for each vet visit from now on.

In reality unless they keep him on during the day there's little they can do. Is it neutered?

Thanks for your quick replies! We aren’t sure if he’s neutered, hard to tell when we are chasing him down the street but DH is going to ask. It’s currently raining and said cat is locked out ☹️

They need a cat flap - assuming as the Bengal seems to be out all day there isn’t one as few cats stay outside and roam all day . I certainly wouldn’t have any cat out without potential access to food / water/refuge whilst at work all day . I’d also be concerned about the cat being catnapped .

Are you sure it’s being locked out? I have two rehomed bengals and they would go mental if I didn’t let them out- and they do go out in the rain too.

Most Bengal breeders won’t sell to an owner that says they’re going to let them out these days - although I have to say ‘good luck with that’ because mine would literally destroy the house!

I would have a friendly word as I’m wouldn’t think they want the cats fighting either. Maybe if you can keep them out of each other’s way for a few days at least that might reset them.

Thete is a male bengal near us that terrorises all the streets cat, theres 6 cats who live in a row who are all friends and the bengal bullies all of them

I have 3 big boys all neautured and he hurts them. Its sad that we have been able to start to recognise our cats screams, try to keep ours in but they get bored and try to get out anyway

I had one of my boys in the vets a few weeks ago because the bengal had scratched his eye, he got a horrible infection.

I intensely dislike that cat,

Sorry to be clear - we have a cat flap and they can come in when they want

Sorry posted too soon

The cat still attacks ours in neighbours gardens and our back garden but has stayed away from the front since i poured water on him out the window, i dont care if that sounds tight, he attacks my cats constantly, they lived in harmony before he came along

I love cats but definitely not this one after what he’s been like with our boy! We’ve been chucking and spraying water on him but even when wet he keeps coming back! We are pretty certain he has no means of getting in their house as he is just sat out the front most of the day. Our boy likes going out in the rain but I think even he has his limits!

That's a very sad tale attila It sounds like he's bored, I think Bengals need a lot of stimulation and exercise. How well do you know your neighbour? Has he been neutered? It's pretty sad he's locked out all day, does he have a cat flap?

It's really sad that he's locked out in rain.

They are taking a massive risk anyway not giving him a way back into his own home, "good looking" cats like Bengals get stolen a lot!

Would you be able to create a secure outdoor space for your cat, a catio against the back of your house? Your cat could go out but the Bengal and other neighbouring cats couldn't get to him. I would suggest catproofing your whole garden but I think Bengals in particular are very determined and athletic so could get past catproof netting - a wire catio would be completely secure though.

We don’t know them at all which makes it all the more awkward going to speak to them! I feel awful for the Bengal because it makes me feel sad that he’s out there in the cold. We have a lot of hedgerows and trees around us so he does have a bit of entertainment . Our boy has taken to going out at night and just in our back garden which has so far been a Bengal free zone (he just weirdly has an attraction to our front window and front garden!)

I feel awful for the Bengal because it makes me feel sad he's out there in the cold

I agree. I think it's quite irresponsible and thoughtless of them. Maybe he isn't neutered. I think the best thing to do is try to talk to them. I feel sorry for him.

We've got a similar situation with a locked-out-every-day part-Bengal, and we've tried the sonic cat repellent things, rubber cat spikes, water pistols, a super soaker, shouting (which the owners have heard, so they know) and deranged chasing a là Phoebe Buffay.

My own two cats are elderly neutered females and don't need this stress in their lives all day every day. All they want to do is potter on the bit of patio outside the back door and they can't even do this. They're on Zylkene for their nerves ffs.

DP is going to build some cat repellent rollers for the tops of my fencing, he reckons.

The part-Bengal also seems to be carrying fleas. Which is nice.

Autumn

That's awful. It sounds like neglect on behalf of the Bengal's owner. It must be cold for him to be out all day. Why get a pet if you can't be bothered to look after it? Very poor behaviour

By the way, what is Zylkene?

@BovaryX Zylkene is a milk protein (comes as powder in a capsule) that acts as a kind of tranquilizer in cats - my vet prescribed it as one of the cats was incredibly stressed and kept getting cat cystitis, bless her.

I found a place to buy in bulk online but it's still 40p per capsule.

I've just had to chase the Bengal out of the garden, again. We can't ever leave our patio door ajar or kitchen window open unsupervised as it comes in looking for food and terrorises my cats. DP caught it licking fat balls in our apple tree last weekend. I've seen it try to eat seed off our bird table (which we no longer use as it's not safe for the garden birds). Yet it (the Bengal) is not underweight. This isn't starvation, or I'd intervene. It just seems to be a young, bored, lonely cat.

Thanks for the info about Zlylkene, that sounds like something I could try for mine. I feel really sorry for the Bengal. Are they feeding him? Do you know them? Just awful way to treat a cat, sounds like neglect

Oh Autumn that sounds very stressful for your kitties . We too don’t want this level of stress for our boy, he’s lost his morning sleeping spot due to us having to cover the window and it feels mightily unfair on him. It’s making me cross to have to go to this effort to deter someone else’s pet too. Like you I’m certain the neighbours have seen us shooing and throwing water at him.

I had a Bengal which was exactly like this. I loved him to bits but now that he is gone I will never have another!

What about weekends when they are hone? Is he still locked out then?

Yes even when they are in he’s out, we can hear him meowing outside the front door. Seems to be in their house now which I’m glad about! Poor puss

we can hear him meowing outside the front door

Attilla

They sound absolutely charming. Why did they get a cat if they are incapable of looking after him?