Tell me about Bengal cats

[MsMiaWallace]

I really want one.
I'm currently researching the breed but would love to hear from owners!

Good points & bad!

I adore cats but I would have a sphinx cat before I would ever entertain owning a Bengal. The ones I have come across have been very beautiful but totally aresholian. To the Nth degree.

We have a neighbouring Bengal. Lovely looking cat but an absolute garden-invading twat…is forever causing mayhem and injuries to our three who are shit scared of it. We chase the bugger off when we see him but he’s persistent.

My advice? Don’t buy a pet for looks if it’s not going to make a good pet.

This is an almost a perfect description of a tabby I had. I was told she was a stray but she was more feral than stray. Knew not to touch the chickens but would kill and eat whole rabbits.

We've had 2 female bengal crosses and both were brought up with dc since kittens, so incredibly fine with all kids, loud noise etc. Handle well although don't like being picked up much...better now that older though. Love to sit on laps and call loudly for their people when they want fuss. One miaows and one made a 'prrrrrrrp' call instead. One is a non-hunter and the other was ruthless. This one died recently and I don't miss the constant supply or dead or half dead animals through the cat flap. Not surprised at the goose coming through the cat flap upthread, as ours killed caught a moor hen once from the local lake. Having said that, it was unhurt (they like to play with them first - bastards) so I just scooped it up and took it back to the lake. Wouldn't have another cat now to be honest, as I like our wildlife to stay intact too much now. Our last girl is 15 and is a happy non-killer, which suits us just fine.

Caught a moor hen, not killed.

I've been told my little (3.5kg but looks smaller, very skinny but all muscle) one year old cat could be part bengal, his fur is very soft, lovely markings, extremely loud purring, demands affection, more intelligent than any other cat I've had. He is bonded to my three year old cat but has always been top cat, since he was a kitten. They have brought in rats, pigeon chicks, a live magpie, but always together so I don't know which cat it is.

We had 2 Bengals, mother and son aged 2 and 6 months. Mother was feisty but settled quickly and would come when she was called. Managed to escape a couple of times but luckily didn't go far.

She was clever and could open doors. She took their water fountain apart and I'd often come home to find both cats curled up together on my computer chair watching wrestling on my PC. To this day I don't know how she managed it because I don't watch wrestling so it isn't as if she managed to knock a "favourites" button.

Sadly she had a stroke. I still maintain she'd licked the spot-on flea treatment off her son and poisoned herself.

Son was very nervous for a long time and would hide from us. Very vocal and hated going to the vet. We missed so many appointments because we just couldn't catch him. Once we got him there they loved him. Said he was a real sweetie and would purr and co-operate with anything they needed to do. As he got older he turned into a real lap cat, and the second anyone sat down he'd be there on your lap.

His favourite place was balancing on the top of the door, and as a PP said he did like to swipe with razor sharp claws.

We got kittens to replace his mother and he absolutely adored them. We'd always find one or both snuggled into him. Sadly our run of bad luck continued and we lost both kittens before they were a year old to feline leukemia. Vet said they'd probably got it from their mother. Luckily the bengal had been vaccinated against it, even though he was a house cat, and constant testing once the kittens were ill confirmed he didn't have it.

He developed diarrhea in 2020 which got worse and worse and worse despite constant trips to the vet. It would settle then come back worse. Eventually the vet diagnosed bowel cancer and he had to be PTS aged 8. 😢

YY we have a Bengal x Siamese and he is exactly as you say.

Absolutely loves hair bands too 🤣

He too can open doors and cause mayhem. He also has an annual holiday and disappears for 3 days once a year. My partner once found him walking round a park a mile away and they both walked past each other before looking back and being like ‘what are you doing here!’.

When he was younger and we moved house regularly (students) we lead trained him and would take him on all our travels. He liked that a lot but as he’s older now he’s more settled and has his patch. DP once left the door open when we were in Wales as he left for a morning walk; and he sat there on the doorstep less than a year old waiting for him to return to a house we had been in less than 24 hrs - which you can imagine for a Bengal is near impossible. Super intelligent breed.

Can have a spiteful side if you disobey him - ie, when you have to keep him indoors for whatever reason. He has sat on tables with his paw on a glass and slowly pushed it off whilst staring at you 🤣. Trashed a whole set of shelves once.

He did have a gf when he was a kitten but after that decided he didn’t like most other cats (at least the neighbouring ones I saw him interact with).

Often got into scraps and misadventures. Must have been over a grand a year on average to fix the chap up with antibiotic injections and vet visits.

High prey drive - one mouse every 11pm like clockwork. Thankfully would eat them rather than leave them to run round the house. Did have to pick up the guts every morning but thankfully he always left it in the same place.

Hes high maintenance but wouldn’t change him for the world. He is the most amazingly loving cat. Completely bonded, very caring, will go back and forth from me and me partner in bed kissing us. He’s very fair with equal love in the family. And we just had a newborn and he is so good with the babe. Absolutely respects his space and items, yet knows he’s part of the family - just a very delicate wee thing, Can’t wait for them to be friends when older.