I just got my baby on Friday...her name is Smiggle and she's 8 weeks. I have been reading through a lot of the topics in here and have seen many posts about anything younger than 12 weeks being too young for the kittens to be away from home, so I'm a bit concerned now. I bought the kitten from the owner of a pet shop that I have been visiting for 3 years ...bought my other cat from them as well. I have discussed buying a bengal from the breeder since I saw one of her kittens in the shop over a year ago. To me it seemed that she was an experienced breeder, but I wonder why she would sell the kitten to me at 8 weeks if this is really too young? Smiggle seems to be adjusting well, she's not meowing constantly...my two youngest kids sleep with her at night

Oh boy ! Two things I have learned is one under 12 weeks is to young and you are asking for trouble and two is never buy from a pet store. Most pet stores dont "breed" cats they purchase from what is considered a back yard breeder and they only produce a large quantity of kittens for money. A real breeder produces from carefully selected cats that will carry on the bengal traits and most importantly HEALTH! I am afraid you probably got a kitten that came from unscreened parents. But you cant beat yourself up for not knowing! BUT now you know, just love and post tons of pics

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There seems to be quite a lot of kittens younger than 12 weeks for sale from what I've noticed, so I doubt you're the only one who's been caught out. My own breeder said he liked to keep the kittens for at least 4 months, or even longer (going to the other extreme here) as in the last few weeks they tend to pick up a lot of their mother's characteristics/personality and this can make for a more even tempered cat. We didn't get Storm until she was 6 months old and to be fair she was and still is a very chilled out little lady for the most part, just like her mother (who we adopted too).
Byb sellers are so risky because their motivations are different to regular breeders. Things like thorough health checks before breeding, health checking the kittens, flea and worm treatments, shots, etc... take money out of their profits and therefore the kitten you end up with may come with a whole heap of health and temperment problems, it's kind of a gamble with you footing the bill if things don't turn out too well!

It is so important to research before you buy.

Yes, 8 weeks is too young. The kitten wont have had it's second round of vaccinations (I suppose it may not have even had it's first??), and is missing out on cat socialization from its mother and siblings. Both TICA and GCCF recommend rehoming at 12 or 13 weeks. Is this kitten even registered?

Breeders do this to save money most of the time, but your cat may not be properly socialized because it did not spend the additional time necessary with it's mother and siblings to learn how to play nice, use the litter box, etc. I see that this is the case much of the time these days, but aside from the obvious, it is good to have a kitten who has completed all of his de-worming and vaccinations before he goes to a new home.

Even our boy came to us younger than he should have, but we know better now. I noticed that is must have been Dexter (and aging a bit) that taught Bauer when not to bite and all of that because we were having an issue with him playing rough with us before we brought home our other boy. Thankfully all of that is resolved but every now and then it becomes ingrained and you end up with an unfriendly kitty.

A reputable breeder will provide you with a legally binding sales contract/agreement; which protects the buyer, seller, and kitten, and provides a health guarantee on the kitten, registration papers (provided the kitten is neutered upon adoption or after proof of neutering is sent to the breeder), pedigree (normally a 5 generation pedigree), a current health certificate listing any vaccinations, worming, or medications that have been given to the kitten being sold, a receipt of your purchase, and often a kitten package which includes a sample of food/litter/toys currently being used with the kitten.

I hope you made sure to bring home with you, all of these things. We got lucky in that our breeder provided us with everything except apparently the kittens best interest in that we got him early. It's all too easy to be naive and trust that these people know what they are doing simply because they call themselves "breeders." Every once in a while, however, you run into one who isn't an ethical one, and instead is just someone who wants to make some quick cash off of exotic kitties they know people will buy on the cheap end.

Congrats on your new baby.

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