Meet Tai Chi. He is a rescue cat about 2 years old who moved into my house about a week ago, so I don't know much about his back story. I've had hm for a week and I am working on slowly introducing him to my 15 year old Burmese. I've had Burmese for 25 years so Bengal is all new to me.

I suspect Tai Chi is a cross with something else. He seems typical Bengal (from what I have read), sweet, affectionate to everyone and very laid back ('ll add a couple of pictures below)

So far the only negative is climbing bookshelves and I have many bookshelves. There would be no problem if he ran on top of the Tansu shelves as the Burmese do instead of trying to climb up knocking books and other valuables down. So far he does not know his new name and does not like/eat treats (I've tried many) so I am not being very effective at distracting him when he does something he shouldn't! This is one reason I have joined the forum here to learn more so I can do a better job of integrating the new member of our family.

He looks like a bengal to me and bengals love to climb and knock everything off that's in their way! Everything is still brand new for both of you, so give it some time. He will settle in. The first thing cats do is explore everything. As long as he has a cat tree and lots of toys, he should be fine. He's a beautiful kitty! Congratulations.

He is without a doubt 100% bengal! Two things with bengals that you will learn quickly. 1. They go where they want to when they want to. 2 valuable knick knacks and any "pretty" things on shelves will have to be put away or secured. My cats have always knocked everything over, even things I didn't think they could get to. Bengals love to climb and explore. With him being new to your home he will probably explore for a few more weeks and then settle into a routine. If there is a certain place you would rather him be on your shelves, make it more enticing to him. Place a bed up there for him or a cuddly blanket. As far as treats go, my girl will not eat any treat made for a cat. I keep a bag of shredded boiled chicken for her in the fridge and that's all she will have as a treat. Or canned tuna but it's VERY rare that she gets that.
Congrats on your boy and good for you for taking him in. He is a beautiful cat and I'm sure you will be wrapped around his paw in no time ;)

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You won't be able to simply suppress the urge to climb, in fact allowing him to climb and have lots of vertical space will help him be a much happier and fitter pet, and is also key to preventing/solving many potential behavioral problems. I actually put cat beds on the tops of certain bookcases to encourage them up there. And by adding cat shelving and cat trees in strategic locations you give your Bengal acceptable ways to get up there and explore. I think the way to look at it is: he's going to climb up high on things one way or another, you can either let him find his own things to climb and ways to get up there, some of which may be somewhat dangerous for him or tough on things you care about, or you can provide him with approved and very attractive things to climb. I suspect once you do that, your Burmese may surprise you by showing a keen interest in climbing as well.

As far as treats go, I agree with bkilgore, try treats that are 100% meat. I actually get them a little bag of deli meat now when I go grocery shopping. They also get occasional freeze dried meat treats. Occasionally I've given then things like raw necks/wings/feet as snacks.

Congrats and welcome tai chi definitely looks very bengally to me, and is certainly a handsome fellow.

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The little monsters 3

He is just beautiful! Great job rescuing him!

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Dallas, TX USA
Diesel - snow Bengal born 09/01/2013 adopted Feb 2014
Tuck, Chloe, Buddy, Lewis & Tia - rescue kitties
Clyde, Bleu & Coal - Great Danes

Thanks all for your comments and encouragement and advice. We've done some modifications to our Tansu book shelves already and made most of them very available (meaning removed a lot of stuff) and just blocked one section; which will be a bit of a problem for our old Burmese who is also a great climber but at 6 lbs not a liability! We will build a cat pole with rope and a private platform on top as someone recommended (with a great image) on this forum. Ours can be 12' off the floor... that should be high enough!

In many ways the characteristic of Tai Chi is quite like the Burmese we've had; and we've had 5 with only one left with us. Right now we are 10 days into the introduction process: Bengal~Burmese, no traumatic incidents but they have not been together without a barrier yet. We are taking it very slowly. It looks like Tai Chi wants to make friends, and old Burmese is still not ready yet, at present day 10 he is ignoring the existence of another cat! I am following the intro process quite closely to that in the book "The Cat Whisperer." Does anyone here have any advice about bringing a Bengal into a home with another cat?

What about going outside? Obvious that Tai Chi was an outside cat..... and our lifestyle other than the winter months makes it impossible to have inside only cats. Any advice on this? We live in a very rural area, wooded and open and each property consists of several acres in our neighborhood. We have lots of Deer, Rabbits and Eagles and what is good no Wolves or Coyotes.

Maybe I should not be asking questions in this section however the warm response already from you was amazing!

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New to Bengal with Tai Chi
Burmese cats for 25 years
West Coast USA

re: eagles....I live in Utah. Eagles and other raptors here can and do pick up cats, much like they would a rabbit.

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~ Kyenta

Thanks Kyenta (I missed your post)

Our Burmese (all five of them) always sensed the eagles and headed under something ~ we have a nest next door but the eagles fish for Salmon off the bluff and the rabbits in the field on the other side of us (to the eagles nest). I am hoping Tai Chi will have the same situational awareness our Burmese always have and learn to come when we call him inside (like the Burmese do) LOL ~ Since on account of our lifestyle and the way our house is, we can't deny outside to our pets so we have to live with " if its your time it's your time!"

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New to Bengal with Tai Chi
Burmese cats for 25 years
West Coast USA

Please don't live with the motto "If it's your time, it's your time." That is so not the case! There are many safe options for your cats to enjoy the outdoors. Bengals are easily leash trained so they can walk safely under your supervision. There are many creative cat enclosures or cat walks that allow your kitty to be outdoors with very little supervision and be happy just be outside. Your bengal boy may roam far and wide eventually. Even though you may not have wolves or coyotes, there may be other cats to tangle with that could leave yours injured and unable to return home. Dogs can also kill cats. Cats love the outdoors and the fresh air. The bengal I got less than 2 years ago was allowed to roam free with his previous owner. Unfortunately, there were many vicious cat fights with trips to the vet for infected areas -- and I even took him to the vet once when the owner was out of town. Thankfully, the neighbor gave Raiden to me and he is not allowed outside without me. He has a huge enclosure on the deck that he can access 24/7 and be safe from neighbor cats who love to visit and antagonize him. While there are owners who allow their bengals to roam free, there are many others who do not -- many have a lot of $$$ invested in their bengal. I do not, but that doesn't matter. I want to make sure Raiden is safe and sound and have provided him with the means to make sure that happens. Just surf the web on cat enclosures or cat walks. They can be built very inexpensively or even just enclosing a garden area. There are so many options out there and your kitties will be safe and keep most of their nine lives! Raiden has lost five of his already!

Cat proof your fence , not expensive or difficult if you do it yourself. Cats be safe.
Re eagles - I would be worried.
I almost had a near encounter with the owl, that was scary, even though Google says owls unlikely do pick up cats

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The little monsters 3