Hey guys,

My name is Tyson. I'm new here - my wife and I just picked up the cutest little bengal kitten in the whole wide world. Her name is Zara. We love her dearly, and are so blessed to have her in our home.

I just had a quick question for you guys. Zara is a ball of energy. And i'm not talking like a golf ball, i'm talking more basketball and bowling ball size of energy. She is always running all over the place, jumping up on top of counter tops, wrestling with toys, and going crazy literally 98% of the time.

My wife and I are gone from about 8-5, and then try and play with her as much as possible when we get home. I know this behavior is normal, but is there any way to help her mellow out a bit? She has a ton of toys. No cat tree yet, (which will probably come soon), and i'm also wondering if we need to get another cat for her to play with?

It is physically impossible to cuddle with, or even pet Zara for more than 5 seconds at a time because she will not stand still. If anyone has any suggestions as to what we should do to help mellow her out, whether that be get another kitten or what not, I would be eternally grateful for your help.

Excited to meet and interact with all of you awesome people on the forum!

Here is a photo of Zara :)

Tyson

Once again, Tyson, your picture did not come through. As I said in my post in the Introduction forum, check the Gallery part of the forum for info on how to post pictures.

As for your energy problem with Zara. You have a bengal! And a bengal kitten at that! Bengals are high energy. You will be hard-pressed to ever keep up with one. I'm sure she sleeps a lot while you're gone and is ready for playtime when you get home.

You are like so many others who get a bengal kitten and then realize they can't keep up with the kitty and ask "should we get a playmate for our kitty?" If you read through the forum, you will find many topics where this has been a problem. Getting two kitties together (that are not siblings from the same litter) can be extremely difficult and hair-raising. We are dealing now with someone who was desperate -- male kitten beating up a new female kitten. Ready to give up on the situation -- they've been through a couple of weeks of stress in trying to introduce the two cats and it wasn't going well. It's going better, but I can only imagine what they have gone through.

Zara won't be a kitten forever, but she will never lose her energy. Adopting another bengal means TWO zoomers in your home, double the food, multiple litter boxes, double the vet bills. Many people here have two or more bengals. It's not always an easy adjustment and one has to have the time and patience for this to work since there is a specific introduction process that does not involve putting the two cats together on day 1.

I suggest you enjoy Zara and her antics. Play with her a lot -- a LOT! Just the fact that she zooms all over means she's settled in and happy. Many bengals do not like to be held or snuggled with. It totally depends on how the breeder treats the kittens and socializes them, but Zara may surprise you.

Read up on the bengal breed to understand more about your kitty and enjoy Zara! Bengals are great kitties.

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The little monsters 3

Ah there she is... it looks like with "Imagur" you have to click on "Get embed codes" and then paste the "email" embed code that they give you into here for it to work

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The little monsters 3

OMG, Zara is stunning!!!! Absolutely adorable. Brian, you have several kitties and they all live happily together. That's usually how it ends up, but in the beginning, it can be a nightmare to some households. I think two bengal kittens can be wonderful, but many owners do not want to take the time for the safe room and proper introductions which can take days, weeks, months. If one were to get a second cat, now is the time to do it while they are still extremely young. And I'm sure watching the two kittens is better than anything you can find on the TV.

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The little monsters 3

AHH!

Thank you so much for all of the tips and advice. I'm glad to hear she is absolutely normal. I have been making it a priority to make sure we get out DaBird and play with her a lot when we get home.

At this point in our lives, I would love to get an additional kitty but I just don't think it is too fiscally responsible for us. I am putting both my wife and I through school, and i'm not sure i'm up to the financial challenge of bringing a second cat into our home right now. I'm sure she would love to have a playmate while we are at work, but I don't know if that is the right thing for us right now.

However, I feel bad leaving her at home alone all day. I'm wondering if I should just make it work and get another one?

I will be sure to get some cat trees for her! I know this will help keep her more entertained during the day. I have a few picked out from reading on the forums that I like, and will get those coming as soon as possible.

Anyway, you guys are great. Thank you so much for the help, and for fixing my photo :)

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The little monsters 3

If you have any doubts about adding another bengal kitten to your household, then don't do it! Brian is correct. It's easier to integrate two kittens than two adult cats. You have a short window. Just don't be overly concerned that Zara is bored! She may sleep a good portion of the day. Find some interactive toys she can play with by herself. They aren't expensive. Treat balls are nice and give the kitty something to work at. Do not put yourself in a financial bind to do this.

I first thought about maybe a free moggie kitten, but energy levels of the two need to be the same and while moggie kittens are high energy, they tend to slow down as an adult. You want a buddy who can keep up with Zara as she will be heck on wheels for many, many years. Bengals are about the only ones who can keep up the energy pace with bengals.

Best of luck with your studies!

But if you want to add another kitten, now is the best time to do it! Kittens 99% of the time accept another kitten quickly and become the best of friends. We got a second kitten (Margay) when Duma was 8 months old, and we are so glad that we did!

I mean don't get my wrong, I would love another one. I just can't really afford it. I'm 25 years old and a senior in college, putting my wife through school as well.

My primary concern was boredom. I didn't want her to die from bordeom while we are at school during the day. If she takes naps, and plays with her toys and messes around on her cat tree, i'll be able to sleep at night knowing she isn't going insane. If that makes sense.

Zara will not go insane, trust me. She is not the only kitten, bengal or otherwise, to be by herself for several hours each day. You may come home and find things knocked over or moved from their usual place so either confine her to a smaller area or cat proof everything. If you value a ceramic lamp, you might want to stow it away. Have toys for her to play with, a cat tree that she can enjoy. Spend time playing with her in the morning and again in the evening. She will survive and you shouldn't have to worry about her. The most important thing is that you and your wife get your higher education and then you can afford a bunch of bengal cats.

If you do not think it is a fiscally wise decision to get a second cat, then don't get one! Even if the second cat is free, it's not free. If Zara got sick could you afford an emergency vet bill? Now multiply that. That's just "what if" but also food, litter, annual shots, etc. are now double what you pay now.The best thing you can do for Zara is to play with her when you can. I have a GoCat bee toy that my bengal kitten LOVES. My husband is also going to build a floor to ceiling cat climbing pole. To put things into some perspective, I have a 3 year old son, and an adult Oriental cat (age 2) our older cat is young and very playful but she is no match to our 8 week old bengal kitten. Bengals just have a lot of energy. As I type this he is climbing up my back and batting at my ponytail, even though we played a few minutes ago.

Cleaning the litterbox is always an event because he is constantly chasing the broom while I try to sweep. The kitten is pretty fearless and even jumped into the sink when I was washing dishes. I was prepared for it and even though I'm a stay at home mom and always with him to give him attention, he is always a ball of energy. A really cute one at that. So I can tell you that another kitten would probably not make much of a difference in Zara's energy level. Sure she will have a buddy, but if you can't afford it then don't try and make it work for entertainment purposes, because you never know if something could happen and if they were both to fall ill it will get very expensive.

Have you heard of star chasers? They are a little round track with a ball that cats can spin around, our kitten loves that thing. Also cat trees are a must. I think our kitten spends more time climbing the tree than playing with our other cat. Of course when Zara is older you can take her on a lead and bring her outdoors for fun too!

I need to check out the star chasers. Raiden doesn't enjoy interactive toys that he can play with by himself. He comes crying to me, I follow him into the bedroom, he sits himself down on the carpet and waits for me to bring out the toys to play with him. I worked the first two years we had him and he was alone for 9-1/2 hours a day. No problem at all. Of course, he's a much older cat.

My bengal kitten sleeps when I'm out which means she us soooo ready for nonsense when we get in! Beautiful kitten and love the name !