Hi all, first post!

I currently have a 6 month old bengal (brown rosetted) and he's all settled in very well, very shouty & adorable!

I went to go get another bengal kitten yesterday (silver rosetted). I have put her in a safe room however she's darted under the wardrobe and doesn't want to seem to come out at all. I got close to her this morning but I had her hiss at me! I'm a little worried that my silver one isn't going to be like my brown one as the breeder we went to get her from yesterday had the mother still with the kittens at 16 weeks old and the kittens were running away from us.

Just worries me as the brown one was out of his cage running around and playing with us.

It all depends on how much they where handled by the breeder as well as how friendly the mother is etc as the kittens usually learn from watching mum. Tbh considering the kittens where all running away from you I'm surprised it didn't ring some alarm bells that she probably hadn't been handled much if at all.

It's very common for a Bengal kitten to be very scared in a new environment and it can take time, you where very lucky that your first one was well handled and adjusted quickly what you are experiencing now with your silver girl tends to be more common.

Get a Feliway plug in to help calm her down and I recommend sitting on the floor in the room and just talking to her, get her used to you being there, get a wand toy out (da bird) once she seems more settled and see if she will come out to play with you. Do not pick her up unless you absolutely need to, it can set you right back to square one. Let her come over to you sniff you and realise you are friendly, if she likes treats you can try tempting her with those to get her to come over to you. Remember to do everything on her terms not yours you can't rush a scared kitten. It can take weeks for a kitten to adjust and be ok in a new home it's all about perseverance and giving her time she should come around eventually. Just make sure you don't pick her up or go to grab her as she will be petrified you are a giant to her after all. Go at her pace and let her come over and sniff you and sit next to you or get on your lap if she chooses to its all a very gradual process. The main thing for now is to get her used to your voice and your presence and by sitting on the floor and making yourself smaller you seem less threatening to her.

Good luck.

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- Sarah
Arya 24/04/16 - Seal Lynx Point Rosetted Bengal
Griffith 16/04/16 - Silver Seal Lynx Point Rosetted Bengal
Mina (in my avatar)- 1999-2016 - Seal Mink Spotted Bengal (Snow) - run free at rainbow bridge

It's really not fair to get one cat that you love and then to get a second and expect her to be just like the first. She's a different cat! it's time to start learning about your new kitty and discovering her qualities rather than being hung up on pre-conceived notions and desires. That ship has sailed. All you can say about the new kitty so far is that on the worst day of her life, she is scared. I would be too! You haven't seen her at her best yet, and how she turns out from here on forward is going to be really heavily influenced by your attitude towards her and how she is treated. Now is a time for optimism, and empathy, certainly not pessimism.

From my experience, it's often the shy ones that form really really strong bonds with their empathetic humans.

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The little monsters 3

It's normal, especially there is another cat in house. I handled two cats who want to kill me at the beginning (one is abused before and one is a scared feral). Be patient and dont push them, after you feed them a few times things will get better. Since you already have a bengal, its better do it slowly and make sure the new kitten has safe place to hide and run.

All cats have different personalities. Even siblings!!! It is quite normal for a new kitten to hide and hiss when first brought into a new environment. Think about it. She was taken away from everything she had known from birth -- her mom, siblings, humans, familiar smells. Now she's in a new place with new smells and new human. Be patient -- give her time to acclimate. You are doing right with the safe room, but you need to be swapping out the scents of the cats. I think introducing a new cat is not the easiest thing in the world. At times, it can go smoothly, and other times, it goes horribly wrong. I'm hoping in your case, it all works out. But you are going to have to give it time and be patient! Never leave the two kitties unsupervised until they are best friends.