Hello everyone. First time Bengal owner here. We recently adopted a silver Bengal who was about 10 months old. She’s amazing & we love her so much. We have noticed that when she tries to jump up on the bed or couch she seems to struggle. It’s almost like she’s not able to jump? She has to use her claws to help herself up almost each time. She is very petite too if that makes a difference. Possible a runt? Not sure. Don’t know any history of her parents. I do know her brother is much larger than her though. From what I’ve tried researching bengals are supposed to be able to jump very high pretty seemlessly. Has anyone come across an issue like this before? Just thought I’d check here to see if it was by chance a possible normal thing for some bengals before taking her to the vet. Thank you in advance!

Welcome to our forum. Whenever one adopts a new kitty, it should be taken to the vet for a checkup. It will start a medical chart on your kitty. That being said ... yes, most bengals can "leap tall buildings in a single bound." And there are bengals who are simply not very agile. Mine about tumbles off the back of the couch that is 5" wide. I'm not sure how high you think your kitty should jump. Mine uses the scratching posts to get up on his cat tree.

There could be a couple of things going on. First, eyesight! A vet would check to make sure the eyes are dilating properly. Congenital cataracts are common in some bengals. Second, something neurological. However, that usually appears in other areas such as simply walking.

I truly don't know if this is something serious, but just a trip to the vet for a checkup might relieve your concerns.

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The little monsters 3

Have you ever tried to visit a vet to check if your cat is healthy and fit enough?

Update: Took her to the vet & there isn’t anything the vet could see on the outside to be concerned about. She examined her & checked her mobility & she seems great. Very healthy all around. Unless the issue changes or gets worse we can try & do X-rays next but the vet seemed very confident that’s not an issue. I’ll do another update if something changes. Thank you all again.

Just as some children have are fearless, others have certain fears. This may be what is in your baby. As long as she is healthy, that is all that matters. If you were planning to train her to jump through hoops, that may be different. Unfortunately, I am a clumsy human being and I'm sure there are clumsy cats as well. LOL

I dunno, I hate to say it but I am skeptical. It sounds like she has very little strength in her legs. I think most bengals can high jump at least 5'-6' with no problem at that age. How does she do running? Is she sprinting around the house all the time like you'd expect a 10 month old bengal to? If you pull out a bird toy and have the bird fly by her, does she jump for it?

There have been a number of members over the last few years who have had bengals with various cases of lameness, often in the hind legs, who have been able to treat that, or at least get a good diagnosis for it. I would explore it further if it were me. Too early to give up and just accept it.

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So this is interesting as my 1 year old will jump 5’ high just chasing a toy but then other times she will jump onto her cat tree which is 3 feet off the ground (first bed) and she will completely miss it and fall on her back not her feet like I’m used to with cats?! She is not graceful and seems very clumsy at times but then is powerful other days. I believe your baby is fine and Bengals can be clumsy at times.

ON A SIDE NOTE; does anybody have an issue with their Bengals leaping at your face. We can play and have fun but then she gets so violent and will dive atmy face and bite me. Her pupils dilate 100% and it is the freakiest thing I have ever encountered with a pet?! Does anybody have this issue. When I yell NO and get her down she doesn’t listen and I have to walk away and stop talking to her until this “possessed” behavior goes away after about 30 minutes?! It’s somewhat scary and her actions actually scare me.

My bengal will attack at my legs when we are playing hard. But, I never have my face down there near him. I am standing with the wand toy. He never has his claws out for some reason.

No my Bengal doesn't attack my face.

When he wants to let me know he wants more play, he sometimes wraps his jaw around my wrist or elbow, but very, very gently. When he is hungry in the morning and is annoyed that I won't wake up to feed him NOW he bites my cheek, but again very gently.

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My Bengal lost his ability to jump and he was diagnosed with Bengal polyneuropathy. He is making a great come back.

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The little monsters 3