Hi Everyone,

I have a cat that may or may not be a bengal or full bengal cat. I don't have any official paperwork for him. Is there a way to find out his ancestry/ generation? The reason I ask is I am considering moving and ( as I am sure you experts are aware) many places don't allow import of a Bengal unless it is a certain distance away from it's wild ancestor. No matter what he is staying with me, so If I can't move so be it.

If anyone has any advice for me I would greatly appreciate it!

Where did you get him? Obviously the person that bred him should in theory be the best person to ask, but if you acquired the cat from a shelter or rehoming this might be a dead end. There is also bengalpedigrees.com, but your cat does not sound like a pedigree. You would need the registered names of the parents/grandparents/etc for this website to be useful to you at any rate.

How much does this cat actually look like a bengal?

Where did you get your cat from? Can you post any pictures? If you don't have any papers for him why do you think he is a Bengal at all? Where are you located, and where are you thinking of moving to?

Early Generation Bengals (F1-F3) are very rare on not usually easy to come by unless you purposely buy one from a breeder (generally for around $1000-$4000 depending on the F#). And there are very few breeders who breed EG Bengals, most breeders only focus on the later generations (F4 and later is referred to as SBT - Stud Book Tradition. And this is what the Bengal breed technically is. EG cats are not domestic "Bengals" they are hybrids.) I'd be extremely surprised if you actually had an EG Bengal and didn't know it for sure already... I'd actually even be surprised if you had a 'regular' SBT Bengal at all. Most people who have cats that "look like Bengals" but don't have registration papers turn out to be just tabby cats of unknown origin with some spots or a marbling pattern. Spots or a marble pattern does not instantly mean "Bengal", as many other breeds and types of cats can have these traits too. The only sure way that you can know if your cat is a Bengal, and what generation it is, is if you purchase it from a reputable breeder and have registration papers proving the cat's pedigree. Otherwise it's really anyone's guess.

For reference - in my signature picture, Linux is an F1 Bengal and Loki is a much later generation Bengal (SBT).

If you're worried about the legality of your cat when you move to a new home... don't be. You'd absolutely know if you had an early generation Bengal, and you'd likely know even if you had a later generation Bengal. There should be no issues for you.

If you want more of opinions from the board on whether or not your cat is a Bengal you'd need to post pictures, but there's no way to know for sure.

I will work on posting some pics right now.( files are too big) Thank You for responses so far. At this point either Hawaii or maybe New Zealand. I don't wanna get to Hawaii and get sent right back. He was a gift from my man's sister who we have no and will have no contact with. A 4,000 cat is not out of the realm of possibility.

How do they know if he is bengal or not do they DNA test?

Others might disagree but I would say you have a Bengal or a Bengal cross! More so Bengal than not! Although I would have to say I don't think it is an early generation Bengal so you shouldn't have problems with moving! Where do you plan to move?

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I can not ask her because we do not have contact with her. Think of it like the Hatfields and McCoys , oil and water , etc. etc. =)

He is a talker, loves to knock things over, climb high, play rough, plays in water, follows us around like a dog and gives kisses like nobody's business.


What I really want to know is can he be genetically tested somewhere to determine just how much "wild" ancestry he has or does not have. I was hoping someone may be able to shed light on that or share any knowledge on that process. Would I go through quarantine in say, Hawaii and they would take one look at him and say no way he looks like a Bengal?

Maybe a better question would be how do they determine if he is or isn't ?

I think the onus is on you to prove that he isn't a bengal or EG when it comes to importing into strict areas. If you cannot prove he is legally allowed to stay then he will be turned away, or even destroyed.

This has come up on several breeder forums I am on. An Egyptian Mau was turned away from somewhere because the people thought it was a Bengal and the owner had not taken their registration papers with them.

Sorry.

There is no real way to prove it without papers I believe.

I cannot really understand how this person has given you a cat but you have and will not have any contact with them???

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Lollo

Here is the deal with Mango:
He is about 7 or 8 years old. Mango was a gift at xmas time to my boyfriend from his sister. A few years ago there was a very big falling out between them. Therefore EVEN if we sucked it up and asked in all likely-hood we would not receive the information we are seeking. Hopefully that further explains why we can not go with the logical/easiest option because in reality it isn't.

If there is a test that can be done to prove or disprove his heritage that would be well worth the $ to go about it that way.

I don't think there is such test.

He looks Bengal to me so your boyfriends sister gave you an expensive gift.

You either take a risk, move somewhere without restriction, or 'suck it up'.....

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Lollo

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Lollo