Hi All,

My girlfriend and I made an account here, because we are nearing the time to pick our new kitten, Pixel, up! We're obviously very excited.

Some background: Girlfriend has had ample experience with animals, but this will be our first Bengal. We are nearing the completion of the construction of our new home. For the time being, the home will be a single pet household and Pixel will be able to command the house! But we'd like to eventually introduce another Bengal once we get acquainted with Pixel.

We are planning on building some cat trees and furniture/shelves for her to climb on and we both work early morning to early afternoon hours so lots of time to play after work. My only concern is the porch that we have. The porch will eventually be screened in (we live in Florida, it's a requirement to keep the wildlife (read: snakes) out!) However, after visiting the breeder and seeing just how agile and eager to climb they are, I'm worried Pixel may tear through the screen. What are your thoughts on this? We like the idea of letting her onto the porch which gives her fresh air, but also a safe environment, but don't want her to tear through the screen and escape!

Thanks for any guidance you can provide! Lots of pictures as soon as we get her!

Welcome to the forum and congratulations on your upcoming arrival. Bengals are an adventure! As you've read, they love to climb, so cat trees or climbing shelves are a must. I've lived in Florida with cats and the only thing they ever did was try to climb up the screening and would tear or stretch the little squares. Of course, that was decades ago and the screening may be even more flimsy now. Raiden has an enclosure i we used galvanized wire fencing to enclose it. He cannot bend the wiring at all. However, it does let in the wildlife, like baby squirrels and birds, even though we used smaller squared wiring around the bottom.

If you have a happy, entertained kitty, they may not want to get out of the enclosure. The other thing you can do is train the kitty to walk on a harness and leash and that way you can all enjoy the outdoors together. Florida is the Sunshine state and it can get quite warm out, but Raiden loves his daily walks.

It sounds like a valid concern re: the patio, although without seeing/knowing the material it is difficult to say.

I would just add that I would definitely go ahead and get/make a tree or two before the kitten gets there if you can, because that is something that she will enjoy right from the start. The taller and sturdier the better.

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The little monsters 3

I have a screened in patio and also live in Florida. The patio is a wonderful space for my cats. My last cat was old and too timid to spend much time out there. I don't think she could see the screens and was afraid the ducks, squirrels and heron could access her.

My two young SLP love the patio. They live to spend time out there every day. Neither one seems to want to escape the enclosure. There is a portion under the roof line so they can be out there rain or shine and have plenty of shade no matter what time of day it is. If a landscaper shows up they run inside so I think they feel safe out there and prefer the protection the enclosure offers. One time a screen ripped at the bottom either from age or a weed wacker. Surprisingly Grace escaped before I could get it repaired. I didn't think she could fit through the opening or would want to but curiosity got the better of her. It was a stressful few minutes as she wanted to get back in but became irrational and ran from me and the open door and bounced against the screens instead :(

Neither one climbs the screens, but your cats might be different. Mine chase lizards and watch the birdlife on the lake in the back yard. I would say you just need to make sure the screens are secure and fix them if one of them rips. I have a mixture of older original and new screens out there. The new ones are pretty sturdy. The older ones ripped when we had a freak hail storm a couple of years ago and I had to replace about half the original screens. My neighbor had all new screens and not one of them broke from the hail. It just goes to show you that age effects the strength of the screen.

I think kittens would be more prone to climbing up the screening than an older kitty. I think if you can put a cat tree out there (hopefully, the area is covered), that might help. And you'll need a cat tree or two inside the home as well. If your kitten wants to climb, then you could place plastic panels at the bottom of the screening It's quite possible if your kitten spots wildlife outside the porch, it may try to climb just to get to it. You've got to keep an eye on the little one to see how she behaves out there.

Thank you all so much for the great replies! As far as trees go, we plan on building a few cat trees using IKEA bookshelves as the base, and modify out from there.

I suppose we can just keep an eye on her, and if it becomes a problem we can try to correct the behavior, or deter it using more stimuli on the porch.

We're really quite excited for this adventure! We'll have to keep an eye on her to begin, as we'll all be learning the quirks of the new home together. :)

I'm sure in the beginning you will follow the kitty everywhere (or vice versa). Bengals are truly an adventure. There is never a dull moment around the house. I think it's exciting to create your own cat tree. Just think of all the love that you've put into it. And kitties aren't that particular. As long as you have several platforms for resting and sisal scratching posts, you'll be fine. I know you can get a lot of ideas online.