I've never really had a schedule since I adopted my bengal 3 years ago (she's 3 now) because I've been working at a restaurant and my schedule is never the same which makes it impossible to set up routine play time. She used to be very playful as a kitten of course, but now she could care less about being playful. I used to force myself to play with her even if it was for 15 minutes when I got home from long days but between seasonal depression and other issues I was having with my social/family life having a lap cat was all I needed for the last six months to a year. Recently she's been misbehaving which made me realize she has been under-stimulated for too long.

She doesn't have a lot of stimulation during the day between me being out a lot (at work mostly), and my roommate really wanting nothing to do with her (I'm changing living situations partly because of that). My concern is I'll be living on my own in a new apartment soon (hooray!) and I'm afraid things will get even worse. Recently I've tried very hard at greeting her at the door and calling her name every time I come home and I'm trying to incorporate some play time with affection when I come home. Most of the time she's non-plussed. She's kind of a diva that way, and only wants attention when she's crying for it at the top of her lungs. Recently I've tried to bring out toys and call her name playfully when she cries for attention but she doesn't seem to want to play even when she's crying for attention.

Through reading these forums I know bengals are supposed to be very playful and I'm concerned that she feels neglected (and rightfully so) but I don't know what to do to correct the problem. I would incorporate treats into the play time but she's currently on a vet formulated diet of limited ingredients (peas, venison, and soy) to see if she has a food allergy.

I'm at a loss right now and any advice would be helpful, thank you!

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The little monsters 3

Bengals are usually playful -- in fact cats, in general, are playful up to the time they get really old. You may want to try something different in a toy. Mine gets bored easily and prefers to chase the end of a wand toy swishing around on the carpet. Yesterday, nothing pleased him, so I brought out the baby blanket and swished the wand underneath it and he went crazy for a while. He ended up under the blanket and just laid there (I'm going to have to make him a tent). Your kitty may need some new toys or toys with catnip -- or fresh catnip. Thankfully, toys are not that expensive, but it's a toss up as to whether the cat will enjoy them.

It's great you're trying to play with her. Continue that effort. Play is important to a kitty. As long as she's eating right, using the litter box, has energy, fur looks super shiny, this may be just a phase.

Also know that when you move, your kitty may experience a change in behavior due to the new environment and that could change everything. Good luck with the move and hope you get your girl playing again.

I think getting some new toys was a good idea. I'm going to get new toys when I'm done writing this post.

She knows she's not supposed to be on top of the counter tops and the kitchen table but recently I find her on those surfaces a lot even though I only scold her when she gets up there. She gets into things she ordinarily doesn't, too. I think just looking for something to do. She's using the litter box just fine, and everything looks like it's coming out well.

I did take her to the vet yesterday because of her seasonal allergies. She gets gunkies (dark wax) in her ears and in the last couple weeks she's had this spot on her head that gets scabbed over. It doesn't seem to bother her at all, but they said she's under her weight from last time. She was at 5.25 lbs yesterday whereas she was at 6 lbs last time at the vet (full grown at 6 lbs). I catch her stress eating from time to time even though she has the food out at all times. For example, we'll be playing for 15 seconds and then she goes straight to the food bowl and kinda zones out and gets side tracked from playing.

Her fur looks good, by the way. She is continuing to clean herself normally and I've been encouraging this with some brushing and lots of petting when I can.

Wow, 5lbs and losing 10% of her body weight since last time. That's a pretty big red flag. I've never heard of an adult bengal being below, say, 8-9lbs. Mine are both over 10.

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The little monsters 3

Yeah, it's a pretty big difference, almost a full pound, but I'm leaving the food out for her so she can snack whenever she wants.

Just got the toys. She's pretty lethargic now as it's the middle of the day and when I tried to play with her she wasn't really in the mood. Another part of it is I haven't been able to clicker train her because I can't feed her store bought treats. She probably needs some of that stimulation from the clicker training.

Any recommendations on hypoallergenic treats or ideas for resources on how to make my own? She's eating Royal Canin, Veterinary Diet (Venison/Peas/Soy currently). It's specially formulated to eliminate ingredients from her diet to figure out if she has a food allergy. So far it's been working, but I tried experimenting with a treat from a specialty pet store and it set back her recovery a little (re-aggravated the allergy).

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The little monsters 3

I like the idea about the meat, a lot. Thank you!

In fact, I just bought some chicken for dinner tomorrow and I think I'll boil some for Lily-bear. (Maybe there aren't enough calories in the new food?) Finding a suitable alternative to store bought treats has perplexed me for a while now but using some boiled chicken should work really well. I could hold little bits of it in my hand without it getting too messy! I'll have some feedback in a day or two!

PS. I'm worried about her too, brianj12!

It does sound like there is something else going on here that is causing the kitty to become lethargic! I don't know if your vet ran any tests, but they probably should have. Would the allergy medication have this affect? I can understand a cat just deciding to lay down and rest, but that's usually after play time. You should not let this continue on for much longer as it could be something more serious.

As for the weight loss ... last time I took Raiden to the vet, they tried to tell me he'd lost a pound. Their scale was funky and they had him at 12.5 pounds. I brought him home and put him on my scale and he was 13.5 pounds, which is right around where he had been for over a year as I track his weight throughout the year. Still, yours is just a little thing and needs to be putting on weight, not losing it. Trying a different diet could help, but introduce it slowly so it doesn't upset the stomach and digestive system.

I realized after I typed my earlier post that chicken might be what she is allergic to so I'll be skipping the chicken treats.

Someone had mentioned these to me (http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/p ... catid=9911). I'm gonna try these after I get her ears back under control with the Momentamax the vet prescribed last time.

The change in diet could very well be what caused her to lose some weight. I've been warned in the past to not feed her salmon because it's so high in fat, but maybe boiling some salmon and feeding it to her as a wet food snack would help her gain weight. Expensive, but I'd be willing to try it.

I also don't know how I would weigh her at home to verify the scale at the vet. Most home scales don't weigh things less than a certain weight and she'd be well under that threshold. I could maybe take her to my local pet store and see if they have a scale.



Thank you everybody for all the thoughtful replies!

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The little monsters 3

Weigh yourself while holding her, then weigh yourself alone and subtract that from the first weight. If you've got a digital scale it should come out pretty accurate.

I hope you can get her feeling better soon.

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Dallas, TX USA
Diesel - snow Bengal born 09/01/2013 adopted Feb 2014
Tuck, Chloe, Buddy, Lewis & Tia - rescue kitties
Clyde, Bleu & Coal - Great Danes

Raiden wouldn't sit still on a scale, so I weigh myself, then pick him up and weigh us both and subtract my weight. I don't weigh him but about every two months. Food allergies can happen with cats as well. Mine won't touch anything fishy! So, he's limited to chicken, turkey and beef. If you're trying to put some weight on her, you've got to make sure she eats the food that she likes.

The special vet food (venison, peas, soy) is left out for her at all times during the day so I'm sure she's never left wanting and I'm good about refilling it when it's empty.

Also, I don't even have a scale to weigh myself! The next time I go to the pet store I'll bring her with me for a weigh.

Maybe some of you can help me compare her new food to what you're feeding your cats. It's Royal Canin "Veterinary Diet" and it says on the package that there are "3447 kcal ME/kg" and "324 kcal ME/cup". What I would like to see is if these calorie counts are low or high as compared to what else is out there. I did a couple google searches and it seems that regardless of the protein source most calorie counts come for the different foods come out the same, but I'm wondering if maybe this special science diet is formulated differently? She's been on it for about two months now.

Feedback would be great, thank you.

PS: She LOVES "da-bird". Every time I get it out she perks up immediately and she'll chase that thing around the house for what seems like forever, ha. Then, after she "kills" it and paws it to the ground, she'll drag it to a corner and roll around tearing at it. It's great!