Hi All

New to this!

My partner and i are about to become the proud owners of two Bengal kittens (2 week torturous wait!!) We have chosen a boy and a girl, litter mates. We decided to get two as we hear that's better, and as we both work we didn't want them to be alone too much. They will be coming from a litter of 7 kittens, mum and dad both live at home, they have been socialised with dogs, chickens, and lots of humans (children as well). We went to see them twice before committing, and pretty much let them choose us. They both individually came up to us, had a fuss and fell asleep in our arms We will be getting them at 10+ weeks and will be neutering them asap.

I was wondering if anyone had any advice for ensuring our kittens grow up to be well adjusted, friendly, sociable cats. I have read conflicting information on the internet about spraying and aggression…some sites seem to say that spraying and aggression is no different with Bengals from other cats, and other sites disagree.

We used to own a neutered male cat, who was absolutely no problem at all…in fact, he was a total wuss that used to let a neighbourhood cat into our house to spray…due to our experience with spraying, we are particularly keen that this doesn't happen. Additionally, i really want to avoid the male getting into any scraps with neighbourhood cats. I understand that most of it is down to unneutered cats being territorial, but is there anything else i can do in addition? We were thinking of introducing our kittens to other cats (several of my friends have some) at a young age to get them used to the idea that theres other cats around and teach them to be friendly.

Theres a lot of conflicting advice about letting Bengals out, and to be honest i am firmly of the belief that Cats of all breeds need to have opportunity to explore, i've always let my cats out and never had any issues.

Im not sure why i feel so anxious about these two, possibly it's because i got used to my old cats behaviour or maybe i've become a bit alarmed at some of the things i've read! Eitherway, and advice or tips would be very gratefully received!!

Hello and welcome to the forum!

Exciting days ahead for you - bet you can't wait...!

I have two boys. We had them from about 14 weeks old and they had already been neutered. They have never sprayed - EVER. They are over 2 years old now.

Mine also go out. Weekend just gone, Hendrix had his first fight with a new kitty on the block, who is HUGE. But in general whilst they make the noises, they are not fighters - I'm not even sure they really know how. Hendrix was in shock for the rest of the day and didn't go out again until the next morning. I have seen Hendrix run away from conflict before now, so I'm guessing he got cornered on this occasion. They've been going out for about a year and a half now.

Obviously every cat is different, and Bengals do have a bad reputation for being ultra territorial, so its hard to say how yours will be. But mine are definitely scared of a big grey cat in our vicinity (which I scare off with a water pistol) and now we have this new tom around - which I will do the same with if he comes in our garden. Jagger in particular has been staying very close to home recently and I think this is why.

But like people, they all have different personalities so its hard to say if they will be aggressively territorial until they start to go out. I have also read about Bengals being more aggressive than other breeds, but my two definitely don't fit that mould!!

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Clare
Hendrix and Jagger, Brown Marble Boys (born 18 August 2013)
Hampshire, UK

I don't think bengals are more aggressive than any other cat in my experience but I think a lot of people misunderstand a bengal's play aggression ie ambush round the ankles and scratching a biting while playing for real aggression. I think good advice for having kittens is start as you mean to go on.....never use your hands and feet as toys as it's cute when they are tiny and grabbing you but a full grown bengal could inflict some damage This is where a lot of the misunderstanding is I believe. I have never had a kitten but the other members on here make it sound like for the first six months you will look like a self harmer with all the scratches! I know bengals can be very territorial - we have never had another cat in our garden since Oscar arrived, they are far too scared of him!

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Melissa

UK
Oscar - Rescue (Rascal!!!) Bengal

Welcome to the forum and congratulations on your upcoming arrivals. As long as they have been well socialized at the breeder's, all you have to do is continue it at home -- spending lots of time with them, playing with them, making them the center of your life. My bengal was neutered at 12 weeks and, unfortunately, does mark on the bushes when we are on our walks. I blame that on the fact that his previous owner allowed him to be an outdoor kitty and the "territorial" thing kicked in. Neutering at a young age and keeping your kitties indoors should keep the marking from starting. Spayed females can mark as well. It is a problem if it starts, so you have to keep it from starting. A product called Feliway can really help.

You should take them to the vet once you get them to start a medical history on them and the vet can tell you when the best time to spay and neuter may be. Some vets will do it quite early .. some prefer to wait until right before sexual maturity.

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Clare
Hendrix and Jagger, Brown Marble Boys (born 18 August 2013)
Hampshire, UK