And cue the monkey.....
Well as Gavin said we've been in the exact situation that your in right now....The only thing you can do is research all the main uk breeders in depth and study the lines what they are currently developing and also make an initial choice on what you want in your own line.....I would also recomend joining a cat club like "The Bengal Cat Club of Great Britain".(all the best breeders are in this one and it's a very friendly atmosphere and also a must when trying to find a quality stud)
There are many different lines in the uk at the mo, Some better than others.......There is also a kind of divide between a typical uk bengal and imported lines which you'll need to take into consideration if your planning on showing as GCCF judges opinions and standards are completely different to TICA judges standards.
As for any breeder pushing you for a sale......I would not just walk away but run as fast as I could, Any breeder who has faith in what they are breeding would only advise and guide you towards the right cat for your program
if they had one available at the time.....At the end of the day you'll be showing that cat to everyone and anyone at shows etc, etc.....so any breeder who sells you an inferior queen will ultimately pay the price of shame in my opinion.
Having said that a breeder will always keep the best for themselves without question and breeding queens don't always have to be absolutley perfect, They do have to meet certain standards but the odd rib-bar/stripe or similar
minor fault is quite acceptable as this can be bred out if shes put to the right stud-boy......Again ask any reputable breeder and they will tell you that the only way to get a perfect show winning bengal that is high enough to meet your own standards is to breed your own!
One of the litters that we have at the moment has twelve Champions in a four generation pedigree (This took alot of hard work, time and planning to achieve).....And let me tell you for a uk bengal considering how hard it is to get champion status in this country thats one hell of a bengal pedigree and absolutley brimming with millwoods aswell even if I do say so myself
.....Most have anywhere from 6 to 8 in a four generation pedigree.....However now that TICA is getting more established over here things are improving and hopefully we'll begin to see more internationally recognised bengals here in the uk (GCCF have almost changed the look completely of bengals over the years IMO).....Anyways the point I'm trying to make here is to carry on with what your doing regarding pedigrees.....Inspect them carefully and if any breeder is reluctant about showing them to you just walk away and keep looking, You
will find what your looking for!
It's hard to give advice on what to look for without actually being there and showing you in person, But I think for a good starting point a must is a nice small head with well-spaced small rounded ears and the eyes should look large and nocturnal (nice markings also but again these can be bred in to your own standard in time) .....Maybe you'll get a better idea by going along to a few shows.....I'd sugest the TICA shows because the judges actually give a short but very user-friendly speech on each cat in the finals explaining all the good and bad points it has, We've found this format of showing very informative and we've gained so much guidance from it aswell as making some of the best friends you could imagine.
If you take a look at our queens on our website you'll see that they are quite different even though they do look alike......I think I would describe Tally as more of a uk looking bengal because of her profile and Evvie as more of a international specimen because of hers......They are both equally as beautiful as each other and they both have excellent pedigrees filled with imports but sometimes one will out-do the other on the show bench.....But thats just down to the judges preference I suppose.....I've also found there tends to be a north/south devide. Not just in the price but the look of the bengals that I see.....so don't be scared off by doing a few extra miles to find the right queen.....We've covered thousands of miles in the last two years in pursuit of our bengals and their showing antics!
Anyways good luck in your quest.....and just holla if you need more advice!
Sometimes it gets pretty quite on this forum but we are all still here and listening and its also crammed full with essential bengal knowledge that you will need in time to come!
Phew!.....That was a long post for a young monkeyboy!
p.s This website may help you tracking down that pedigree your after....www.bengalpedigrees.com.....you can even track back to The ALC which started your line going, But its best for working out which cat put which particular bit into your line i.e rosettes, dark spots, and now whitened tummies etc, etc.....Very useful little website for all pedigree boffins....even has some pics of famous millwood cats there too!