Hi- my husband and I are looking at getting another cat in the next year. We did have a Bengal before we had chilren > 10 years ago. He was an F5 male, yes neutered I think around 4-5 months and we had a very difficult time with him. We also had one dog, a goldendoodle, that was very calm, and a Himalayan. The Bengal would pee in inappropriate places, not let the Himmie eat, and I guess I was his human, so when I wasn't home from work one night, peed on the bed.....yes, while my husband was in it!! Of course we tested for UTI, other illness, tried the pheromone things you plug in etc etc....He was otherwise fun and beautiful but one chair, one queen size mattress and many $$ in meds and potions to try to change his behaviour was not looking good. We felt he needed to be king of the castle and a friend who lived alone and whose 19yo cat had just died, took him and he has thrived, no problems and she was thrilled. Anyway, I am very attracted to this breed for their size, their intelligence and their beautiful appearance and we were looking at getting an Ocicat instead. But this weekend we met a couple breeders who felt that was 'bad luck' and now with breeding 17-20 generations away from the ALC, these things should not be a problem. We now have 2 children, 8 and 11 years old, and we are looking for an interactive, part of the family cat, that will play etc ( the Himalayan was not this sort of cat :) ) So, is it true that now that Bengals are 'SBTs, many generations away from the ALC" the territorial/wild instinctual problems are diluted away? Would it be better to have a female? I would really appreciate the opinion of pet owners with experience aside from breeders' info. Thank you!
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