The Bengal Cat is a new and exciting breed of domestic cat, bred to resemble small leopards. Many of us have yearned to own one of the exotic big cats, with their wonderfully luxurious coats and their powerfully graceful build. Imagine, having a beautiful spotted leopard in your living room! But imagine this animal to have the personality of a domestic cat, and be of a size that is practical for your home. This is the Bengal Cat.

The Bengal breed originated from a cross between a domestic cat and the wild Asian Leopard Cat. This species of small wild cat, comparable to the Ocelot or Margay, weighs about 10-15 pounds. By selective breeding for temperament as well as beauty, Bengal cats have evolved that are small replicas of their wild ancestors, but have loving dependable personalities.

Bengals are registered with many cat registries, including The International Cat Association, The Cat Fanciers Federation, The American Cat Fanciers Association, United Feline Organization, The Canadian Cat Fancy, The Governing Council of Great Britain, and the European Cat Club FiFE. Individual Bengals must have a four generation pedigree of only Bengal-to-Bengal matings in order to be shown in competition.

Kittens are priced according to quality, those most fitting the desired standard are considered to be the show quality kittens. These naturally exhibit the brightest colors, the clearest contrast, and the best patterns with little or no barring (rib-stripes). These look most the miniature leopards they are meant to resemble, with long sleek muscular bodies, relatively small ears, puffy whisker pads, thick tails, and light undersides. Unique to the Bengal breed also, is the presence of gold tipped hairs throughout the coat. This is referred to as the gold "glitter" and is present in the best Bengals.

Breeder quality kittens basically have correct color and type, but my have slight flaws which would not permit them to be shown. Perhaps they might have one or two rib stripes, or maybe their color lacks bright contrast. They have, however, the pedigree and the potential to produce outstanding offspring.

Pet quality kittens might have faults that are undesirable in the breeding programs, but still have most of the traits that make the Bengal so unique. Examples of such faults might be: a kink in the tail, excessive ticking in the coat, or a white patch of hair on the throat. These kittens are for loving, not for breeding. Often, however, we sell kittens that are excellent examples of the breed, as pets to be altered. This, after all, is the best life for any cat, and we love to see our babies go into homes where we know they will be treasured family members.

Adult Bengal males weight 14-20 pounds, and the females usually weight 8-12 pounds. Some breeders have exorbitant claims of Bengals weighing 30-40 pounds, and this is a gross exaggeration.

The three generations closest to the cross with the Asian Leopard are known as Leopard Cat Hybrids. These cats are useful in breeding programs, and can make wonderful pets in the right homes. But they are not for everyone, as they can be high-strung, and don't always have the best litter-box habits. Bengals that are at least four generations removed from the wild, get along well with other pets, as well as children, and have domestic litterbox habits. They have the same food and immunization requirements as other domestic felines.

THE BROWN SPOTTED (LEOPARD) BENGAL

The traditional color of the Bengal is that of the leopard, black spots upon a gold background. This color is sometimes referred to by breeders as the "leopard" color. The intensity and colors of "leopard spotted" Bengals can vary considerably. The spots might be deep brown, jet black, or may even be rosetted. The base, or background color can range from grey to sandy buff, or gold to bright orange. A warm rufous ground color is preferred. Some breeders may mention the "sorrel" color, which is actually part of the leopard or Brown Spotted division. Sorrels have brown spots on an orange background. Bengals' spots should be random, with as few stripes on the body as possible. The quality of the individual Bengal is determined to a large degree by the richness of color and the pattern of the markings.

Leopard and sorrel colored kittens go through many stages before they develop their true color. Often they do not attain their full rich color until they reach maturity at twelve to sixteen months. It takes a great deal of experience for a breeder to know what to expect from these kittens, as they go through their grey fuzzy stages. Often, just when the kitten is ready to go to its new home, it is at its absolute worst stage. As a rule, the blacker the spots, the slower the ground color is to come in. So these kittens, who look rather plain as infants, can be the most striking as adults with jet black spots upon a warm rich background.

Sorrels tend to be very brightly colored at birth, and make very striking kittens. The light sorrels however, especially out of a sorrel-to-sorrel mating, can fade with maturity.

SNOW LEOPARD BENGAL

Snow Leopard's are off-white or ivory with grey or brown spots. Their eyes can be blue, aqua, or green. Snows are further classified as either seal lynx point, mink, or sepia, depending on whether or not they carry the Burmese gene. Generally the Mink and Sepia colored snows have more pronounced markings than those of the lynx pointed snows.

Lynx point snow babies are born almost solid white, with ghost pattern gradually developing as they mature. So at 8 or 10 weeks, the pattern of spots may be very faint. It may take up to a year for the blue-eyed snow to develop its full colored markings. The mink and sepia snow babies are born with a very distinct patterns and markings. The best snows seem to be the ones who exhibit the color of their markings at an early age.

SILVER BENGAL

New to the recognized colors in the Bengal World, are the awesome silvers! Recognized in 2004 for Championship titles, they have virtually white undercoat color with pewter to jet black markings. Silvers can be either spotted, rosetted, or marbled, but a high degree of contrast is desirable. The white undercoat should be as clear as possible with little or no "tarnishing" or yellowish discoloration on the face, feet, tummy, or spine. Silvers are born with their markings and retain them as they mature.

THE MARBLE BENGAL

The Marble Bengal is not spotted, but has swirls of color over its body, with a spotted belly. The pattern may consist of several colors, in the brown tabbydivision, of either brown, black, cream, gold, or orange. Marbles also come in snow colors, so the result would be a "snow marble". The best marbles have a horizontal flow to their pattern, instead of the circular "bulls-eye" typically seen on classic (blotched) tabby cats.

The difficult part about choosing a Bengal kitten, is the fact that kittens go thorough so many stages and change so much as they develop. What you see as a kitten is not necessarily what you will end up with. Experienced breeders know how their kittens develop, and can guide you with your selection.

Bengal kittens are born spotted, but often go through a fuzzy, grey stage between 6-16 weeks. This correlates to the camouflage stage wild cubs go through. At this point, there are some good indicators of what the color will be at maturity. The backs of the ears, the cheeks, and the front paws seem to develop color first. If, at this time those areas show a lot of color, that will indicate what color the entire body will ultimately become. At about 4 months, the coats will become soft and silky, and the markings will become much more dramatic.

Occasionally, due to recessive genes, an off-colored kitten will be born. These are either "blue" (light grey with battleship grey spots), or may even be solid black. These kittens are not meant to be bred or shown, since the colors are not recognized in the breed standard. But they do make wonderful inexpensive pets, with the same unique personality of the more expensive Bengals.

To learn more about the history of the Bengal Breed, and the characteristics, see how to order our book "Getting to Know the Bengal Cat."