What's All This About?
This is about life with cats ... when one of them is a Bengal. Here are the cats in question. Laszlo, neutered male, black, about eight years old, very mellow and dignified. We think of him as a sort of feline Oscar Wilde. And Leela, neutered female, about ten months old, and a Bengal which pretty much says it all.
Note the air of affectionate camaraderie as Laszlo drapes his forepaw over Leela's shoulder. It isn't always like this...
Who are we? We're not breeders, veterinarians or any kind of animal experts. We're just a relatively normal married couple living in British Columbia with our two cats. Since adding Leela to the family, we've come to realize that the Bengal is no ordinary cat. On this site, we'll share our experiences, and the lessons we've learned about how to get along with a Bengal. If you're considering getting a Bengal, if you've got one (or more) and want tips and advice, or if you just like cruising the web for cute cat pictures, we hope you'll enjoy this site and come back from time to time.
posted by John @ 2/26/2005
11 comments
11 Comments:
I just had to tell you that I really enjoy your blog and the pics you post. I have met several Bengals and instantly fell in love with the breed. Good luck in your future endeavors to understand any kitty behavior!
Just browsing your blog for amusing stories and cute pics. Not familiar with the Bengal breed so I look forward to learning what they're all about. I love this picture of your furbabies. The expression of Lazlo's face is priceless and I love the paw he has over Leela. Gorgeous, both of them.
So do you find bengal cats get along with normal housecats you already have? I want to get one, but I want to make sure he's not mean to my little Maia.
Thanks!
Hello, I am a new bengal cat owner. Oliver is a neutered male and 17 weeks old, and just wonderful. I would love to talk with other bengal owners about this very special breed.
This cat seems super intelligent compared withother cats (though my 14 year old Burmese is smart and wise). He is somehow 'wild' and very sweet at the same time. Undaunted by anything and supremely sensitive, he has great balance and yet falls off things! and he loves humans but adores my other cat Sita. He was determined to conquer her reistance to him and has managed after 4 weeks to capture her heart.
What a cat! Apparently they tend to form 'packs' with other similar aged cats as do dogs) and so are then less inclined to become a human companion. I would love to hear from anyone with a bengal friend about any other characteristics. This is one fascinating cat.
I just moved into a place with a Bengal cat owner. I myself have a domestic house cat. I have found that the Bengal try's to "hunt" my cat and pounces and claws at her wildly. I am constantely afraid for the life of my domestic cat. When I put them in separate rooms, the Bengel is clawing under the door to get at her. If anyone makes a sudden movement she pounces. I do not recomment having a Bengal with a domestic cat.
Well, our experience hasn't been nearly that bad. Leela (the bengal) and Laszlo (the domestic) are quite affectionate toward each other, and neither has ever tried to seriously hurt the other. I must admit that, especially when she was a kitten, she made Laszlo's life hell for a while, but mainly because she always wanted to play and he became her favorite toy.
She'd hound him around, jump on him, tackle him, get him to bolt upstairs and then chase after him in glee. Sometimes he'd just sit there and wail in protest, or we'd find him with his fur all mussed up and matted with her saliva from where she'd jumped on him and mock bitten him.
There's still a little bit of that now that she's an adult, but not nearly as much. They've sort of worked out rules for sharing the house, and more often than not we'll find them curled up in a big happy ball of sleeping cat.
Now our experience may well be because of their genders - both are neutered but Laszlo's male and Leela's female. And because Laszlo was the adult while Leela was both a kitten and the newcomer to the house. And of course different cats just have different personalities. But given how new cats tend to interact, I hope the latest poster's situation will calm down a bit in a while.
Isn't anyone concerned about what the hybrid cat market is doing to all the other endangered species out there? Creating genetic abberations just so someone can get a certain looking housecat seems rather selfish. With so many beautiful domestics out there that need homes, paying mega $$$ for a "breed" whose husbandry causes so many uncalled for birth defects seems cruel. Plus, the more people looking for trophy exotic cats creates a market for the poaching of critically endangered cats like the Asian Leopard Cat.
We have a male bengal named Beau he was outside one summer day and decided to come live with us don't know where he came from and am guessing he's about 4 or 5 yrs.old and we have a female cat 10 yrs. old who found us when she was 5 mths. old. she's very danty loving quite,easy going. Beau is a talker very affectionate, loves attention and being petted, but when it's spring til it really gets cold he loves to be outdoors took along time for our little girl to accept him he knows she was here first and totally respects her. He has killed alot of birds and 3 squirels when he first came but has since calmed down that's the wild side of him we think he is awesome great personallity and very loving my ups man is crazy about him he' friendly but cautious he's so handsome right now he's sitting on my computer desk in my way of the screen looking for lovings. sleeps on our bed a night. great cat both cats are inside outside cats they only have one life might as well let them explore the world. they both don't go to far when we call them they come running.
What a treat to discover your site.
Your comments about Bengals are not only entertaining and humorous, but also quite accurate.
Keep up the good work!
Katznjamr Bengals
Austin, Texas, USA
my goodness! i just found your blog and started reading, only to find you named your bengal Leela!!! how did you come up with that name! my boyfriend and I bought a bengal kitten two months ago and we named HER LEELA! and here we were thinking we were quite original!
Question for you:
I have two bengal brothers that will turn 2 in June. The brother is smaller and was the dominate one for the last year and half; now the larger one is seemingly taking the dominate role; as well as, acting out by jumping our walls and sinking his claws into the sheet rock and leaving very large marks... Has anyone had a Bengal brother team where they have had this? The larger one is also cashing the smaller brother all over and jumping on him and biting him to the point where the smaller one now sleeps downstairs and not on our bed like he use to with the other one.
Can't figure out why the one has all of a sudden taken on these two new habits.
Ideas, suggestions or comments on how to "tame the beast within" would be appreciated.
Roni
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