Beautiful & Bountiful Bengal
Meet the mini leopard—Bengal cat! Know for their fascinating origin and how they become one of the most loved cat breeds.
Bengal is a man-made breed of cat. Jean Mill, an American cat breeder and a conservationist, is best known as the founder of the modern Bengal cat breed. It is believed that Jean successfully crossed the wild Asian Leopard Cat with a domestic cat, and then backcrossed the offspring through five generations to create the domestic Bengal.
Finally, Bengal was created from the hybrid of domestic cats, especially the spotted Egyptian Mau, with the Asian Leopard Cat (Prionailurus Bengalensis). The breed’s name comes from the leopard cat’s taxonomic name. First generation was F1 and subsequently F2, F3 and so on. Only after F6 they are called completely domestic.
Embracing the difference
There are two types of Bengal cats according to the marking patterns—one is rosette (with spotted, round, trapezoid or clouded markings) and the other is the marbled type marking. Bengals have a wild appearance; their golden shimmer comes from their leopard cat ancestry. They are energetic breeds who need regular exercise and play time. They can live up to 15 years and are highly attached to their pet parents.
- Bring on the shade card: According to colours there are different types of Bengal cats – brown, red, snow, mink, charcoal, silver, sepia, blue, etc.
- Love comes in all sizes: Bengal cats are slightly bigger in size than a domestic cat. Males weigh up to 8kg and female upto 5kg.
- Nitty-gritty of their nature and temperament: Bengal cats are cool tempered and they don’t go by their looks (they look aggressive by appearance). They are very playful and blend very well with the family and kids. These cats are very curious in their day-to-day life and love the company of dogs and other pets.
- Foodies for life: They love to eat raw fish or chicken instead of cooked meats. You should also talk to your vet to know the best quality dry cat food that you can feed your Bengal.
- Hassle free grooming: Bengal cats require least grooming in the whole pet cat family. They need to be de-wormed and vaccinated at regular intervals, just like any other breed to maintain their overall health and wellbeing.
Love & care
People love Bengal cats mainly because of their colour patterns and markings. The craze for new and unique markings has led to selective breeding programme in Ruby Cattery which in turn has led to create new markings and colours.
There are many things that make people love our Bengal cats the most. The highest level of attachment, bonding, playfulness and curious nature are to name a few! If you are considering bringing home a feline friend, trust us, Bengals can be your BFF!
(Dr Anvith Nayak runs Ruby Cattery in Karwar, Karnataka, where exotic cat breeds are bred.)