Are you really ready for a Bengal?
 

     Bengals are athletic. This means they can and will get up on your kitchen countertops, tabletops, furniture ... well, anything, really. It is IMPOSSIBLE to train a Bengal not to get on high places and counters. Yes, you can train them not to get on the counters while you are in the vicinity, but they will never stop counter shopping when you are not around. Athletes need fuel and they will attempt to eat your food before, during and after you are eating it yourself. They can and will steal food from a baby. If you leave dishes in the sink, they will pre-wash your dishes and if you leave food on the stove or even bread on the counters they will help themselves. Plants are considered Bengal salad.

     Bengals are active. This means they love to run and play and keep themselves busy. Curtains are especially fun play toys to fight with and hide in. They will jump up on tables (sometimes missing and dragging your stuff down with them) and they will knock down stuff you have laying about and on display. Glass makes nice sounds as it hits the floor and paper is an especially fun toy. Newspapers can be made into surfboards, toilet paper is especially exciting as it "chases" them as they carry the end throughout the house. If they work especially hard, they can make their own snowstorm with paper towels. Many Bengals like to play "fetch" with a favorite toy. They will bring you this toy over and over, again and again for you to throw it for them. It would be best if you LIKE to play fetch, because you WILL be playing it with them, like it or not.

Leather furniture, antiques and precious objects aren't taken into Bengal consideration when running, chasing, launching and peeling out. Some are especially fond of water. This may sound cute, but the reality is if you have water of any kind open and available to them, they WILL play in it. This includes running water in a sink, tub or shower before, during and after you are trying to use it yourself, sometimes requiring repeated removals of the cat from this area. This also includes their own and other pets water bowls. Any open toilet lid is an invitation to "hit the beach" until they are caught at it. They will dunk their toys into water and bring it to you to throw for them and, when they are done playing with it, they will leave it where you will be sure to step on it. If you love your THINGS, have nice, valuable THINGS and don't ever want any of these THINGS scratched, damaged, broken or wet, then don't ever, ever get a Bengal. They don't care about THINGS.

     Bengals are smart. They can and will outsmart you over and over again. Doors, even those that are opened and closed quickly, can be entered/exited by an enterprising Bengal and at speeds that will astound you. If you have places you want to keep your Bengal out of, be prepared to continuously retrieve the cat(s) from that area as that is THE place they will most want to be. They know items in cupboards can be retrieved by opening the cupboard doors, and blankets placed over a no scratching zone can and should be removed or worked under to continue scratching at the favorite place. It is a challenge they will not be able to resist. Squirt guns are not as effective a deterrent on Bengals as on other cats because they contain WATER, so many of them LIKE it and see it as a game. If they're doing something bad and aren't getting enough GOOD attention, they will do the bad thing to get the BAD cat attention. After all, that is better than no attention at all!

     Bengals are permanent. Many people don't realize that they require a LIFETIME commitment. A Bengal will live anywhere from 12 to 20 years and you need to make a commitment to that cat that you will live as long as they will, provide them with the security of your presence and always, always ensure that your choice of homes, living partners and job transfers will include bringing a cat along.

     Bengals are headstrong. They have definite opinions about what and what not to put up with. This includes being medicated (unless you make it a positive experience, and even if you do, expect a big fight on your hands) and being held or petted by someone they don't like. They can and will act out if they feel it is warranted, can puncture a finger poking a hated pill down and defend themselves from a child who is tormenting them. On the other hand, if the child is reasonably gentle some Bengals may well allow themselves to be hugged and drug around the house.

     They will make good pets to families with small children IF you teach the children to be gentle, respectful, and thoughtful. Remember this if you are young and adopting a Bengal and plan to have children in the next 15-20 years!

     Bengals are organic objects. Organic objects can be messy. This includes producing urine and feces requiring regular litterbox cleaning activities. They have toes that can hold litter 20 feet outside of a litter box before depositing it on your clean floor. Organic objects break down and can require thousands of dollars of veterinary care to fix. They also produce allergy causing materials from their bodies. Organic objects need to eat special food requiring extra trips to pet stores to purchase, special furniture to leap upon and scratch and extra time for love and kind words.

     They sometimes eat too quickly and vomit their food (or your plants) up in different places around your house (but never in an easily cleaned place). Some like to go high to vomit, some like to stay low and some like to vomit on the steps in your home. Sometimes the vomit has hair in it and when cold and congealed can be an uncomfortable surprise to step on.

     Please consider very carefully if you can live with all the above behaviors for the better part of two decades! If you think you can live with and laugh about everything I talked about, then you should make a GREAT Bengal cat owner.