We have now owned BENGAL CATS in our household for the past 5 years and they sure do enhance our menagerie. We have one F3 and one F1 generation. As they are new to us, the information we have gathered from watching and working with ours, and are mostly about F1's and would not recommend that you get an F1 unless you have the time to devote to them. We originally got our two F1's at the same time, and boy are they a handful. We recommend having only one F1 to start with.

First-cross (F1) hybrid's tend to be shy, nervous, untouchable cats, much like their wild fathers. Like mules, first-generation (F1) hybrid Bengal males can not reproduce, but their (F1) sisters can. In subsequent generations males become fertile and so breeding back is not necessary.

Icky-Bear and Tigger-Two pictured above are our F1 males not all F1's are born with the spots and markings that Tigger-Two has. Icky-Bear took his colors from his more domestic mother.

"Any other generation of Bengal cat is a delight to have around the house". Itty-Bitty is our F3 female. I haven't got a good picture of her yet, but when I do will put it up also. Itty-Bitty is the nicest, sweetest, most loving cat, which we all enjoy. She is also colored like Icky-Bear.

Our F1 male Bengal's are cunning & intelligent, perhaps from their wild background of their breeding, actually all Bengal's have this ability, but F1's seem to be a bit more cunning and intelligent. Their amazing intelligence is intriguing, as they stalk their toys, retrieve and hunt. While playing with their toys, remnants of those wild instincts emerges. As do remnants of the toys, I find them everywhere! They use their front paws to pick up and carry objects.

We are always in awe when we wake up in the morning to see what they have been playing with. Pens, paper, my refrigerator magnet's, toilet paper!!

What do you do when you find you have a Bengal cat that: Chews, plays, and unrolls the toilet paper, trails of it from one end of the house to the other? (Tigger-Two's favorite thing to do!)

Place a hand towel around the TP! Please explain to guests that the toilet paper is under the hand towel. (If you don't you will not only have to protect the TP from the cats but your laundry bill will increase!)

What do you do when you find you have a Bengal cat that: chews up all of their toys leaving remnants all over the floor?

Bengal cats have an unusual love of water, ours will often jump right into the bathtub or shower with us. They also love to play in their drinking water. Ours do!!. They love to climb, quite like their ancestors do, and are quite agile and active. Our Bengal's love the top of the refrigerator, freezer, and a box we hung on the wall. They also love to crawl into boxes, under things. If they can get their head to fit, everything else does too.

What do you do when you find your Bengal cat plays: with the magnet's on your refrigerator and the magnet's are all over the floor every morning? (Icky-Bears favorite thing! He loves to bat at them from the top of the refrigerator.)

Bengal's are very social, love people, and are dependable once they are several generations from the Leopard Cat. You have to work more with F1's in order for them to become more loving, as they prefer their own to human contact.

BENGAL CATS are not aggressive or threatening, F1's also, are not aggressive or threatening, even though they may sound like it in their voices when you work with them, but they are not! F1's tend to be shy and aloof and need a lot of time and work in order to tame that shyness. They have the confidence and self-assurance you would expect from their breed.

It is easy to develop a unique rapport with a Bengal cat, especially Itty-Bitty our F3, as she loves to be around us, and loves attention. We are still working with our F1's. They can be independent as the mood strikes, like any feline. F1's are notorious for independent moods. We have to go looking for them.

Most Bengal's are not as vocal as some cat breeds, but ours "talk" to us. Their voices sound oddly raspy, and quite wild. It is especially interesting and funny to sit and hold them in our arms, while they hide their heads, in the crook of our arm, crying to get loose, while they are occasionally purring.

Bengal's use the litter box like other cats. F1's need a bit more work in this area, as they like a clean litter box. As long as their box is kept very clean especially for F1's, they will use it, but the wild side of them insists on a new area to go in, so if it gets too cluttered....GUESS WHAT they WILL go elsewhere!!

What do you get when a Bengal Cat's litter box is dirty:

If you have the time to devote to F1 Bengal cats, they also can make ideal house pets. They get along well with children and relate well to other pets. F1's still have the wildness in them so beware of placing them around birds that fly and other small pets that roam around.

It is not easy to intimidate a Bengal cat they don't get defensive. The timid, more nervous breeds are more apt to inflict injuries as they defend themselves. The Bengal will simply saunter off because he knows he's superior. Our F1's know they are superior!!

Ralph loves to work with the more wild bred of cat. Our first cat "Icky" was part "BOBCAT" and domestic, born in Alaska, and lived almost 20 human years. Icky traveled all over the world with us and many people fell in love with him. Icky will always be missed.

Tigger-Two passed away in 2000. He was an adventurous cat and before we could stop him he got out the door and sped across the road. We couldn't reach him before the car did.