Information
Preparing for Kitten
In most aspects, you will treat your Bengal kitten the same as any other breed. However, hybrid kittens tend to be a little more mischievous. You should go through your home as if you were preparing for a crawling baby.
1. Put away all rubber bands, hair ties, chew-able rubber toys, ribbons and strings, as they can be chewed or swallowed and cause intestinal blockage.
2. Check their toys often and throw out any that are very worn or broken.
3. Lock away medications, (even Tylenol and aspirin can be fatal to a cat) poisons, and cleaning products.
4. Move heavy objects, vases and other valuables to an area where your kitten will not be injured and your precious possessions will be secure.
5. Close toilet lids and keep your kitten away from bathtubs or sinks filled with water, as he/she could jump or fall into the water without being able to escape.
6. Be cautious with rocking chairs, recliners and hot stove surfaces.
7. Make sure all small crawl spaces are blocked, floor vents included. A curious Bengal will want to explore and can get trapped where you can't reach them.
8. Watch when opening and closing doors (as they have been known to sit atop them), including refrigerators, freezers, washers and dryers.
9. Always try to keep electric cords out of reach, but especially when you aren't home because kittens love to chew on them.
10. Check the plants you have in your home, as they could be poisonous if ingested by your kitty.
What to Expect
In the first couple days, your kitten may not eat or drink a lot and because of this use the litter box much. Some may need a little extra time to adjust. Just make sure you show them their food and water bowls and litter box often. As long as they seem alright, playing, running around etc. and not weak or lethargic, they are fine.
Litter Boxes
A good rule of thumb for how many litter boxes you need is 1 box per cat + 1. Scoop at least once a day and clean the whole litter box weekly. Remind the kitten where the litter box is often the first few weeks to avoid accidents.
Water
Bengals love water. Make sure they have access to water 24/7 as dehydration can cause a lot of health issues. Don't keep the water right next to food as they can sometimes play in it and splash around which could cause their dry food to get wet and moldy. In the same room is fine though. Also, consider a mat under the water dish. They love water fountains. Make sure you use stainless steel or ceramic bowls or fountains and not plastic!
Quarantine Time
When it comes to bringing your new kitty home, bigger is not better. You should start them off in a small room (bathroom or non-carpeted room) where there is no place to hide. Keep food, water and a litter box all in an easily visible location. This also aids you in the bonding process with your new baby, since you will be able to find them easily. I recommend sitting on the floor with them, as you would to interact with a small child. If you need to lure the kitten from the carrier when he/she first arrives, feather teaser toys work wonders! Go in the room as often as you can, and bond with our kitten. Let them come to you and build their trust and affection for you. This will help so much when they are out in bigger spaces. Once you have established your kitten's trust and affection (2 weeks minimum), you are ready to extend their territory into a larger room. Then, gradually extending to the rest of the house if you wish.
*We know this can be hard to do but it is SO IMPORTANT. It helps decrease the odds of behavior problems down the road*
Their Immune System
Your new fur baby will likely be scared and confused due to being removed from its mother and siblings. Then, adding the travel to your home, can be an overwhelming day. Since your kitten will be stressed during this transition period, their immune system is generally weakened and they are more apt to catch a simple "bug". It is common for an adult animal with a strong immune system to carry viral strains that do not affect them, but a kitten with a weakened immune system exposed to the same virus, could easily contract the virus. So, keeping your kitten separate from ALL other pets for 2 weeks extremely important!
Bonding
Make sure while your kitten is quarantined, you go in as many times as you can and sit and play with your kitten. Show them lots of attention. One person at a time to start and then other family members. It's important they don't feel abandoned and get lots of love from everyone. Give lots of love and play time.
Do not introduce it to other animals until after the 2 weeks.
Introducing Animals
After the first week, you can let the animals smell each other through under the door to start. This is the first step to integration. After a couple days, you can also swap some toys, blankets or bedding to get them used to each other. After the 2 week quarantine is up, you can introduce the animals face to face but only while supervised. If there are any problems, you may have to take a little longer to introduce.
Pay attention to your animals.
Special Behavior
Most Bengals love water. They will walk around the tub or shower and even get in with you. Some love to swim in lakes, rivers and even hot springs. Lots of Bengal owners fill the tub with 4 inches of water and let their Bengal splash around, even getting some fake fish to add in with light up and swim. UNDER SUPERVISION!
Also, they are easy to harness and leash train. After 2 weeks of adjustment, you can put a harness on the kitten a few times a day and let them walk around in the house. After a week of that, you can add a leash onto the harsh and walk around the house a few times a day. After doing that for a week you can try going outside but keep it short and sweet. Go out for longer each time. They will love going on adventures with you!
Bad Behavior
Behavior issues should be dealt with the right away to "nip them in the bud". They may be cute or at least not annoying when they are a kitten but will be when they are grown; and then it is much harder to break them of a bad habit. A great way to discourage undesirable actions (jumping onto tables, scratching furniture, biting hands, etc.) is by spraying them with a squirt bottle. It may not sound nice but I've found that a quick squirt (water only) does the trick. It is not harmful and they learn quickly when you are consistent. Another option is giving them a toy and redirecting their focus. Always easier to break bad habits before they are formed. Also, for jumping onto tables or counters, you can try foil. Cats do not like foil and most will not jump on it.
Vaccinations
We vaccinate the kittens 2x with the FVRCP shot since we have many cats in our cattery. We recommend getting your kitten a 3rd dose of this shot AFTER 16 weeks of age. If you do that, you do not need to give the year booster shot but only every 3 years. If you don't give a dose after 16 weeks, then we suggest the year booster and then every 3 years.
Felv: We do not vaccinate for as our cats are indoors or in our catio all the time. If you will be taking your kitten outside frequently before 1 year, consider giving it to your kitten. If they won't be outside much until after a year old, you don't need to vaccinate either as they develop natural immunity. If you do vaccinate, do so only once with the PureVax brand.
Rabies: Can be done between 12-16 weeks so when we take them to be spay/neutered they will get their rabies as well.
Because of the risks of sarcomas, however small, we will be giving our shots in the back leg. When taking your kitten for their 3rd shot, make sure they do the same.
Also, make sure your vet is fine with us administering our shots ourselves!
*ALL SHOTS SHOULD BE NON-ADJUVANTED/modified live, not killed*
Adjuvants are substances that are added to vaccines to purposely cause inflammation at the vaccine site in order to alert the immune system to its presence.
*RABIES & FVRCP ONLY NEED BOOSTERS A MINIMUM OF EVERY 3 YEARS! Find a vet that agrees.*
*This is our opinion, you should do your own research to make your own informed decisions.*
Risks of Vaccinations
1. Sarcomas-cancerous tumors
2. Chronic Kidney Disease
3. Allergic/Anaphylactic Reactions
4. Vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy
5. Soreness at injection site, lameness
*All of these risks are extremely low.*
Socialization
We have kittens around kids a couple times a week, dogs 3 times and other cats multiple times before they leave us.
We will also work with you if you want more personalized socialization. Just ask!
Dewormer
We recommend deworming your cat every 6 months to ensure they do not pickup anything while outside, from other animals or their food. We deworm kittens at 4, 8 and 12 weeks before they leave us. We use Safe-Guard Goat Dewormer.
Teeth
We recommend cleaning your cat's teeth with a cat toothbrush once a day if possible.
You can also let them chew on bone, it helps keep their teeth clean and in good health. This will greatly reduce the tartar build up and the bad breath smell. The mouth gets greatly overlooked. Have your vet check your cats teeth at every checkup. If there is a large build up, they can do a dental cleaning under anesthesia.
Declawing
Absolutely NO Declawing! It is the same as cutting off the tips of your fingers. There are things you can do if scratching is an issue such as: trimming nails, scratching posts, proper training from the beginning and nail tips.
Being Vocal
Bengals can be very vocal. You should be prepared for this. Playing and giving attention will help.
Size
Bengals are not extra large cats contrary to popular opinion. They are normally the size of any other house cat. Males are bigger than females though.
Litter box Issues
A lot of litter box issues stem from problems stem from these circumstances
- Not being neutered
- Not enough or big enough boxes
- Boxes not clean enough
- Changing litter to quickly
- Stress
- changes, new animal or human,
Dangers of Outdoors
Please make sure you are not letting your kitten/cat outside to free roam. Anything can happen to a cat who has free rein outside. They could get taken, wander very far from home, get distracted chasing something, hit by a vehicle, run into a predator etc. Please build or buy an enclosure for them or walk them on a leash & harness.
*Also, making sure the microchip is active and registered in your name is a must.*
Expected Expenses
1. Recommended vet visit within 3 days
2. 3rd vaccination after 16 weeks and Rabies
3. $10 TICA registration
4. $28.95 microchip registration
What We Use
Litter
We use pine pellets. Some of our kittens do fine with going straight from pellets to a normal litter but others need to transition slowly from the pellets to a normal litter. So, we suggest buying the same brand as we use, at least to start.
Feed
We have recently switched to feeding an all raw balanced diet. It is all ground. You will get enough for a few days to start in your kitten care package.
Toys They Love
Feather Wands
Tall Cat Tree
Feather Wands
Even though the feathers only last a couple days, they absolutely love these toys!
Smarty Cat
Tall Cat Tree
Feather Wands
They all love this automatically moving cat toy. Can keep them entertained for hours!
Tall Cat Tree
Tall Cat Tree
Tall Cat Tree
They love being anywhere up high!
Springs
Springs
Tall Cat Tree
They love to slap these around and really anything that is lightweight and easy to slide across the floor!
Tunnels
Springs
Tunnels
They love hiding in these waiting for the perfect time to pounce! Most come with small toys as well as shown here.
Kitten Care Package
This is what is in our kitten care package right now. It could change depending on availability.
Enough wet food for a few days
1 - package of treats
1- catnip paper bag
1 - automatic fish toy with usb cord and catnip packet
1 - cat bed/mat
1 - pop-up tent
1 - laser light
1 - automatic release treat ball
1 - Blanket with mom and siblings scent on it!
Few assorted toys
