Can anyone tell me how to tell whether a kitten is a bengal what do you look for?

Answer 1

Hi, I breed Bengals & so have just been out looking at the youngsters for you ....

Bengals come in three colour varieties & two patterns. The colours can be brown/black, snow or silver and kittens can be either spotted/rosetted or marble.

Brown spotted kittens will always have spots on their bellies. Their bellies will be paler than the rest of them (the ideal would be a white tummy but not all the Bengals currently bred have totally white tummies) & the spots will stand out clearly. They are not going to be as brightly coloured as their parents & when quite small their markings may be blurred a little by a sort of fuzziness.

As a general rule if a kitten has glitter (where it's fur has golden highlights in certain lights) then it is almost certainly a Bengal.

Spots can be round, arrow headed or even rosettes. Probably the easiest thing to do is to use a search engine & look at photos of Bengal kittens for an idea of how they are marked.

eg have a look on here - there are lots of photos of brown spotted kittens:
http://www.karlibooz.esmartdesign.com/benkit.htm

Snow spotted Bengal kittens have pale fur with sort of fawny colour spots. Their tails may be striped & will end in a dark colour - often darker than their spots are when they are young. There are two varieties of snow spotted - the slightly darker ones do not necessarily have blue eyes as adults. Their glitter is a kind of pearly shade. Really pretty.

Silver spotted Bengals - from the photos I've seen - have a pale platinum body with dark grey or black spots. As they grow their eyes will be green. I'm not sure what colour glitter they have.

Marble kittens, in all colours, have beautiful unusual swirls over their bodies. Almost like a blotched tabby but not quite the same. I may be wrong but I think that the pattern matches on both sides of a blotched tabby - on a marble tabby the pattern is asymetrical & can be different.

In most cases the kittens fur will be wonderfully silky & soft.

The kittens are likely to be quite confident (though there are exceptions to the rule) & might be quite noisy. If they are really small they may 'talk while they eat' .... make a wonderful sort of grumbling commentary as they munch on their kitten food.

Hope this helps. I'd also try looking at loads of Bengal kitten photos on line as head shapes can vary at times & markings can be good or bad - it'll help you to get a feel of what to look for.

Answer 2

i have a very nosie bengal called khan, i really depends on what type of bengal it is there are so many, khan has an orange belly with black spots, he has a number of colours and changes colours during the winter months he gets alot darker with wisps of grey. They dont like being indoors and we have an outdoor pen for our's, there are very loving but hard work.

The best thing to do is to look on the web, there is so much on there or go to your vets they maybe able to help! with out seening it i couldnt say

Answer 3

there is not any DNA attempt which may be done or blood attempt which will allow you to understand once you've a bengal cat or no longer. the in trouble-free terms way is once you've registration papers on the cat. because you do not have registration papers with each and each and every of the guidelines about the cat including breed it is a kinfolk short hair cat. Mocha is ideal. Who ever suggested DNA sorting out would not understand a few thing about genetics. R P CAT

Answer 4

The only reliable way to tell is a DNA test of the kitten and both parents.
Cats differ so much in coat and shape that any cat could resemble a breed or cross. Its also harder to tell with a kitten.

Answer 5

Head:
Shape: Broad modified wedge with rounded contours. Longer than it is wide. Allowance to be made for jowls in adult males. Size: Slightly small in proportion to body, but not to be taken to extreme. Profile: Gently curving forehead to bridge. Bridge of nose extends above the eyes. The line is a very slight, to nearly straight concave curve. Special Merit: Overall look gives a distinct head from the domestic cat.
Chin: Strong chin aligns with tip of nose in profile.
Muzzle: Full and broad, with large, prominent whisker pads and high, pronounced cheekbones.
Nose: has a very slight concave curve. Nose Leather: Large and wide; slightly puffed.


Ears:
Size: Overall size medium. Height: Medium to medium-short, allowance to be made for larger appearing ears on kittens up to 12 months. Base: Wide in proportion to height. Tips: Rounded desirable. Placement: Set as much on side as top of head, following the contour of the face in the frontal view, and tipping forward in the profile view. Furnishings: Light horizontal furnishings acceptable; but lynx tipping undesirable.

Eyes:
Shape: Oval, almost round. Size: Large, but not bugged. Placement: Set wide apart, back into face, and on slight bias toward base of ear. Color: Eye color independent of coat color except in the lynx points. Special Merit: Richness and depth of color.

Neck:
Size: Thick and muscular, large in proportion to head. Length: Long, and in proportion to body.

Body:
Torso: Long and substantial, but not oriental or foreign. Size: Medium to large. Boning: Robust, never delicate. Musculature: Very muscular, especially in the males, one of the most distinguishing features. Consideration: Smaller size allowed in females.

Legs:
Length: Medium, slightly longer in the back than in the front. Boning: Large and substantial. Never delicate. Musculature: Very muscular, like the body.

Tail:
Shape: Thick, with rounded tip highly desired. Size: Medium large. Length: Medium.

Feet:
Size: Large. Shape: Round. Knuckles: prominent. Boning: Robust, Never delicate.

Musculature:
Very muscular, especially in the males, one of the most distinguishing features. Allowance to be made for the generally slighter musculature of the females.

Coat:
Length: Short to medium. Allowance for slightly longer coat in kittens. Texture: Thick, luxurious, and unusually soft to the touch. Close lying. Glitter: Comes from a domestic outcross into the first Bengal cats. It is a simple recessive giving a metallic look to the hair and a softer texture. While unique to the Bengal cat it is not required and should not be a considering factor.
Contrast:
Contrast with ground color must be extreme, giving distinct pattern and sharp edges. The ground color has agouti banding, the uniformity of this banding gives clarity to the ground coloring. Pattern that lies deep on the hair shaft gives more contrast.

Patterns:
Spotted Pattern: Random, horizontal or diagonal. As little as possible like the mackerel or broken classic. Rosettes: Showing two distinct colors or shades are preferable to single spotting, but not required. Shape: Paw print, arrowhead, doughnut, semi circular, clustered, or odd shapes showing pattern distinct from domestic cats. Contrast with ground color should be extreme, giving distinct pattern and sharp edges. Strong, bold chin strap and mascara markings desirable. Necklaces can be broken or unbroken. Blotchy horizontal shoulder streaks desirable. Belly must be spotted. Virtually white underside and belly highly desired. Special Merit given to unique patterning that strikes the eye as being non-domestic.

Marbled Pattern: Markings, while derived from the classic tabby gene, and the horizontal pull of the non-domestic giving a uniquely different pattern with as little "bulls-eye" similarity as possible. Pattern shall, instead, be random giving the impression of marble or the impression of chaining with a horizontal flow when the cat is stretched. Vertical striped mackerel influence is also undesirable. There should be little verticality to the pattern. Preference should be given to cats with three or more shades; i.e., ground color, markings, and dark outlining of those markings. Contrast must be extreme, with distinct shapes and sharp edges. Strong, bold chin strap and mascara markings desirable. Necklaces can be broken or unbroken. Belly must be patterned. Virtually white underside and belly highly desired. Special Merit given to unique patterning that strikes the eye as being non-domestic.

Special Note: As the interplay of genes, domestic with non-domestic and the interplay of pattern flow coming from the mackerel, classic and non-domestic unique patterns are being created that will not easily be defined as marble or spotted. As the breeders select for these unique characteristics, it is recognized that further clarification will be necessitated in the standard. Until that time, select for uniqueness and non-domestic attributes.

Colors:
Spotted or Marbled Patterns
Brown Tabby Seal Lynx Point Tabby Seal Sepia Tabby Seal Mink Tabby

Brown Tabby: All variations are allowed; however, a high degree of rufinism, yielding a yellow, buff, tan, golden, or orange ground color is preferred. Markings may be virtually black, brown, tan, or various shades of brown. Light spectacles encircling the eyes and a virtual white ground color on the whisker pads, chin, chest, belly and inner legs [in contrast to the ground color of the flank and back] is desirable. *Rims of eyes, lips, and nose should be outlined with black, and center of nose should be brick red. Paw pads and tail tip must be black. Eye color: Gold to Green.

*DO NOT PENALIZE: Cats with a T shirt white, patterned with markings underside (showing it is not the white spotting factor) if the center of the nose is not brick red and if the paw pads are other than black.

Seal Lynx Point Tabby: Ground color should be ivory to cream with pattern clearly visible. Pattern can vary in color from dark seal brown, light brown, tan, or buff, with the light spectacles, whisker pads, and chin. There should be little difference between color of body markings and point color. Paw pads and tail tip must be dark seal brown. Eye color: Blue with richness in color. Allowance should be made for incomplete markings in kittens.

Seal Mink Tabby: Ground color should be ivory, cream, or light tan with pattern clearly visible. Pattern may be various shades of seal mink to a dark seal mink. Ivory cream spectacles encircling the eyes, and ivory cream whisker pads and chin are desirable. There should be very little or no difference between the color of body markings and point color. Paw pads must be dark brown with rosy undertones allowed. Tail tip must be dark seal brown. Eye color: Aqua [blue-green] to Green, the more richness and depth of color the better.

Seal Sepia Tabby: Ground color should be ivory, cream, or light tan with pattern clearly visible. Seal Sepia Tabby Pattern may be various shades of seal sepia to dark seal sepia. Ivory cream spectacles encircling the eyes, and ivory cream whisker pads and chin are desirable. There should be very little or no difference between the color of body markings and point color. Paw pads must be dark brown with rosy undertones allowed. Tail tip must be dark seal brown. Eye color: Gold to Green, the more richness and depth of color the better.

Temperament:
Temperament must be unchallenging. Any sign of definite challenge shall disqualify. Cat may exhibit fear, seek to flee, or generally complain aloud, but may not threaten to harm. Bengals should be confident, alert, curious, and friendly cats.

This is the description given by the American Cat Fanciers Association. I hope you find it useful.