How to Take Care of a Bengal Cat - Providing For a Bengal's Basic Needs

Bengal cats are an exotic breed created as a hybrid between an Asian Leopard Cat and a domestic feline. The Bengal cat is renowned for its gorgeous coat markings, which come from their Asian leopard ancestors. However an exotic coat isn't the only outstanding thing about these cats who tend to be huge characters with eccentric traits such an obsession with water and climbing.

1. Feed your Bengal responsibly. As with any cat, feed a good quality cat food of either a wet (canned or pouch) or dry (kibble) variety. Use the feeding guide on the back of the package as a guide to the initial quantity.
- Take care your cat does not become overweight. Check once a week that you can feel his or her ribs and that he or she has a waistline. If you have difficulty identifying individual ribs then the cat has become overweight and you need to cut back its food allowance by 10%. After this cut back, check your cat's weight again in one week's time.

2. Give your Bengal water. You could just give it water in a dish, or get a running water system. You can buy running water for cats at you local pet store. If you can't find one there, go online and order one.
- If you don't want to buy a running water system, give them water in a dish and occasionally turn on the faucet in the bathroom and let them jump up and drink it!
- Bengals have a thing about water - an obsession really. They love to play with it and running water holds a special fascination. They will sit and bat at it with a paw for hours. This is great except you can end up with very wet carpets. Therefore, it's best to site water bowls on a waterproof floor that can be mopped dry if it all gets too much.
- Also remember to keep the toilet seat cover down. This is the Bengal equivalent of a play pool and it will enjoy dipping its paw in and splashing water everywhere.

3. Give your cat a litter box that has a cover! It will give it the feeling of privacy. Also be sure to give you cat a litter box with high edges. Bengal cats can jump up to three times their height, so don't be afraid to give them a little higher edge around their litter box.
- The high edge is so they don't pee outside the box. If they only have to step into the box, they may pee along the edge of the box, thus leaving you a big mess to clean.
- If you want to teach your cat to go to the bathroom in a toilet, your job is a lot easier with a Bengal! Do some research on training programs and start it when your Bengal is young.

4. Do only a small amount of grooming. Bengals have a satin finish to their coat that doesn't need a lot of care. However, like most cats, if you start brushing a Bengal as a kitten, it will grow up loving the attention.
- Use a rubber grooming glove get the shed hair out of the coat and keep it extra glossy and sleek.