Is breeding Bengal cats for you?

 
How to Become a Bengal Breeder:

Breeding Bengals is a big responsibility. Not only is the breeder in charge of many little bodies, they are also possibly affecting the mother’s health. Having kittens is stressful to the mother cat and a lot of work for the breeder. But just because there is a lot that goes into it, doesn’t mean it can’t be a very rewarding hobby
Let’s take a deeper look into the topic:

• How do you become a Bengal breeder?
• What does it take to breed Bengals?
• Is the the right decision for you?

How to become a Bengal breeder?

Becoming a breeder, especially a Bengal breeder, takes time, money, patience, and care. It isn’t done in a day and requires a lot of time and effort to set up properly.  First thing to do would be associating with other breeders and Finding a mentor in the breeding community. Most breeders will recommend that you buy a Bengal that is already neutered or spayed, also known as altered. Show them for a while, this shows to the breeder community that the owner showing their cat is good with the breed and good for the breed.

Once breeders become comfortable with you, they may sell either an unaltered female or both an unaltered male and female. If it is only the female, a male with a willing breeder can be contacted to set up a “date”. Please note that one male Bengal can service multiple female Bengals.

Once the new breeder and the cat(s) are acquainted and comfortable with each other and they are checked over by a trusted vet, the breeding can begin the next time the female is in heat. Some breeders will only begin a litter when they are in contact with people wanting to buy a Bengal for themselves.

Of course, the importance of whether there will be breeding rights put to each kitten needs to be made. The giving of showing rights also needs to be determined with each litter as well. Sometimes this decision can be made by the current breeder, and sometimes it is made by the original breeder. For instance, the may have show rights on the new mother and/or her kittens.

We (Registered Bengals) have a checklist page on our site that lists informative ways to identify a reputable breeder. This can be a helpful way to be presented as a breeder that owners would associate and communicate with.

What does breeding Bengals entail?
There are a lot of intricacies to take into concern when considering becoming a Bengal breeder. As stated previously, breeding Bengals takes a lot of time, money, patience, and care.

Remembering that just because Bengal cats don't shed much, doesn’t mean that it will still seem like a small amount when you have one or more whole family's of them. The next logical conclusion is that there will need to be increase in fur cleanup. A broom will probably get attacked by a horde of kittens, but in most cases cats will universally run from a vacuum cleaner.

Buying the first Bengal to be bred  isn’t cheap. Bengals are a more expensive breed, especially when unaltered with breeding rights. Registered Bengals as Pets generally go for between $1'200 and $3,000 depending on the cat and unaltered registered Bengals with Breeding rights start at about $2'500 anf go up to $10,000 depending on the cats blood line and confirmation.

A female may not become pregnant the first few times that she is bred. And even though the cats gestational period is shorter than that of a human, doesn’t make it seem like a short amount of time. (58 to 67 days)

The “care” part of breeding process is pretty obvious. The mother needs care as well as her new babies. Yes, the mother will likely instinctively know what to do during labor and with her new babies. That doesn’t mean she won’t need or want a helping hand sometimes.
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There is a fun side to this however. The breeder can create Bengals that enjoy water by getting them acquainted with water early on can help to really bring out a fun quirk of this breed. Just imagine, letting a litter of kitten loose in a small shallow pool or tub with an inch or two of water.

Be sure before you proceed!
Are you sure you want to clean up that increased amount of cat hair? What about the mess after the birth? There is a lot to take into concern when considering breeding any animal, let alone the strong willed Bengal.

A new breeder will need to be prepared for how many kittens to expect from a litter. Four to Six kittens seems to be the average but it could range from 1 to as many as 10 in a single litter. There is a lot of consideration that goes into this especially because there is usually a range of how many kittens are in each litter. This is important beyond selling the kittens, like if there are more or less kittens than owners lined up. What will you do with the kittens if you are not able to sell them...

As noted above breeding Bengals is a big responsibility that takes the health of the mother and kittens into concern. It takes time, money, research, mentoring and so much more to become a breeder, Most important is be a reputable breeder, keep the cats happy and healthy.

Last be aware that breeding Bengals is not usually a money making enterprise and that most people who do it are doing it as a hobby and to improve the breed.  There are a lot of expenses involved for responsible Bengal breeders involving shots, vet tests, DNA and genetic testing as well as chips that most breeders implant to identify the kittens should they be stolen or get lost.

For more information on Bengal Kittens and cats visit RegisteredBengals.com

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