Picking the right Purebred Registered Bengal breeder.

At Registered Bengals We feel strongly that choosing your Bengal breeder is a serious decision and that Bengal kitten buyers should be well informed.  We are a Bengal Cattery (Bengaltime TICA & CFA) Located just North of Portland, Oregon in Kalama, Washington. We specialize in Brown Rosetted, TICA Registered, Purebred Bengal kittens. 

Our kittens are lovingly hand raised with no cages and freely roam our home like members of our family. Our cats are not “wild”, however, they are very active, love attention and love heights.

Our kittens gets lots of individual play time and are constantly exposed to our family and other feline family members, so they are used to interacting with people and other cats.

Choosing a Bengal breeder is a serious decision so it's important that Bengal kitten buyers be well informed. 
Knowledge
Every Breeder should have a good knowledge of the history of the Breed, importance of genetic screenings, about Breed temperament and social characteristics.  Understanding the history of the breed allows a you and the breeder to understand where the Bengal Breed is getting it's characteristics and also which genetic screenings to use to increase the overall health of the Breeder's lines and the Breed itself.  (See Also Bengal Health)

Breeding without genetic screenings is what keeps harmful genetics in the bloodlines.  Where did the breeder get their Breeding Bengals from?  Fresh Bengal lines should be pulled from locations not adjacent to the breeders location. Breeders that are only out for a profit won't care who they sell to. Responsible Breeders try to be sure that a Bengal kitten is a good fit for the buyer.
(See also Is a Bengal Kitten right for you.​)

Motivation:
It's important to determine what the motivation is behind why a Breeder is choosing to be a Bengal Breeder.  Some questions you should ask yourself are: Is the breeder taking shortcuts to obtain more profit by using cheap or inferior food, is the Breeder knowledgeable about the history of the Breed and specific health concerns to avoid, what are the goals the Breeder has for their Breeding program?  The reason why motivation is so important is that if profit is the bottom line, then short-cuts will likely lead to  kittens whose health and temperament can be questionable.

Environment and Socialization -
See also Bengal Buyers Checklist
It's important to understand how the Breeder is keeping the kittens you are buying and also how is the Breeder treating the Breeding Bengals themselves. You don't want to unwittingly encourage kitty mills, sacrificing the lifestyle of the Breeding Bengals just for an "economical" kitten. This information also goes back into what is the motivation behind Breeding. You should ask if there is a "Socialization Program" in place to insure that every kitten being produced is going to have that famous Bengal social temperament. Remember, a Breeder that has a smaller operation won't necessarily produce a better socialized kitten because of the perception of more intense care than another Breeder with a larger operation as long as there is a good Socialization Program in place! 

We highly encourage you to visit the environment of the Cattery in person if you can and question the Breeder on their Socialization Program. This is more important for Bengals specifically because they are bred to be very social and absolutely require stimulation and if this fact is being ignored by the Breeder, than you should be prepared to re-socialize your kitten! You should also consider your available time.  Most reputable breeders will ask you how much time you have to spend with your new kitten and whether you have children or other pets in the home.  WHY? Because Bengals require a lot of stimulation and if you're not able to provide that, most breeders will recommend that you buy two kittens at the same time to insure your new kitten has a play partner to keep him or her occupied when you are not home.  This will prevent MANY behavioral issues in the future. 
See Also Why Two kittens are better than one

Breeder Commitment
Has the breeder committed to ethical breeder standards in TICA, CFA or other Bengal organizations?  How active is the Breeder in the Bengal community? Can you find the Breeder online in the TICA organization, CFA the FaceBook community, youtube, ect? An active involvement in the Bengal community shows that there is a passion for the Bengal Breed and that they're interested in sharing and learning from other Breeders. Does the Breeder have a Reputable Breeder status in any organization? This would show they take the time to let everyone know how dedicated they are to the Breed as this distinction requires higher standards and hoops to jump through and is not achieved easily. Another good sign of Reputation is how quickly are they getting their kittens homes. If you have a Breeder that is trying to sell older kittens verses a Breeder that has a wait list of people clamoring for their kittens, then you have to ask yourself what is the difference everyone else is seeing? Sometimes going with a Breeder simply because you can get your kitten faster as opposed to waiting for a quality kitten from a Breeder with a well-known reputation can have unforeseen consequences later. There may be a reason your kitten was available so quickly that you are not aware of.

Quality
People buy Bengals for many different reasons. Some do so for the hypoallergenic nature they have, while others like the dog-like personality they are known for, but more do so for the exotic wild appearance that garners attention everywhere. This is called the "WOW factor." In the show ring, titles are won by how closely a Bengal will adhere to a strict standard that was determined by TICA or CFA. In the rest of the world, quality is determined by the glittered plush pelts that show stark contrast and bold colors that scream EXOTIC. Simply put, not all Bengals are created equal and if you have a Breeder that has taken the time and invested savings into purchasing Breeding Bengals that are high quality, then the kittens produced will likely carry the same high quality. Quality can also be seen in terms of health, which should be obvious if the Breeder practices genetic/vet screenings.  Breeders who mention personalities of their Breeding Bengals on the respective Queens and Studs web pages are obviously showing they understand the importance of temperament.

Cost
Sometimes it seems simpler to choose a Breeder on what seems to be the more "economical" price. However, the phrase you get what you pay for will almost certainly hold true. This does not necessarily mean that Breeders that charge more are giving a better quality kitten for the price. The best means of deciding if you are in fact getting what you are paying for is to take the entire picture into consideration. Simply put determine what exactly are you being offered in exchange for your hard-earned money?

There are many things that go into the price of Bengal kittens

• Costs of purchasing top quality Bengals with good healthy bloodlines with Breeding Rights
• The costs of "quality food" (Where some Breeders take a short-cut and get cheap food)
• Supplements specifically formulated for cats  (Where some Breeders take a short-cut and don't use any supplements)
• Quality cat litter
• Vet expenses - These add up quickly
• Genetic/vet screenings  (Some Breeders take a short-cut and don't do any screenings)
• Kitten toys                                        
• Bedding
• Bengal organization fees  (Some Breeders don't participate in Bengal organizations)
• Pheromone diffuser and refills for Cattery harmony (Most Breeders use cages and don't need this)
• Advertising fees
• Pedigree/litter/breeder registration fees
• Medical supplies like syringes, IV fluids, Vitamin injections
• Vaccinations and Dewormer for kittens
• Products that are bought for Kitten Care packages (Some Breeders don't give Care Packages)
• The list goes on...

Time Consuming Factors  good Breeders must consider are:

• Time needed to research and educate yourself on all things Breeder and Bengal
• Time needed to pick out Breeding Bengals and actually drive or fly to get them
• Being up all night to help  Queens deliver their litters
• Hand feeding litters of kittens day/night if the litter is too big for the queen to handle by herself
• Answering calls/texts/emails and questions daily
• Having buyers and potential buyers visit before placing  deposit, when they choose a kitten, and again to pick up the kitten
• Time spent handling and socializing the kittens on a daily basis,  Breeders may say they socialize, but NOT early, intensely, or consistently enough to matter!!
• Feeding cats/kittens
• Scooping tons of litter.
• Cleaning up after accidents/spills/general mayhem
• Photographing Breeding Bengals and kittens as they develop at various ages
• Updating website Blog or current/previous photos or Depositor Lists                                                    --->Most Breeders don't do much with their websites and almost none actually have a Blog
• update FaceBook and YouTube
• Stay active in the Bengal community
• Putting together everything needed for an awesome Kitten Care Package
• Registering litters/pedigree
• Dealing with the noisy caterwauling and hormonal-induced behavior of Breeding Bengals
• Spending the time to purchase & pick up everything a cattery needs & organizing it
• Researching answers and information to pass on to the buyers.

If the Breeder you are considering is NOT spending the money they are making on all of these factors OR spending their time with everything that's needed to Responsibly Breed, Then the Breeder is taking shortcuts and you are spending too much! Kitten Prices should be based upon how much a Breeder is investing into their Breeding program and how much of their time they are using to breed responsibly.

Recap
You are spending a considerable amount of money but more importantly, you are putting your time and heart into a companion that will be with you for many years. With this kind of investment, it's important that you take the time to research and choose the best TICA Registered Purebred Bengal Breeder to ensure that you are getting what you are paying for in terms of quality, health, and temperament. You should ask serious questions to determine the Breeder's knowledge, socialization program, breeding goals and to determine if the cost is representative of what the breeder is offering.  

A reminder that there are MANY Bengal scams online and just a short search will show 50% off Bengals.  Proceed with extreme caution with these as virtually every single one is a scam and you will either not get your kitten at all or will not get a purebred registered Bengal kitten.  Almost all cut price sellers are selling kittens that can not be registered as Bengals, are of very low quality, have genetic or other diseases that will dramatically shorten their lives... If it sounds to good to be true, it probably is...

We encourage you to visit our site and get on our list for kitten updates. 
(https://registeredbengals.com/kittens1.html)
Also take a look at the Bengal related links and products on our products page.
(https://registeredbengals.com/products.html)

"If it's not a Bengal, It's just a cat"

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