DEVELOPMENT
Bengal cats are a hybrid breed developed over several generations through a program
of selectively crossbreeding domestic cats, possessing desired features, with Asian
Leopard Cats and Asian Leopard Cat hybrids. In the first three generations, males
are almost always infertile, though there have been the occasional, but rare, male
that is fertile. Early generation females are typically fertile, and responsible
for continuing the genetic contributions of the Asian Leopard Cat to the next generation..
The modern Bengal cat gene pool contains genes sourced from many varieties of domestic
cats - mainly Egyptian Maus, American Shorthair, Abuyssinian, Ocicat, and domestic
shorthaired cats. It is commonly accepted that the breed was developed by Jean Mill
of California in the 1970’s . Today, the Bengal breeders exist throughout the world.
Many breeders are presently working to develop specific characteristics in the breed,
often by backcrossing foundation cats with particularly vivid markings. The Asian
Leopard Cat is comprised of several subspecies and consequently, they can have considerable
variations in their appearance.
The first three generations from the Asian Leopard Cat are the foundation generations.
The cats from the fourth generation and ongoing, are considered “domestic” cats
and are what are seen as the Bengal Cat in the show ring.
CHARACTERISTICS
The Bengal is a large breed - weighing between 7 to 20 pounds. Male cats are generally
larger than females. The face of a typical Bengal features a series of distinct
horizontal stripes, popularly known as "mascara", which extend from alongside the
eye to the back of the neck. The sides and top of the body are marked with spots,
usually rosetted like those of the jaguar. The remainder of the body - including
the legs and tail - consists of symmetrical stripes. Bengals can have either spotted
or marbled coat patterns. Spots with at least two colors present (rosettes) are particularly
desirable. The following colors and patterns are recognized and eligible for competition:
Brown Spotted Tabby, Brown Marbled Tabby, Seal Sepia Spotted Tabby, Seal Sepia Marbled
Tabby, Seal Mink Spotted Tabby, Seal Mink Marbled Tabby, Seal Spotted Lynx Point
and Seal Marbled Lynx Point. Silver was also recently accepted as a color variation
eligible for championship status. Blue and Melanistic (black) are additional colors
that occur, but are not yet recognized by most associations that accept the Bengal
breed.
