Bengal Info
Elias of Callista
The Asian Leopard Cat or ALC is the size of a domestic house cat but has somewhat longer legs. They can range from 5 to 15 lbs. Although they are not larger than a house cat in weight some are much longer than domestic cats when measured form head to tail. They have clear unticked coats, with a sharp contrast of color between spots and background. The background color of the coat varies depending on where the cat is from, and ranges from bright reddish to gray, golden, or tawny brown. The under parts are spotted on a white background, and the tail is ringed toward the tip. There are usually four longitudinal bands running from the forehead or inner eye corners to behind the neck that break into short bands and elongated spots over the shoulders. The spots are rosetted in some cats and solid in others. Some spots are round; some are in the shape of arrowheads. The head is relatively small with a narrow muzzle and the ears are moderately long and narrow with rounded tips. There is a white spot on the back of the ear typical of spotted cat species. The eyes are large and amber to gray in color. Two narrow black cheek stripes run from the corners of the eye, enclosing a white area on the cheek.
Venus is an example of an F1 Bengal. Notice how closely she resembles the ALC. A Bengal is referred to as an F-1 or first generation when a cross is made between the ALC and the domestic Bengal. An F-2 is the second generation cross between the offspring of the F-1 and the domestic Bengal. An F-3 is the third generation cross between the offspring of the F-2 and a Bengal. An F-4 is the fourth generation cross between the offspring of the F-3 and a Bengal. An F-4 is called an SBT Bengal and is accepted as a domestic cat.
A well bred Bengal should be relatively large-boned . Their weight should be that of a common house cat, averaging from 10 to 15 pounds. The face should have a distinctly non-domestic expression, with small, rounded ears and prominent facial markings. BB is a stunning example of an SBT Bengal. She is considered a Brown spotted Tabby. Several colors are recognized by Bengal cat organizations such as brown, seal lynx point, mink, sepia and silver. The brown spotted tabby has dark spots on a lighter brown background. The brown includes variations of gray, tawny, sorrel, golden, mahogany, and rufus or a bright orange.
Like the ALC the spots may be solid or rosetted. Rosettes may be round or in the shape of an arrowhead. BB has round rosettes and Venus has arrowhead rosettes. Snoflake is an example of a silver spotted tabby with solid spots. The markings of a Bengal are not limited to spots only. They also come in a marble pattern. The tabby gene creates the marbled in the Bengal This pattern is made of clusters of spots flowing in a horizontal pattern instead of traditional pattern. A horizontal flow of the pattern is preferred. This pattern can occur in any of the Bengal colors.
Cosmo is an example of a snow marbled tabby. The snow color is categorized in three colors. These are Seal Lynx, Seal Sepia and Seal Mink Tabby. The lynx tabby has blue eyes, the mink has aqua or green eyes and the sepia has gold or green eyes. All snows have an ivory background with a contrasting pattern. A unique characteristic of the Bengal is a distinct "glitter" effect over their fur. This causes the appearance of each hair being tipped with gold dust. This characteristic is highly desirable. It is also preferred that the underside of the cat be lighter coloured, like the white tummies of Asian Leopard Cats.
The many variations of genes lead to a number of other unrecognized appearances among the Bengals. One of these is the long haired Bengal. A Bengal with the long haired gene possesses all the qualities of the standard Bengal but has a longer coat. This difference is due to a recessive gene that both parents must carry in order for it to surface in a litter. Long haired kittens are typically born into a litter along with standard kittens who possess the required short coat. Roxanne is an example of a long haired Bengal.
Another example of a gene that occasionally surfaces is seen in the melanistic Bengal. As in the longhair gene this gene need to be present in both queen and stud in order to have a melanistic kitten in a litter. Both do not occur frequently as many breeders have selected against these traits. The black Bengal should still fit the standards of the Bengal breed in all other aspects.
