Bengal cats, modern-day lap leopards to the legend of the marble cat

Bengals are beautiful and exotic cats that are loved by so many people all over the world. With their graceful movements and unusual intricate markings, it’s like having a piece of nature in your own living room. Looking at you with their green or gold eyes as they are true Lap Leopards to be enjoyed by anyone of any age. In my findings, these beautiful cats have the same behavior as the average house cat with normal litter box habits. They are inquisitive, curious and exploratory and adapt well to other household pets. They have the same nutritional and immunization requirements as normal house cats. Bengals are relatively large cats with short-haired fur. Males can range from 18 to 25 pounds and females from 7 to 15 pounds. The face has a wild look with small rounded ears and exotic facial features. with colors ranging from Snow, which varies in shades of cream-white ground with a light brown pattern, to Brown, which has various degrees of Rufus, Golden, Light Brown and Black-Brown Carmel, and the new accepted color, Silver, which it is white. background with a black pattern. There are several other as yet unrecognized color grades which are Blues, Chocolates.

The Bengal Cat is a wonderful cat to own and love. They have wonderful temperaments while retaining beautiful exotic wild patterns and characteristics that are unique to Bengal cats. These beautiful creatures have some unique qualities, for example, they love water and have no problem jumping right into the shower with you. And they love taking long walks on a leash or car rides to go shopping. Mainly they love to be with people, they are very sociable and, like most cats, they are very entertaining.

Bengal cats range from very exotic, closer in generation to their hybrid ancestors, the Asian leopard cat, to being domesticated with exotic markings.

The Bengal cat is a cross between the Asian leopard cat and the domestic cat. The most widely used domestic crosses were the Abyssinian, the Egyptian Mau, and the Ocicat. This was done to preserve the effort to retain the stunning beauty of the Asian Leopard Cat. The first three generations are called foundation cats. When they reach the fourth generation, they are considered SBT, which is the domestic cat that resembles the characteristics of the Asian leopard cat. The first documented cross between the Asian leopard cat and the domestic cat in the United States is recorded in 1963 by Jean Mill.

The Asian leopard cat is a small spotted wild cat, weighing about twenty pounds. The general build of the Asian Leopard Cat (Felis Bengalensis) is similar to that of a normal domestic cat, but with somewhat longer legs and a longer back. They have a fairly small head with a short, narrow snout, large eyes, and a thick tail. Body length ranges from 25 to 32 inches and they weigh from 7 to 25 pounds. There are about ten subspecies that show different variations in body color and can be found in South Asia, throughout India, China, Korea, and the Soviet Far East. It can also be found on islands such as Sumatra, the Philippines, Taiwan, Borneo, Bali, and Java. Because the Asian leopard cat inhabits so many regions, it has acquired many different names, such as the Javan cat, Wagati cat, Chinese cat, or “money cat,” due to so-called spots that resemble Chinese coins.

Here is a short fictional story to explain where the Bengal cat received its markings.

Legend of the marble cat

The Legend of the Marble Cat Deep, deep in the jungle, long ago, a jungle mother gave birth to six perfect kittens and the Forest Spirit was pleased. Four of them resembled their mother, soft and golden and spotted all over, like tiny leopards, a pattern designed by nature to hide them deep in the forest from ancient and fearsome enemies who liked kittens for lunch. . The other two, however, were different. They too had coats as soft as velvet, but one of them was all gold, as bright as the sun, and the other was as white as the full moon! Mother named them Sunlight and Moonbeam. She named hers other kittens of hers with more traditional names, names that had been passed from mother cat to cat daughter, over and over again, from generation to generation: Panthera, Tiger Lily, Orchid, and Raven. Deep in the nest, hidden in the secret glen behind the waterfall, in the thickest part of the rain forest where climbing orchids bloomed in wild and colorful profusion, the Mother tended her kittens and cared. She knew that her son Moonbeam and her daughter Sunshine would soon be exposed to a very dangerous world and with their beautiful, shiny coats, they would stand out like lights on the jungle floor, easy for enemies to see. As the kittens grew older and the day approached when they would venture out of the safety of the den, the Mother began advising them on how to hide them: To Sunshine and Moonbeam she said, “Now, remember, until you grow up and can run very fast, you must stay under the leaves and vines so that you are hidden from above.Never venture into the open jungle unless you can sit in a bright spot of sun or a ray of a full moon, because that is how you You see. To his spotted children he said, “You must also be cautious, but you can use the pattern of the forest floor as camouflage. When stalking your prey, move only when it looks away, and when you stand still, your spots will help you disappear into the sun-dappled jungle. And so it was that the two kittens learned to hide their special beauty, venturing out from under the leaves and vines only on rare occasions, while their spotted brothers and sisters came and went as they pleased, taking their hiding place with them. The forest spirit was pleased. One bright and sunny day, Mum took her four little leopards to a hunting lesson and warned Sunlight and Moonbeam to stay hidden until they got back. “I don’t want to stay here all day.” Sunshine complained, “Me neither. I want to see Mother.” replied Moonbeam. “Why don’t we just crawl from floor to floor and stay hidden? She’ll never know we’re there.” suggested Sunshine. They left, excited to be on an adventure, and being the good kitties they were, also leading cautiously, remembering all the lessons their mother had taught them. They could smell the scent of his family and followed him. They scampered on, always under the leaves of the low-growing plants, the sunlight painting beautiful, rippling patterns of deep shadow on their glossy fur. Suddenly, the smell of danger raised the hairs on their backs and they froze like statues before they even saw the horrifying sight. When their eyes adjusted to the pure sunlight, the kittens saw that they were on the edge of a brightly lit clearing, full of dry grass and golden grass. Against a rock wall were his brothers and sisters, cringing in the presence of… Jackal! A very big jackal! It was between the mother and her kittens. Mother was crouched and growling behind him. Everyone knew that jackals eat kittens! Looking back and forth between the kittens and her mother, Jackal sneered and bragged to her, “You know I’m going to get at least one of them, maybe even two. lunch before.” You can contact me. I just don’t know which one to take first. They are all so fat and delicious looking.” Under the cloak of a leaf, Sunshine and Moonbeam looked at each other and exchanged a single thought. “Mama’s lessons!” They quietly circled the small clearing, keeping to the shelter of the forest. Now they were on opposite sides of Jackal and entered the dry undergrowth. Gently. Silently. Staying as glued to the ground as dry, dusty rocks, they inched toward their ancient enemy, each moving only when he directed his attention to basking in Mother. or scare the kittens. As they got closer to the Jackal, Mother’s crouching posture changed slightly, subtly. She knew they were there! She couldn’t smell them because they had wisely positioned themselves downwind of the enemy, but she could barely smell them. to see his bright, beautiful children in the bright sunlight of the field! Attentive to the kittens he had cornered, Jackal did not notice; he never knew what hit him. Jackal took half a step toward the startled kittens frozen against the rock wall and wham! The land before him erupted in a screaming, screaming fury of knives and teeth! Dazed and frightened, Jackal felt Mother’s teeth sink deep into her hind legs and her claws dig into her sides. Screaming and slashing demons were tied to his head! Leaping wildly across the clearing and crashing into trees and rocks, Jackal finally managed to dislodge his attackers and all he could see with his still open eye was the end of Mother’s tail as she disappeared into the jungle. Panthera, Tiger Lily, Orchid, and Raven had been stunned by the seemingly sudden appearance of their brother and sister, but they wasted no time getting past the beleaguered Jackal, toward the safety of the rain forest. They were followed soon after by the Sun, the Moon and the Mother. Together they ran swiftly through the jungle, toward the safety of their hidden lair, in the secret glen, behind the waterfall, in the thickest part of the rain forest where the climbing orchids flourished. It had been a miracle. Nothing needed to be said. The mother cleaned the kittens off her and purred them to sleep. Sunlight and Moonbeam awoke at dusk, from a deep sleep of utter exhaustion. They crept out of the lair, called by a silent summons. There! Under the big tree, or was it part of it? They thought they could see the dim form of the Forest Spirit. They knew that it was she who had summoned them. Her voice was like the rustling of the leaves or perhaps the passing breeze, but the kittens could hear it clearly in her head. This was strange, indeed. In the time of no ancestors that they could remember, no one had actually seen the Forest Spirit, but oddly enough, they weren’t scared. She spoke: “You are all my children and I love you. Even the Jackal is one of my children, but it was not his destiny to eat kittens for lunch today. You have performed a selfless act of incredible bravery and you will be rewarded.” I give you something you have always wanted, the gift of concealment.” To Moonbeam he said: “You will be a cat of the night: I bless you with the misty shadows of leaves and vines, falling on your back in the light. of the full moon You will be able to go unnoticed in the night “night jungle”. To Sunshine he said, “You must be a cat of the day, wearing the deep shadows of leaves and twisting vines on your body, letting your bright sunlit fur shimmer in shreds and swirls. You will be impossible to see in the jungle in a sunny day. Step up now.” The kittens crawled out from under the leaves they had instinctively stood under and were surprised to see that their fur now had the patterns of vines and leaves. As her image and voice began to fade, the Forest Spirit said, “Henceforth, their names will be Secret Sun and Hidden Moon. All of their spotless descendants will also be blessed with these markings, to safely hide them in already be it the sun or the moonlight. I am pleased.” To this day, the marble kittens carry with them the patterns of leaves and vines of that jungle of yesteryear, the reward of their ancestors’ uncommon courage: the shadows cast on them through the trees, the sun and the light of the moon.

Thank you Susan Dunsworth for letting me share your story with everyone.