Hello everyone,
We just purchased a 2 yr. old neutered bengal. We've had him for 5 days now. (and he was just neutered 10 days before receiving him.) I know this isn't very much time AT ALL for an adult cat to adjust, but I'm a little worried that he may always be very shy. We've kept him in a large room with lots of places to explore, kept noise to a minimum, kept him on his former food/litter, etc. We've very very slowly approached him and let him smell us and get comfortable with us on his own terms. I've spent so many hours just by his side, bending down low so as to not intimidate him. (and as a result I strained my upper back badly! But that's OK, I really want him to not be afraid!)
Anyway, he seems to be OK being in our presence, just watching us. But he leans low to the ground when we try to pet him. And he certainly won't let us pick him up. He won't come to us when we call him, even though he seems to recognize our voices. When we open the door of the room, to get him to start exploring the rest of the house, he only once ventured into the hall, sniffed around, and then returned to the room.
We have 2 kids, age 7 & 4. They have had no interaction with him yet. We got this cat with the hopes that he'd make a nice pet. But so far he is just a "tenant" in our house. And other than his beautiful coat, he is not showing any signs of being a bengal. I wish he would follow us around! He prefers to be alone.
We want to keep him, but I'm wondering what his long term personality will be. Will he really be a nice pet? We are committed to making this work for our family. How long do you think it may take, and what signs of improvement should we be looking for?
Thanks so much.
Mary Ann
mkeisha38@comcast.net