Hello

I must confess I know little about Bengals. My moggie passed away a couple of years ago, and now I'm ready to give another cat a good home.

I've seen this kittens (about 12 weeks old) advertised for £300 each (USD 452).
Apparently they have the breeding papers and the parents are full pedigree. I'd love any cat just the same, but I don't want to be swindled.

What has put me off are the blurry pictures...can you make out if they are Bengal?

The pictures are very small but they do look like they have rosettes, so yes bengals.

£300 is a bit on the cheap side for a pedigree kitten, so do ask the breeder lots of questions: what health screens have the parents had, why did you breed these particular cats, are the kittens registered etc. A good breeder will be more than happy to show you paperwork and have a good chat about their cats. It's a red flag if they wont.

You are spending a lot of money, make sure you get a happy, healthy kitten for it :)

Do some research so you know what to look for and be sure to see them before paying. Also ask for their papers and health certificates. Don't compromise when faced with adorable kittens. You might regret it later. There are some shady people out there who offer deals too good to be true. Or use a bait and switch game. I'm sure they could provide you with better photos. Good luck

Here's another way to look at it: legit breeders don't generally advertise that they have cats for sale. Not in the traditional ways anyway. So the red flags are up before we even start considering the startlingly low price, blurry thumbnail pictures etc.

Ask yourself if you really want a bengal, and if you do, do it right. Identify the legit breeders around your area, research them, visit them, and have some conversations. You'll be able to identify a good breeder because they will be attending cat shows, scanning their cats for heart problems, probably have waiting lists for upcoming litters of kittens, raising their kittens indoors and outside of cages, allow you to visit and have you meet the parents, and discuss the blood lines etc.

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The little monsters 3

The pictures are quite small, but it does appear that these cats have rosettes. If the seller can provide you with registration papers for the kitties, then they are legit! Your breeders who do it as a full time job will have websites or Facebook pages. Some who just have a litter or two may sell them in a different manner. Visit the person selling them, see the kittens for yourself. Ask to see any paperwork for the parents of the kittens. If your instinct says "run away," then run! The price you are paying is very cheap for a purebred bengal, unless the breeder does not do anything health wise for them. Many breeders have them fixed, vaccinated, etc. You need to ask a lot of questions before you plunk down money like this. A lot of people had taken cheap purebred bengals and ended up with severe health issues immediately after bringing them home. A breeder like this one isn't going to tell you the cat is not healthy.

Tough to tell from the photos but they do look like Bengals and if they're pedigreed then they are definitely Bengals.

Some will say that the price being asked for those kittens is low, but the Bengal breed has exploded in popularity and there are more and more breeders out there, so prices have come down in some areas. One of the most trusted and incredible breeders in my area (lives about 3 hours away) still sells her show quality kittens for $1,000+ but has dropped the price of her pet quality kittens down to around $350 in some cases.

She also advertises her kittens on Craigslist sometimes, so while there are definitely plenty of illegitimate, backyard or scam artist breeders on those sites there are also some legit breeders offering high quality cats.

First question is why can't this person provide you with better photos?
I'd be wary.

I thought that photos are not good.

Just all looks a bit shoddy and shady to me. I would avoid.

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Oscar and Jasper (or one ear and two ears as dh calls them) black rescue mogges

RIP my sweet baby Dexter, Snow Bengal 19/5/14 to 5/3/15 and my lovely dear old friend Muskey, Brown Burmese put to rest aged 15 on 14/11/15.

Debbie