thank you for the wonderful information, such an education and an sight in2 the future so easliy forgotten or not thought of.........

For any new breeder that is interested in pedigree research re. HCM, and wants to know the history in any potential breeding cats' lines, this is the latest updated list of Bengals either HCM+ or Equivocal. This list is by no means exhaustive but it is very important & useful for reference before you decide to commit to buying a breeding cat. It is also useful for pet owners too.


http://xa.yimg.com/kq/groups/2680152/53 ... -2012.xlsx


For anyone who doesn't have Excel, you can download at Open Office which is free:


http://www.openoffice.org

_________________
Best Wishes,
Maddy

I couldnt have said it better myself, its lots of work! one of our females decided to start giving birth as we were walking out the door for my birthday party...and of course i couldnt leave the house.... missed my own party!

It is alot of time and money put into raising well natured bengals! and its not always fun and games!


WWW.HOUSEOFPAWS.WEBS.COM

Brilliant post :)

I am going to get a snow girl next year as a companion for my neutered boy, and I thought it would be lovely to breed her and create new life. I have fiinished having children, and I feel the need to have something to look after. It would be nice just to have a litter every now and then, maybe every couple of years. Will be reading all 420 threads in this forum, as well as the recommended books.

Luckily my house is virtually 'spray proof' having a son with Autism who wees and poos everywhere (Yus, lovely!) Would just have to keep her out of my bedroom whilst in season. I am a homebody really, and I love sorting things out and taking care of things, so I think I am the right sort of person to look after kittens. I do feel awful about the whole idea of taking a cats kittens away. I hope it doesn't affect them :/ I look forwards to reading the rest of the breeding section :)

Thank you for this valuable information! I have been thinking about getting into breeding bengals since I got my beautiful Lola, but after reading this I think I will definitely wait. Thank you again!!

Hi i currently have a 6month old male when will he be ready to breed?
I have a 7month old queen whos in her first jeat.

The male has tried to mount her 3 times and coupd never get it in also dont belive his penis was out unsure.
When will he meet sexual maturity?
And how long until i should try to breed my queen?.


How can iassistance my male into helping him becone more interested or help him into a position?

I think most breeders wait until the second heat to breed a female. You usually want the queen to be about a year old. A male can become sexually mature at 6 months, but the average appears to be about 9 months. I would not be breeding your female at this time.

All new breeders need a mentor from an experienced breeder. Some think you breed the cats and everything happens from there. But, know there can be complications from birth. Breech babies, requiring a C-section to save the female, females not producing enough milk for all and requiring kitten milk and a syringe and feedings every couple of hours. Yes, most times, things go smoothly, but a friend just lost all but one of her kittens due to an emergency C-section the day after a vet visit showed there were four active kittens.

Kittens need to be weighed, they need to visit the vet when they require their first vaccinations. They need to be registered as a litter so the individual kittens can be registered as purebred bengals. If you plan to breed, you need to become a member of various cat organizations. And you need to screen all prospective buyers of your kittens. You also need a contract with the buyers.

Note, too, an intact male is usually separated away from the female and kept in an outdoor enclosure -- males spray and mark everything. However, they do make kitty diapers and they can be a lifesaver.

Trust me, your male will become VERY interested in your female once he reaches his sexual maturity, however he is not there yet. Be patient and give your female time to mature and grow.

I had a tortie that had two beautiful litters, and every time I get tempted to deal with kittens again, I remind myself how much work that was! Even with help from the family dog, who would hang out with them and bring back any who strayed off.