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I know they are meanwhile researching to provide genetic tests for HCM (hypertrophic cardiomyopathy) and PRA (progressive retinal atrophy) a disease which causes blindness, in the Bengal breed.
I think as a pet owner unless a cat is actually affected then its carrier status is immaterial as it will not affect that cat at all unless the pet owner is thinking of breeding from it, which shouldn't be the case.
I think the fact its brother had a flat chest and its sister a cleft palate is probably neither here nor there if the cat itself has neither of those defects and that fact if told, may in fact worry a pet owner unnecessarily.
I think though if the cat actually has a defect like for instance a flat chest then it is important to say as flat chests can interfere with the development of the heart and lungs so could potentially cause problems for the cat itself. Saying that, flat chested kittens if they survive kittenhood may grow up perfectly healthy and be totally unnoticeable as an adult.
Also as in the case of HCM which is a dominant disease then of course it would also be very relevant if a sister or brother had the disease as the cat would then have a 50% chance of also having the disease itself.
I think as in breeding of all breeds and species there are Bengal breeders who deny and refuse to accept defects and who knowingly sell on breeding cats to other breeders without making them aware of any faults in the lines.
I think it is better to know a cat comes from a line with faults as we can all strive to work around that than for a breeder to be sold a "perfect" breeding animal and end up breeding totally in the dark, until the problems start to surface, especially when other breeders may have known full well the extent of the problem from day one.
Evaluating cats and lines and disclosure of results good and bad is definitely the way to go.
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