All About the Bengal Breed

1

 

Asian Leopard Cat
11111111111

This gallery describes the Asian Leopard Cat and why it was chosen to be used in the development of the Bengal breed.  If you want to learn even more, please click on the other links to the right.

 
11
 

 

Both these pictures of my own leopard cats are seen in 'Bengal Cats: A Complete Pet Owner's Manual' author Dan Rice, part of  Barron's Educational Series, found on pages 8 & 81. 
 

1
     The Asian Leopard Cat used in our Bengal breeding program is a small wild cat that can be found throughout East Asian, Thailand, Borneo and as far north as Mongolia.  Their scientific name is Prionailurus Bengalensis.  The Bengal portion of the word Bengalensis is referring to the Bay of Bengal, as the leopard cats are commonly found along the water's edge. 
     The ALC is comparable in size to your common domestic cat, weighing between 5-12 lbs.  However, the markings are what sets these leopard cats apart from your common domestic cats.  
The colourful spotted patterns, called rosettes, are very unique to the species and not found on any domestic cat, until the Bengal.  The little leopard cats became very well known in the late 1960's and early 1970's when it became fashionable to wear leopard furs.  It would take over 200 leopard pelts to make just one fur coat.  These little leopards were almost wiped out of existence because of this fact. 
     Thanks to concerned scientists, animal rights activists and the union of Nations, the ALC was ban from hunting and trading across international boundaries and is still in effect today under CITES. 

Ritzi displaying her rosetted pattern.

      The leopard cat, including any subspecies, is listed on CITES.  CITES is an acronym for Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.  This treaty makes any progeny of the Asian Leopard cat, whether it is pure or a hybrid, fall under the regulation of CITES.   This means that the progeny, including Bengal cats, must travel with CITES permits when crossing international borders.   There are no exceptions to this rule. For further explanation pertaining to the legalities of the Bengal cat in Canada, please visit the CITES Permit Policy – Bengali Cats. 
33

 

     I have had the privilege of living with ALC's almost as long as I have been breeding my Bengals.  I have been able to touch and pat their coats that has allowed me to truly appreciate their pelts, both for the colours and textures.  Since they live with me in my home,  I am able to watch the leopards in action.  

     I wanted to share some of my experiences with others who have never been given the opportunity to witness the leopard cats in person.  So, I have donated 2 short film clips for the TIBCS website.  TIBCS is a very well known International Bengal Club that I have been a member of for over 16 years.  

     The first film clip is of my ALC Rosettea Metro City, who demonstrate the movement of these wonderful leopard cats.  (link below)

     The second is of Rosettea Canadian Gold who shares his vocals with us.  He meows, the way only a leopard cat can meow!!!  (TIBCS link below)

Metro seen in the movement clip.

Here is the link onto the TIBCS' website of my ALC's...take a look & a listen!

Nadian performing vocals.

1
111

Reasons for Hybridizing with the ALC's
    As it is illegal to own an Asian Leopard cat as a pet, people quickly realized that it was very important to do what they could to stop the ultimate extinction of the wild leopard cats.  Jean Mill, the innovative person that she is, as well as her interest in genetics of cat coat colours; i.e. the Himalayan, had begun to put into action, what most could not even imagine.  She thought that if people could have a genetically bred little domestic leopard cat running under foot, that they 
would be less included to purchase and want to wear one as a fur coat.  To this day, Jean's legacy has educated thousands of people, world wide, about the plight of the Asian Leopard Cat and who knows how many minds have been changed about wearing fur!

     The ALC has also been studied at universities researching a cure for cancer.  It is a well documented fact that these leopard cats are immune to the deadly feline cancer known as feline-leukemia.  The introduction of leopard cat blood into the domestic gene pool may even eliminate this disease in the common domestic cat.  Studies are still being done to this day. 
     As hybrids from the university studies were in need of homes, some of our originators of the Bengal breed took them in as did Jean Mill.  Jean took her  idea of putting the leopard cat's coat onto a domestic, and so the Bengal breed was begun! 
111

Unique Features of the ALC's
     Although chromosomes match between our common domestic cat and the ALC, their bone structure and coat colours genetically do not match.  Early on when the ALC was introduced into the Cat Fancy as an 'outcross' to create the Bengal breed, the ALC was classified just like a domestic, i.e. Brown Spotted Tabby by cat Associations.  
     Just from looking at the Asian leopard cat, one can easily see that there are very few similarities to the domestic.  Therefore, the ALC does not fit into the brown spotted tabby colour & pattern categories.   To this day, there has not yet been any proposals made to classify the Asian Leopards, although, I know people who are working on these genetic missing-links.  As more people study these genetic mysteries, new colour & pattern categories will be discovered.
1
Below are pictures showing unique ALC phenotypic genes only found on wild cats and not on any domestic cat.  

  • Leopard cats do not have a black tail tip, nor black paw-pads which is the Cat Fancier's colour class definition of a brown spotted tabby.  Their pattern flows horizontally and not vertically like the domestic spotted pattern.

Tame displaying his spotted tail, all the way to his blunt tail tip.

Ritzi displaying her pink paw-pads.

 

  • The whited tummy covered in spots is also never seen in any domestic cat colour & pattern categories.  

Metro displaying his whited tummy.

Ritzi displaying her whited tummy.  This is what I call full expression of white!

 

  • ALC's heads are very recognizable by the well defined lines, colours and patterns.  Strikingly, there is no tabby 'M' on their forehead.  Behind the ears is a well defined white patch, called ocilli.  Most all wild cats have the ocilli, with the exception of the lion.

Ritzi displaying her facial markings with NO tabby 'M'.

Ritzi displaying her ocilli.

 

  • The ALC's head type is quite distinctive.  They have an egg shaped head with lots of back skull and a straight nose profile.  Their nose leather is very thick and their eyes are round with an open expression, needed for their nocturnal hunting. 

Metro displaying his egg shaped head & straight nose profile.

Nadian & Ritzi displaying their thick nose leather & back skull.

 Nadian (male-left) & Ritzi (female-right)--ALC males develop jowls to give them a rounder looking head.

 

  • Structurally, the ALC has a long body due to the extra vertebrate with hind quarters higher standing then front.  I have also observed that they have extremely flexible tails and are able to bend and wind it around themselves as well as their mates. 

Metro displaying higher hind quarters.

Nadian stretching to display body type and flexible tail.

 

     You will note after looking through all these photos that ALC's share a definite similarity between each other, but still not one looks identical to the other.

    One disclaimer I would like to clarify:  the glitter is not genetically derived from the ALC.  The glitter was introduced into the Bengal gene pool from a wild Egyptian Mau that Jean Mill found on the streets of India.  She thought that this feature would add another unique quality to our Bengals that would set them apart from any other SPOTTED domestic cat breed...wow, how insightful was she!
11
11
11

All materials on this site:
Copyright © by Lisa Arvay CIPO © 451096
All rights reserved.

Page Update:  06/21/05
11