Bengal Kitten & Cat Information
Why is Epsilon a great place to purchase a Bengal Kitten?
- We take pride in our ability to match cats with suitable homes and people.
- We’ve been breeding and placing kittens and cats for over 30 years.
- We have a few absolute guidelines, but we strive to get to know a prospective buyer’s needs and desires as well as their living situation so we can better serve you and provide the best homes for our beloved cats and kittens.
- Our kittens are home-raised, receiving special attention to socialization, health, and overall well-being. Over 30 years of experience is unmatched.
- We provide a 1-week unconditional guarantee. If you’re not satisfied with how your cat is interacting with your goldfish or doesn’t fit into your home or lifestyle in some way, you can return them for a full refund. We want the Bengal cat you choose to be the right pet for you. After all, it’s going to be with you for many years.
All of our cats are typically spayed or neutered before being moved into new homes, but COVID-19 has temporarily altered this process. *See note below
*COVID-19 Note: While spay/neuter services are limited during these challenging times, we are placing our kittens with Spay/Neuter agreements instead of spaying them before release. The number of Vets that do early spay and neuter is limited, and it takes months before we can get them fixed. We hope to return to early spay and neuter mid 2022.
All of our cats are microchipped. This is done to protect the animal throughout its life if it’s lost, stolen, or otherwise left in a compromised position. The microchip ID is recorded in the following places:
- Universal microchip registry. When an owner registers the microchip, it goes into a database that is accessible to anyone. When a cat is found and scanned, the owner will be on record and will be contacted about the lost cat.
- Microchip vendor. If the microchip isn’t registered and the microchip is scanned, the vendor will be contacted and will contact me as the purchaser and implanter of the microchip.
- Epsilon’s database. When the microchip vendor contacts me about a found Bengal, I find the owner associated with the microchip and contact them. I have been contacted about a lost cat several times, so this process works. If you register your microchip, then you’ll be contacted if your cat is found. Please register the microchip.
We are responsible and reputable.
Breeding & placing kittens is a very complex process. It sounds easy to put a male and a female together, let them breed, and then kittens appear in nine weeks. There are numerous elements to evaluate in breeder/show cats and kittens, including structure, appearance (according to the TICA standard and the breeders’ goals), health, temperament, and genetic health. It’s easy to create a litter of kittens, but it’s really challenging to produce better Bengals long term. There is a “sweet spot” where a seasoned breeder knows that the cats they keep back are as strong as they can be without sacrificing too much of what they wish to retain in terms of their goals.
Then there’s the matter of managing pet kittens and breeding rights to prevent an unnecessary population boom, which can lead to poor homing of kittens, backyard breeders, and cats ending up in rescue and animal control. We make this easy by practicing early spay and neuter (ESN) procedures, as well as carefully selecting homes for breeder and show cats. During COVID, we use spay/neuter agreements to ensure the cats are fixed and don’t grow up to be urine-spraying and marking animals. We’re working to return to early spay and neuter soon.
What diseases affect Bengal cats & what do we test for?
Bengals are generally a very healthy breed. Some conditions affect Bengals that can be tested for in one way or another. These conditions are present in other breeds, but there are variations in the Bengal that exist in a couple of them..
Some breeders post a lengthy list of test results from the Optimal Selection (TM) test panel for all cat breeds, including those unrelated to Bengals. It implies that they’re doing more than other breeders to maintain healthy breeding animals. This is misinformation.
2 simple recessive genetic illnesses are preventable through testing. These are:
- Bengal PRA-b (Progressive Retinal Atrophy-Bengal gene) causes blindness
- PKDef (Erythrocyte Pyruvate Kinase Deficiency) causes a form of anemia.
HCM, or Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy, is a heart condition for which there is no definitive test. Monitoring the heart using an echocardiogram (also known as an Echo Doppler ultrasound) is the only way to diagnose this condition. This practice
Like cats in general, Bengals are commonly affected by periodontal disease and tooth resorption. Periodic dental exams and cleanings will help prevent this.
There are other illnesses that cats in general develop, which can also affect Bengals, including upper respiratory infections, gastrointestinal (GI) problems, and parasites. Vaccinations, a good living environment, along with flea and GI parasite treatments, will treat and prevent many of these problems.
We test only for the genetic illnesses that affect Bengal cats and for opportunistic viral agents if an infection surfaces. Our sound husbandry practices and living environment minimize the occurrence of upper respiratory, gastrointestinal illness, and other conditions.
*See blog post at this link for more information about Bengal Health.
What’s the procedure for acquiring a Bengal from Epsilon?
First, please practice pleasant persistence. We receive numerous inquiries, many of which aren’t serious, so it’s best to contact us via both phone call and email. Texting is best left for miscellaneous. correspondence after the adoption process has begun, so please keep it mostly to email and phone calls.
I prefer not to correspond through Facebook, and I kindly ask that you use email or text instead. There, you can email us directly from the page, use our email address, or call our phone number. Frankly, it can become overwhelming with multiple communication streams, so I prefer to keep things simple to serve you better. Being on the waiting list gives buyers the first right of refusal for kittens ahead of them on the waiting list and for non-waiting-list buyers.
I recommend that you contact me after reviewing this adoption information and sharing a little about yourself and the others in your household, including any non-human family members. By getting to know you a little and learning what you hope to see in a Bengal kitten or cat, I can better match you with a great companion animal.
I provide pictures of available kittens on this website, but meeting a kitten or cat in person is best. Often, people come with a list of favorite kittens and end up leaving with one they hadn’t even considered. I find that they’re even more beautiful in person and during a visit, I’ll answer questions and provide more useful information about specific kittens and the breed in general.
I rarely ship kittens and find that having people visit to meet and interact with the available kittens provides the most rewarding adoption experience. Some breeders don’t allow prospective owners to visit their home. Our humble abode is open to all who wish to meet, interact, and choose a kitten for the best experience in finding the right kitten.
How much do Bengals cost?
The current price range for most of our cats is $2500-3000 with a good percentage of those being $3000. Costs have gone up for early spaying and neutering, which we have done before kittens are released. Occasionally, we have kittens and adults for less. Keep in mind that the cost of spaying and neutering is approximately $500-650.
See the blog post about the Cost of Bengals
Are there any additional costs?
We include a microchip implant in all of our animals, which incurs a cost of $30 to $50, depending on the veterinary clinic used.
You are advised to take your new kitten or cat to a veterinarian for a checkup and follow up with a third vaccination, if necessary. A rabies vaccine (administered at 4 months of age) is now required by the State of Washington. And remember, these are living creatures that, no matter how well they’re raised, may encounter illness just like children. We have an excellent record of minimizing the occurrence of upper respiratory (including runny eyes, nasal congestion, and chronic sneezing) and gastrointestinal (causing diarrhea) afflictions. Please note that most cats carry Feline Herpesvirus Type-1 (rhinotracheitis), but cats raised and maintained in a healthy environment usually don’t develop chronic illness.
Can I show my kitten/cat?
Some cats can be shown in the Alter class at a TICA, CFA or ACFA show. It’s easiest to show in TICA because our cats are registered with this registry. Even though I allow the showing of a cat, no cat is guaranteed to perform well in the show.
How much does shipping cost?
We cannot ship unless a buyer visits to select a kitten, and then we can arrange shipping later. The other option is for the buyer to fly into SeaTac (Seattle/Tacoma International), and I’ll be there with the kitten and health certificate. The kitten can then fly back with the buyer, preferably as a carry-on or in a special, heated, climate-controlled cargo compartment for animals. I usually sedate them with a safe compound to minimize stress and anxiety. Many of my kittens are highly adaptable and would make excellent flight companions. I’ll also provide a cleanup kit in case the animal has an accident, which is rare. Flights can be scheduled so a person can fly in and out on the same day. The additional cost is $150-$200, depending on my expenses.
What colors/patterns do I breed?
We specialize in Black/Brown Leopard Spotted Bengals, but we occasionally receive Snow color and Marble pattern Bengals. I really like a good marbled Bengal and consider them very special and unusual. They’re like an abstract painting on a living, breathing animal.
Why don’t you have your address on your website?
Many Bengal breeders, including Epsilon, have had cats stolen. As a security measure, we don’t list our exact location. We may request your name, address, and phone number, and require that you speak with us before scheduling an appointment. Additionally, we will provide you with our address. And if you’re thinking that you might find a Bengal breeder a good target for theft, think again. Most of these thieves get caught, as was the case with us.