Do they hiss and growl at one another?
2 different breeds of cats = OK? And other cat questions
- Thread starter sunama
- Start date
Do they hiss and growl at one another?
I have some brand new shots taken of them 2 on the tree. Once again, Reflex is harrassing the Bengal.
...and after all the fighting and action, even Reflex cant stay awake. He slept with me yesterday, allowing the Bengal to sleep in the cat tree without being harrassed and we got about 4hrs sleep in total, so it doesnt surprise me that even Reflex needed a nap.
People must keep in mind that even though Reflex is clearly the stronger, faster and more intelligent, he still isnt 100% as he is walking around with a limp. I hope that by the time his foot has healed, he wont be so aggressive with the Bengal.
I've heard a lot that Bengal's can be quite vicious. My Bengal is certainly not that. He is very very gentle, though his claws are razor sharp at the moment, but I wont cut them yet as he needs them, to use against Reflex' attacks.
...and after all the fighting and action, even Reflex cant stay awake. He slept with me yesterday, allowing the Bengal to sleep in the cat tree without being harrassed and we got about 4hrs sleep in total, so it doesnt surprise me that even Reflex needed a nap.
People must keep in mind that even though Reflex is clearly the stronger, faster and more intelligent, he still isnt 100% as he is walking around with a limp. I hope that by the time his foot has healed, he wont be so aggressive with the Bengal.
I've heard a lot that Bengal's can be quite vicious. My Bengal is certainly not that. He is very very gentle, though his claws are razor sharp at the moment, but I wont cut them yet as he needs them, to use against Reflex' attacks.
What I'm frustrated about is that I wanted to get a cat, as a playmate for the Bengal, who wouldnt get bullied by the Bengal. After research, I decided that I needed an athletic, strong cat, so I went for the Mau. Now it turns out that Bengal is the placid/gentle one, while the Mau is the wild animal who is bullying the Bengal.
Its only been about 12hrs so far, so hopefully, the Mau will begin to relax and go easy on the Bengal. Right now, the Bengal is getting crucified.
After eating 1hr ago, the Mau decided to go all out and attack the Bengal. Ive now put the Bengal in the lounge, with me and kicked the Mau out, with the door 3cm open.
Its only been about 12hrs so far, so hopefully, the Mau will begin to relax and go easy on the Bengal. Right now, the Bengal is getting crucified.
After eating 1hr ago, the Mau decided to go all out and attack the Bengal. Ive now put the Bengal in the lounge, with me and kicked the Mau out, with the door 3cm open.
Are you serious?
It soon associates attacking its 'playmate' as a slap on the paw to itself.
I shall keep this in mind. Right now, every time he beats up on the Bengal, I lock him in the cat carrier for 5 mins. The problem is that he is physically, in a different league to the Bengal.
The Bengals have a reputation for being bullies, but the Egyptian Maus are physically superior - they are the fastest domestic cat in the world, their senses are highly tuned, they are leaner, stronger, etc.
Some pics:
Earlier today, when they were relaxing, after all the fighting, biting and scratching:
And a few hours later, Reflex was attacking the Bengal, forcing him to hide in a box:
...it may look like the Bengal is fighting back, but dont be fooled. There is very little resistance from the Bengal.
Earlier today, when they were relaxing, after all the fighting, biting and scratching:
And a few hours later, Reflex was attacking the Bengal, forcing him to hide in a box:
...it may look like the Bengal is fighting back, but dont be fooled. There is very little resistance from the Bengal.
I'm not sure if you are a cat expert or something...maybe you are.
Ive posted a lot of messages on dedicated cat forums, to get advice from the "experts". They have all stated that the pairing of a 4 month old Egyptian Mau and 3 month old Bengal is fine. The breeders of both have said all is good. All the responses I'm getting from the people in the know, are saying that this is normal. In fact, it is me who is getting worried and not the "experts".
Can I ask if you have cat experience?
He's a 4 month old kitten. As a guide, in human years, he would be about 9yrs old, so he isnt really capable of claiming territory or doing damage. To avoid territorial disputes, I have also made sure both are neutered.
I'm not trying to make either of them hard. I just want them to be fit and healthy. I donot want fat cats. Which means lots of exercise, which I ensured that the Egyptian Mau received and the Bengal will also receive. At no stage do I tolerate biting and scratching - the Egyptian Mau knows this. Bad behaviour is not rewarded and I have been strict on the Egyptian Mau. Both cats receive top quality food and no expense is being spared in ensuring they receive the best care that I can give them.
If I wanted "hard" cats, then I would ensure both were not neutered.
Its interesting, if I dont give them exercise, then I'm being irresponsible. If I give them lots of exercise, I'm trying to make them "hard". Damned if you do, damned if you dont.
I can't do dogs unfortunately. I live alone and while at work, a dog would go out of his mind. Research had told me this. Originally, I did want to a dog, a greyhound in fact - which is NOT a "hard" dog.
No worries. This is a forum and people are allowed to put their views across, so long as they are not being offensive. I would like to know though, if you have any cat experience at all.
I'm posting on this forum to get opinions from people who, in particular, have experience with cats and hopefully, their own experiences will make my own experience, go smoother. If I didnt care about the animals or just wanted "hard cats", I wouldnt bother posting on this forum. I would just have some mates around and have a laugh while the cat fighting ensues.
I'm currently uploading a video of the 2 cats play fighting, so it will give you guys a better idea of what I am seeing. I still dont know if this is normal or not, so perhaps the educated cat owners can tell me if this is normal behaviour.
I left both in the same room unsupervised last night. They slept in the cat tree. This morning it looked like they had had a bit of play fight, but the Bengal didnt look shaken up or anything.
I posted up a video of what they were doing this morning, on a cat forum and the people there said they are behaving normally, so its not x-rated, but it does get a bit rough. The Egyptian Mau is very fit and I think it will take a week or 2 before the Bengal is upto speed.
High quality:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsWXOx3LMCc&fmt=18
Standard quality:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsWXOx3LMCc
The Bengal is very affectionette. Although, he has only known me 50hrs or so, he feels comfortable sitting/sleeping in my lap. The Egyptian Mau is a lot more highly strung.
And here are some pics of them an hour or so ago. They are a lot more relaxed with eachother now. Reflex never hisses or growls at the Bengal, though the Bengal still hisses at him.
24hrs ago, this would not have happened:
...and 15 minutes after eating:
They are now both fast asleep.
I posted up a video of what they were doing this morning, on a cat forum and the people there said they are behaving normally, so its not x-rated, but it does get a bit rough. The Egyptian Mau is very fit and I think it will take a week or 2 before the Bengal is upto speed.
High quality:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsWXOx3LMCc&fmt=18
Standard quality:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsWXOx3LMCc
The Bengal is very affectionette. Although, he has only known me 50hrs or so, he feels comfortable sitting/sleeping in my lap. The Egyptian Mau is a lot more highly strung.
And here are some pics of them an hour or so ago. They are a lot more relaxed with eachother now. Reflex never hisses or growls at the Bengal, though the Bengal still hisses at him.
24hrs ago, this would not have happened:
...and 15 minutes after eating:
They are now both fast asleep.
Reflex (the 4 month old Egyptian Mau), doesnt seem to be at all territorial. He seems OK with the new arrival sleeping in 'his' cat tree. Its just the non-stop chasing that Reflex instigates on the Bengal, after getting a full feed. Reflex eats at least twice that of the Bengal, though he is more active.
TBH, there were times during the last month that Reflex (having come from a large cat family), was looking very bored. And I think he was crying out for a play mate. Now that he has a new play mate, its almost like a new toy, that he cant stop playing with.
Keep in mind that the video I posted, are 2 young kittens play fighting and to the untrained eye, it can look quite vicious, but I am reliably informed, this is not the case. I can confirm that there are no injuries to either cat and both cats, after the play-fight, seem pretty relaxed and are happy to eat from the same bowl, side by side (as shown in the image), immediately afterwards.
Reflex is already a lot more calmer now, with the Bengal, ie. he isnt so obsessed with the Bengal and is happy to play with a bottle top and not attack the Bengal at every opportunity.
Ive been checking both cats over every few hours and I cut both their claws yesterday.
Yeah, even on the cat forum they said this is normal. So its a relief, otherwise, I wouldve had to go through a very pain staking process of separating them and introducing them the slow way. The Bengal is very affectionette and friendly and I dont want that trait to be taken away, so even though I'm not into lap cats, I do give it a lot of lap-time.
The cats have the full run of the house (not the garden though). Had I not edited the video, you would have seen the cats run off into the long hallway. That is where I play the laser chase game for the cats to stretch their legs and run at full pelt.
The room is preparing to undergo decoration, which accounts for the boxes and lack of seating. The cats do spend most of their time in there though.
As the hours tick by, there have been incidents where the Bengal chases the Mau, so at least, it isnt one sided and both cats understand that it is just a game.
No name for the Bengal yet, as I cant gauge its personality. Nothing is standing out yet. The Egyptian Mau's outstanding quality were his reflexes, so the name followed easily. The Bengal isnt as easy to categorise. His pedigree name is MisterBengal, so Ive been calling him that for the time being.
Bengie Bengie Bengie.
Btw, Ive looked at Makunouchi's thread.
http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=17872521
Maine ****.
That was the original breed I was going for. 1 Maine **** and 1 Bengal, but I decided against it for various reasons. Those are some of the biggest cats around. Long hair, too.
Btw, Ive looked at Makunouchi's thread.
http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=17872521
Maine ****.
That was the original breed I was going for. 1 Maine **** and 1 Bengal, but I decided against it for various reasons. Those are some of the biggest cats around. Long hair, too.
The Egyptian Mau sleeps for around 10hrs/day.
Ive only had the Bengal for 3 days now, and he seems to be sleeping for around 14hrs+/day.
Normally, kittens are supposed to sleep for around 16hrs/day, but it varies and Reflex is a special case. He acts as if he is a wild cat, when he isnt. He acts as if he is a big cat, when he isnt. He even tries to dominate me.
Cats are supposed to sleep a lot.
Errr. How do dogs dream and how would anyone know what they dream of - after all, they cant talk?
OK, in a nutshell, my research tells me the following:
Wet food is better than dry food (contrary to what the Egyptian Mau breeder told me). Dry food has too much grain in them, which cats dont need much of. Ideally, you want a wet food that has a high meat percentage. Neither Reflex nor the Bengal are fans of dry food. Dry food works out cheaper, though, so people prefer giving this to their cats. Nothing wrong with that - you give your pets whatever you can afford.
The best wet food, for kittens, that I have come across are, in the following order:
Natures Menu Kitten
Applaws
HiLife Junior
I give my cats a combination of Whiskas and Natures Menu, mixed together in a bowl. Whiskas, for taste and Natures Menu for nutrition.
All kittens, will generally do well on a good pre-packed wet food diet - even the Ashera or Savannah.
You've seen how full of energy and life my Reflex is. He has been on Natures Menu & Whiskas (mixed) for a month and the net result is a hyperactive cat that is developing well.
If you are on a budget, then you can supplement the cat/kitten's diet with raw minced rabbit. I havent tried this, but the Bengal breeder has told me that rabbit is great stuff. It works out cheaper than what I'm feeding mine at the moment and helps the kitten grow.
If you want to use dry food, then give ORIJEN a go. I have this and mix it in sometimes with the wet food. It has the highest meat content of any dry food available in the UK and its good stuff. Available from zooplus.
The missus says she will have the Bengal if it doesn't work out
Hehehe. I assure you, it WILL workout. Ive planned this thing for months.
As it happens their relationship is improving by the hour. The problem was that Reflex is a little highly strung and I think he was desperate for feline company. Upon seeing the new arrival, he has now become obsessed with the Bengal. Even when I wave toys in front of him, he ignores them and wants to play with the Bengal, instead. Since the arrival of the Bengal, Reflex hasnt slept in his own bed, that he has been sleeping in for the last 3 weeks. He now sleeps close to wherever the Bengal lays his head. He also follows the Bengal religiously around the house, where before, he used to follow me around. I think he has already become attached to the Bengal. The Bengal on the other hand, is a free spirit and he roams wherever the hell he wants. At no point has he followed Reflex.
I know the cat fight video shows Reflex as an out of control cat, but I assure you, that is not typical behaviour and this was why I took the video, to get opinions on whether or not this unusual behaviour (ie. fighting another cat), is normal. He has though, always been a dominant hyperactive cat (even at the breeder, he used to chase and harrass the other cats of his litter, where he was the most active and dominant). It was obvious to me then that he likes chasing cats.
My 2 will only eat dry food if they are starving and even then, only a few mouthfulls. When I bring out the wet food though, they eat like a horse.
What made you switch to the dry food and how old is your cat?
I totally agree. If you cant afford the best, then your cats will have to learn to go without. Such is life.
Even I'm looking to cut down on my cat food bill, as the Natures Menu pouches really are getting eaten up quickly, now that the 2nd cat has arrived. I want to give raw minced rabbit a go.
The problem with the cheaper foods is that they have very little meat in them, this is why Natures Menu is so good. I think Whiskas has minimum 4% meat, while Natures Menu is minimum 70% meat. You can also top up your normal cat food with some real (white) meat - chicken or fish, to boost the protein content.
The whole cat owning experience is a learning one, where you knowledge will develop as your cat does.
The thing is though, at 7, he doesnt need to eat much as he is no longer growing. At kitten stage, diet is very important and kittens should be encouraged to eat plenty, to aid in their development. This is what caused me to ditch dry food in favour of wet food. Reflex just wasnt eating the dry stuff.
I was going to do this. In effect, starve him into submission. The problem is he will end up eating less and wont develop as quickly and as strong as if he is given the diet of his choice.
I was given a full compliment of many different dry foods by Reflex's breeder. 6 different brands. He didnt like any of them. When I brought out a new packet, he would eat a few mouthfuls and then turn away. The wet food was the only thing he ate with a passion. He loves real chicken.