Bengals are a cross between the Asian Leopard Cat (ALC) and a domestic cat. At first non-purebred domestics were used then later purebred breeds including egyptian maus, ocicats, american shorthairs, and some others.  The first three generations, also known as Foundations or F1s, F2s, and F3s are not considered domestics and therefore cannot be shown, or owned in some states. F4s and later generations are considered domestic, and are also known as Stud Book Tradition cats (SBTs). They can be shown and are legal to own without permit in most states. The Bengal is recognized in several registration associations, such as TICA, FIFE, ACFA, AACE, and GCCF. 


Bengals are a very active, and more often than not, noisy breed. A well socialized bengal should be very people oriented and playful. Some bengals, particularly the earlier generations (F1-F3) have a love of water, sometimes climbing into the tub with you or playing with water from a faucet. Bengals are well known for their love of heights and their dog-like personalities. Some have even been taught to fetch or to walk on a leash!

Bengals come in two patterns, eleven colors, and two coat lengths. Only five of the colors and only one of the coat lengths found in bengals are allowed for show competition. Both patterns are allowed for show however.

Patterns: Please note that excellent examples of both patterns can be found at Kingsmark Bengals and Serengeti
Spotted: The spotted pattern includes cats with solid spots to those with rosettes, which are spots with colored centers. Rosetting can be in many forms, including arrow-head, doughnut, half doughnut, paw print, and pancake.


Marble: The marble pattern is a variation of the "classic tabby" pattern. However it should be as far away from a bulls-eye pattern in appearance as possible. It consists of swirls very much like a marble.

Standard Colors (Show-able Colors) Two great pages that explains the genetics of the colors can be found at Bellagio Bengals or Pocketleopards Bengals under Bengal Information.

Brown (AKA Black, not to be confused with Melanistic): This coloration is the most common and usually the most sought after. The color of a brown bengal can range greatly, with a background color of a cool beige brown to golden to sorrel. Markings can be black or brown. Tail tip must be black for the cat to be a brown. It is a dominant gene.

Silver: This coloration is a bit less common than browns and the snows. The color spectrum for the background color should be between between clear crisp white to a darker pewter color. Markings should be black. It is a inhibitor gene, which means that it hides the true color behind it. It is a dominant gene.

Seal Lynx Point (AKA Seal Lynx Point Snow): It is the lightest of the snow colors. Most are born snow white with no visible pattern, but darken with time. It's background color should be white to ivory and the pattern should be the same as point color. Seal lynx is an expression of the color point gene found in Siamese and is recessive. It should retain it's blue eyes into adulthood.

Seal Sepia (AKA Seal Sepia Snow): The darkest of the snows and is born with a visible pattern on an ivory background. It is an expression of the burmese gene, which is different genetically than color point. Eye color should be either green, green/gold, or gold.

Seal Mink (AKA Seal Mink Snow): Genetically it is a combination of both the color point gene (seal lynx) and the burmese gene (seal sepia). It is born light ivory with a lightly visible pattern that develops in a medium shade of brown seal mink. Eye color should be aqua, but sometimes can be green. Because it can be similar to a seal sepia, it is a good idea to DNA test to be certain. DNA testing can be done by UC Davis.



Non-Standard Colors (Non-Show-able Colors): Because of selective breeding, the non-showable colors are becoming rather uncommon to find. The colors currently not accepted for show competitions are:

Melanistic: The melanistic has a black background color with a black pattern and resemble a panther. Though the background and pattern are the same, under the correct lighting you can usually see "ghost" markings on most melanistic cats. Kittens tend to be lighter in color and darken as they mature. It is the recessive expression of the Agouti gene and is referred to as self colored.

Blue: This color is has a light grey/blue background with the pattern color being described as gun metal or battle ship grey, especially in tail tip and forehead markings. The undercoat should be a peachy color. It is a recessive gene and is the dilute form of brown. It can be carried by other colors. It's eye colo can be either gold or green, with gold being more common.

Lilac: This color is lilac in color is both recessive and dilute. Tail tip, paw pads, and nose color should be lilac.

Fawn: This color appears fawn in color and is both recessive and dilute.

Chocolate:  This color has a pattern the color of milk to dark chocolate with a lighter chocolatey background color. The tail tip, paw pads and nose are a chocolate color. It is a recessive gene.

Cinnamon: This color has a background color of a orange-y cinnamon color with a pattern color of a medium brown. Paw pads and nose color are be a rosey color. Eye color can be either gold or green.

Glitter: This is a recessive genetic trait found in only a couple breeds, including the bengal. It is a gene that causes the tips of the hair to sparkle. Different colored bengals will have different color glittering. Browns will have golden glitter and silver, snows, and charcoals will have crystalline or silver glitter.

Fuzzies: This is a trait also found in only a few breeds and it originates from the wild ancestor (ALC).  It is a stage that most Bengals go through as kittens in which the coat changes in texture and color to become greyish and fuzzy, blurring the pattern. It usually begins around 5 weeks of age and lasts till 16 weeks or even longer. Fuzzies in some kittens are worse than others and some kittens don't get fuzzies at all. The fuzzies are usually at their worst at about 12 weeks and don't completely disappear until about 8 months old. To have a better idea of what the coat will look like, it's best to see either before 5 weeks or after 8 eight months.