Sneaking out secretly. Serial part 8

Liefje is a very communitive cat she communicate with us the whole day. She makes soft reassuring sounds: ’prrrr, prrrr” meaning good morning or hello. When she  prrrrs’ we know that she agrees with us and approves whatever we are doing. 

Do you want to be my friend. Serial part 7

This week was filled with excitement: emotions, joy, astonishment and also some worries. When kittens have opened their eyes there is a feeling of connection, there’s expression in their beautiful little faces. Of course their sight is blurred, but I like to think that they are looking happily at me.

Liefje is a very strict mother; she keeps her kittens under close surveillance. She has some very tough rules and when we don’t follow them, we are faced with an emotional mother.  

We should recognize that her first litter can make her very nervous and insecure, and we have to avoid that at all times. So we have a lot of reassuring conversations.

We have to weigh her babies every evening and Liefje does not like that at all. She follows us, protesting loudly and she tries to get her baby. After weighing the baby we show it to her and before laying it back in their bed, we let her smell her baby. The poor baby has to endure his mother’s though washing regime afterwards.

She is a very satisfied and proud mother of two and likes to show them to the other cats and of course to us. A soon someone enters the room she gets out the play pen to meet the visitor.  After work Ivan almost immediately visits Liefje and her baby and after a short conversation he gets a baby in his hands. Liefje keeps a close eye on her baby and she meows loudly how to hold her baby. When she is satisfied she returns her attention at her other baby and peace is restored.So there is quality time for both of them.

Since a few days one of the two isn’t growing as we like him to do. We like to keep a close eye on them and when a kitten isn’t growing about 10% of his birthweight every day we observe his development and take action when necessary. Firstly we support the baby with a few feedings a day. But the day before yesterday we decided to bottle-feed the baby every two hours. That is a very exhausting undertaking but it is very important to prevent weight loss.
This is also a very emotional period, because a baby almost always resists bottle feeding. Kittens are as the French say ”gourmands” and they just do not like kitten milk, they always prefer their mothers 'milk. Furthermore you have to try to hold a very tiny and fragile and resisting baby without injuring it. When you succeed you will have to convince it to have a sip. Fortunately a resisting baby always protests loudly and thus opens his mouth widely and so you are able to have a try. You have to bear with the baby there’s surely nothing better than its mother’s milk. Well Liefjes’ sun does not like kitten milk at all and keeps resisting loudly.
Fortunately Liefjes'sun is growing very well, he has gained ten grams today.

He is a very active baby and is trying to walk. His body is not ready for walking; the proportions seem best suited for drinking. His short tiny legs are not made for walking yet and there is no coordination of movement. But he does not care; he is walking or rather waggling. He proudly goes where he’s never gone before. But most of the day the happy family is together, just enjoying life.

A lot has happened and Liefje likes to report  what  has happened with her and her two gorgeous kittens. Enjoy this video.                            

She likes to see you soon.

Soft white and totally gorgeous. part 6

Day by the kittens grow into little predators.They aren’t still agile, far from it but their little faces are getting the most essential characteristics of a predator: wishers. Their sweet little faces change almost immediately when their wishers start growing. Almost overnight they’ve got whiskers, the genuine predator’s tool. A cat has 4 groups of four or five hairs in four rows on each side of their nose. Our baby's have almost transparent white soft whiskers waiting to be used. For the time being they don’t benefit our baby's at all and sometimes their mother remove her baby's ‘whiskers. The baby's already have the most effective way of getting mommies attention: peeping! Mommy always comes running,so who needs whiskers

Bengal cats are very agile, well build and have a perfect muscularity, their kittens do not.

They have a soft, pink tummy, very  kissable indeed. The skin is very soft, almost transparentand, lose and  wrinkly. There’s not much more inviting to kiss than a babys tummy. 

The babies still are sleeping most of the day and night , but they are very active sleepers. They have very exiting dreams; often about hunting their preys. In their dreams they are a fierce predator and their whole body is ready for the hunt. Their ears vibrate to catch the slightest sound and their claws are ready for the kill.

It’s all a dram ofcourse because they still can’t see yet.

Already their coat is showing colours: light brown rosettes appear on their torso and stripes on their legs. Yes, they certainly are going to be gorgeous Bengal cats, indeed. 

Finally their eyes opened, that’s so very special. It’s amazing what those eyes can do. Their little face changed overnight, and this give me so much joy, excitement and wonder. Every morning those dark blue mesmerizing eyes looking at me wishing me a very good morning. Happy days are here indeed.

A lot has happened and Liefje likes to report  what  has happened with her and her two gorgeous kittens. 

                            

She likes to see you soon.

Soft, white, totally sweetness. Liefje’s first litter. Part 5

The kittens are twelve days old and Liefje has become a very protecting mother of two. 

Her hormones and instincts tell her to be a protecting mother, but here is a contradiction. Liefje has a warm personality and she loves to be with our other cats spending quality time together. Just being idle, playing, frolicking or sharing their territory in the garden.Liefje also likes to share her hunting ground with us to practice her hunting skills.

  

Her daily routines differs and she hasn’t found her balance yet. She often overreacts to the visits of the other cats and therefore discouraging them. Her attitude causes problems and she is very disappointed when the visitors leave. She doesn’t seem to be aware of her reaction towards the others. So we have gradually taking a role as arbitrator in this matter.

We full heartily love our new role and full and spent as much time as we can with Liefje and her babies

Up close we found out that the babies are purring as well, at least when they are satisfied. A babies’ purr is quite different and often there’s a symphony of purrs created by mommy and her babies. Fortunately they love to purr a lot and they continue their collected symphony for a long time. I am enjoying every purrrr of it.

Putting my head on Liefje’s back I can join her babies drinking. Almost nose to nose I pretend I am drinking and the babies always try to chase me away. They don’t like to share their own, special, favourite teat. They tolerate no one and immediately start fighting me off. They are fierce little fighters and they never give up, they just keep on struggling.

The babies have very tiny but extremely sharp claws, and I always reluctantly have to abandon the struggle. That will surely be the case when the two babies join forces.
I am happy looser, because at the end we have to kiss and make friends again….and again….and again….

Liefje likes to report on the adventures of her two gorgeous kittens.

                            
See you soon.

Liefjes first litter part 4

Liefje’s has her first litter and she was overwhelmed. We made a few suggestions for a den, but she was not satisfied and she kept looking for the perfect place to have her kittens. 
Her first choice was all together on the sofa, but we carried her to a better place. She was still not confined, so we all spent time in her sturdy with her two gorgeous baby’s. 
This I call savouring and we took delight in being roommates with Liefje’s happy family. We all enjoyed every minute of it.

Liefjes' DIY Serial part 3

The last few days Liefje was very restless, so everybody was nervous  too. Liefje was looking for suitable places to make her den. The other cats observed her actions, but didn’t understand what she was doing. 

Still a few days waiting for Liefjes' kittens Serial part 2

Liefje is very busy these last days of her pregnancy.She has to meet with the inconveniences of pregnancy and building her den. 

Liefje is a set on a perfect hygiene, so she tries to wash her body conscientiously. Fortunately her mother keeps an eye on her and often Dashima gives her a tongue with cleaning. 

Enjoying the last week of pregnancy Serial part 1

There is a happy buzz since a month in Airashhi:  Liefje is pregnant. Every cat in the house knows it and everybody  is exited. 

Building for our Bengals.

We or rather Ivan invests a lot of time building for our Bengals. The most important reason is of course that toys and cat trees shows signs of wear and tear. Especially toys are a subjects of wear and tear, because they substitute prey, and therefore liable to the hunter instincts of our enthusiastic hunters. Therefore, maintenance is a recurring activity and we share out the tasks: I take care of toys and Ivan takes care of everything our Bengals need to live happily. I now realise that we have very traditional roles and hat is a surprise for me.

You need to be very creative and you have to be able to think out of the box. When I see a pile of trunks, Ivan already sees a beautiful cat tree. The pile of trunks is waiting to be reborn in our garden. I just see a pile of trunks. There are questions about Ivan building adventures, and I will try to provide some answers. Unfortunately, I cannot provide you with any plan, because Ivan does not have a plan.

First, I should like to draw attention to two matters: firstly, you can buy Bengal proof cat trees; secondly, you can use wooden poles. Of course, sturdy cat trees are expensive, but the building materials Ivan needs are not cheap either. The huge advantage of using poles is the possibility of working with your own design. The creations of Ivan take a lot of room because the “flow of the Bengal run” is his objective. You must take account of investing a lot of time in preliminaries.

Preparation is very important and when Ivan has a plan, building begins. Shopping for the right parts is time consuming. You have to take the weight of the trunks in consideration and the power of a jumping of an adult Bengal. Please do keep the safety of the Bengals and their people in mind.

This cat tree is almost free standing, because we sometimes have to move the tree for cleaning purposes. You need an assistant helping you holding some trunks. When satisfied the building starts.

Ivan fixed two trunks on opposite walls the other trunks maintain balance. Use sturdy materials to attach the trunks to each other and to the wall. To assure nothing will harm the Bengals Ivan first drills a hole in the trunk, to hide the screws. The trunks intertwine and on critical places attached to each other or the wall. This is the most difficult part of building this cat tree, without using any screws this pole can stand vertical, building for Bengals necessitate adjustment the tree to the wall. I hope these pictures will help you making your own cat tree.

In the next blog, I like to show you the making of another cat tree.

         Have a nice walk in the great outdoors.

                        Love Conny

Frolicking in pink.

 The kittens are developing very fast now, what they could not do yesterday, they are doing today very easily. Therefore, we like to keep a close eye on them. Kittens of this age often overestimate their skills so we have to ensure that our sweethearts enjoy a safe and inviting environment. We always have to adapt their playground to their needs this way we are able to give them opportunities to become very skilfulness kittens physically, mentally and socially.

Moreover, we love shopping for toys and we love watching them even more.

 

Raising six Bengal babies.

When emotions after the birth of the babies have decreased, we silently watched Tsukiko and her babies in amazement. In total admiration, we experienced Tsukiko changing in a perfect mother taking care of her babies.

After she has bit the umbilical cord of each of her babies, she started to wash them thoroughly.  Her babies immediately started to look for her teats although they do not always took the shorter route. Fortunately, each kitten found one and immediately started to drink. When all her babies were born and her family is cared for, Tsukiko lied sleepy in her den.

Seal mink spotted Bengal cats.

These Bengals are often called “Snow Bengals” because of there almost white appearance. When Seal mink spotted Bengals are born they have a very creamy white colour. Sometimes they already have their spotted pattern, but often the spots are still vague. Their eyes are blue and after five weeks you can catch a glimpse of aquamarine.

“Snow Bengals”.

We share our house with our Bengal cats; we are one big happy family. We have Black tabby Bengals and Snow Bengals. In this blog, I would like to introduce our Snow Bengals. Officially, the name Snow Bengals does not exist, the name refers to the colour of their coat. There are three types of Snow Bengals:

·         Seal lynx point Bengals, these cats have blue eyes.

·         Seal mink Bengals, these cats have aquamarine coloured eyes.

·         Seal-sepia Bengal, these cats have green eyes.

Extreme fondness for Black tabby Bengals.

In this blog, I would like to share my love for Bengal cats with you. Our cats are not just beautiful cats, but they are certainly our friends. Bengal cats manage to fill your life completely; they are always welcoming you when you come home. Regardless your state of mind, they are welcome you happily and playfully. You will forget your daily problems because their enthusiastic welcome will lift your heart. In this blog I would like to tell you more about my love for Bengals cats and especially my love for Black Tabby Bengals.

 

Wild cats.

In the late fifties’ an American breeder had a dream. She was anxious about the increasing numbers of wild cats kept as a pet in the USA. In European laws it is not possible to keep wild cats as a pet. The breeder appreciated the beauty of a wild cat, but she was a firmly believer that wild animals should live in their wilderness.

She started to breed a friendly pet with the looks of a wild cat.She mated the Asian leopard cat with a domestic cat to produce hybrid offspring known as the Bengal cat.

In 1983 The Bengal was accepted by TICA ( The International Cat Association ).