Leash Walking a Bengal Cat

Written by John & Sheila Fowler, Summermist Bengal Cats

Introduction

Bengals cats love to be active. Bengals are cats like any breed of cat, they hunt, stalk, kill and enjoy the capture of their toy prey. But, they also enjoy relaxing after periods of exercise such as playing with your Bengal for an hour with wand toys or after self-exercise on a cat wheel. Bengal cats also love to be with their owners/caretakers and follow them around the home. Each of these activities allow the Bengal Cat to become closer to their loving owners. There is another way to add even more activity to your Bengal Cat and that is by taking your Bengal Cat out of the home with the aid of a leash and harness. This kind of activity allows the Bengal Cat to enjoy more of the feline senses by seeing birds, flowers, insects, reptiles, etc. in an outdoor environment that allows them to experience their full nature.

Background

As a breeder of Bengal Cats, we require our clients to maintain an in-home lifestyle for their Bengal companion. While cats would love to free-roam outside, urban and suburban neighborhoods have become so dense in population any loose cat would be trespassing on some anti-cat resident’s property, prey to loose dogs or wildlife species like coyotes, hit/killed by a car, subjected to diseases from feral cats such as feline leukemia virus (FeLV) and the feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV), acquiring parasites (fleas, ticks, lice, heartworms, cryptosporidium, et.al.), animal abuse, and many, many more hazards that can expose a loose cat to harm, abuse or infection.

Instead, as with Jackson Galaxy (host of "My Cat from Hell"), we encourage our clients to construct a Catio (an enclosed patio for cats) which is built within the home or can even be an extension of the home. Catios are supplied with cat trees, cat wheels, toys, cat litter boxes and shelving to allow a Bengal Cat to have a place to play and Figure 2 is a picture of an indoor catio.

Having Your Bengal Cat Enjoy Outdoors

Now that we have raised concerns about taking your Bengal Cat outdoors, we need to explain how you may take your Bengal Cat outdoors safely.

A Bengal Cat may be taken outdoors for the first time if the following conditions are observed:

   • There is good weather; not too hot and not too cold, no rain/snow

   • There are no major noise sources or hazards

   • Internal training with the proper restraining harness and leash has been completed.

Next are the procedures we recommend to condition your Bengal Cat to enjoy the harness and the outdoor world under your secure supervision.

The Harness and Lead

The one thing you do not want to try on a Bengal Cat is a collar to use with a leash. All cats are able to get into and out of (usually) tight spaces. This makes them able to slip out of a collar quickly. Since the goal is to have a secure method of constraint, initial training is to start inside the home. You will need to purchase a harness and lead/leash. There are many choices on the market. The harness must fit snug, but not too tight. You should be able to get one finger between the harness and the any part of the cat the harness contacts. Most of the harnesses available are nylon with plastic fittings. The best and most secure harness would be made of leather with metal fittings. Of course, this comes at a premium price compared to the nylon harnesses. It all depends on any situation that might occur where the cat bolts away and the lead and harness must restrain the cat until you can calm the situation. Plastic rings and snaps can break especially when they are aged. Here are some examples of feline harnesses:

Figure 3 shows a nylon harness with padding for the chest and a metal ring. The lead shown is nylon with a plastic clip; this should be replaced with one that has a metal clip. Figure 6 is an example of how a feline harness is sized/measured. All the harnesses have similar measuring methods. If purchased at a local pet store, you can arrange to try the harness and if it does not fit, most stores will let you return it for a better size. The key is whatever harness you get, it must be so secure the cat cannot slip out of it! There are harnesses with velcro attachments that we use, but to start we recommend one as in Figures 3 – 5. If you were to take your cat to a store, you must keep it in a cage as there can be too many distractions that may result in your Bengal escaping.

How to Start Harness Training

Harness training is always started inside the home where if the cat slips out of a misadjusted harness, there is no danger of the cat running away or of harm. However, the first thing to find out is will the cat cooperate? Whenever we start harness training with our Bengals, we simply put the harness on and let the cat move around with it in the house until a degree of comfort is reached. Some will just not move, some will roll like an crocadile and others will move slowly. But, eventually they will accept the feel of the harness.

The next step is to attach the lead and let the cat drag it around in an area it won’t get caught on something. This can just be an hour as you play with the cat using a toy to get their mind off of the lead and harness. Then either using a toy or bait (like freeze dried chicken) start to lead the cat using the leash. Use the bait to attract the cat in the direction you want to go simultaneously using slight pull with the lead. Once you are confident in your ability to lead the cat, you can start to consider going outside of the home.

Outdoor Harness Training

So, what does "outdoor" mean? In this article, outdoor is meant where the Bengal Cat can experience safe movement to be in the fresh air able to see birds and other wildlife, but will not be exposed to hazards like loose dogs/cats, dangers like cars, bikes and areas sprayed or being sprayed with Roundup herbicide. For us, our enclosed yard meets these requirements. There is no need to take the cat out into public areas as that only increases the risk of unforeseen hazards. In your yard, you can provide all the outdoor experience your Bengal may want without having to deal with unforeseen events.

As with the indoor training, simply continue as though you are still indoors, except now you can let the Bengal seek what interests him/her. Depending on how the Bengal responds to being outdoors will determine how long to stay out. Enjoyment is the key. As long as he/she is having fun and enjoying being out, there is no limit to the amount of time, it is whatever you wish to spend. However, we do not want to foster a bad experience, so keeping that in mind, you would bring him/her back in if it did not seem to be enjoyable.

Now, some cats have been unwilling to go out when first tried. Rather than trying to pull on the lead, pick the cat up and place him/her where you want to start. If he/she wants to still return indoors, use bait or toys as an incentive to stay. Most of the time, success comes with time.

Figure 7 shows the author introducing "Carla", a female Bengal Cat to the top of the wall. The author uses a branch to get Carla’s attention. The author shows how to get Carla’s attention using the branch to move on the lead in Figure 8. During your outdoor training in the privacy of your yard, you can use a wand toy or a simple tool like the branch the author chose to use in this setting.

Conclusion

Bengal cats are very interactive. They enjoy being with their caretaker and will enjoy whatever you do with them. Hopefully, we have given you some useful guidance in how to use a harness on your Bengal and where is the best location to bring your Bengal outdoors with a properly adjusted harness.

Sheila & John Fowler
(760) 744-7886 / Fax (760) 591-9662
Email: bengals4u@sbcglobal.net

Our Bengal Cats
Carla | Debon | Diana | Elie | Hero | Pawla | Prime | Romeo

Other Bengal Cat Links
About | Bengal Cat Pedigrees | Bengal Cat Queens | Bengal Cat Studs
Bengal Cat Testimonials | Buying a Bengal Kitten / Cat | Home Page

Articles
Bengal Cat Articles

View: Disclaimer