The Future of the Designer Cat

Yhere are a few points here i hadn't considered. The other problem which you partially touched on is what happens if they escape or are abandoned. They then breed with domestic cats which can then create a generation of more viscous moggies that people aren't expecting.

There are many breeders selling F1 bengals without insuring the purchaser understands the breed . I totally understand Bengals and I won’t purchase F1 thru F4 .

Get a cat who needs a home.

I have found a cat in a mall that seemed to have been abadonned, he also has these dots and a little bit of this colour. I think he may be a mix of a EKH and a Bengal. The difference between him and my other 2 cats is quite huge. He is unbelievable active and really needs a lot of playtime-stimulation. He seems more wild than my Maine Coons, also because he is quite young - about 10~ months now.
People should really think about it, these cats need more time and are a different kind of challenge.

If I see one in shelter and if I can I'll get it, but I hate a wonderful cat at home who does not share.

Your thoughts on a ban creating a black market is my fear with banning declawing. While I personally and professionally do not agree with declawing and do not perform declawing I am concerned that if we ban it completely in the US that people will still seek it for their cats. At least when performed by a veterinarian we prioritize pain control (muiltmodal with nerve blocks) however if a layman starts offering this service due to a wide spread ban the results and pain are going to be abhorrent. I strongly educate my kitten owners about scratching prevention methods and providing them appropriate scratching locations. You can train your can to scratch on a post and not your couch. The post just needs to be tall and steady. 90% of scratching posts sold in pet stores are too short and wobbly.

Jackson, there is a reason F1 and f2 cats are the bread and butter of your practice. Reason number one you hit on in this video. That is, people like the looks of these cats, but they don't bother to get educated about how to care for them or how to live with them. Then, they wonder why they have problems with them and come running to you "Jackson, Jackson help me. My cat from hell is doing x". The other reason, reason number two, is there is a reason F0 cats are called wild. They belong in the wild. When a human couple is expecting a child, they read books. They go to class. They do everything can to learn about how to care for their child , yet parents of F1 cats do nothing of the sort, and then wonder why they have behavior problems. 😔😔😔 Rather than an outright ban, I feel that what is needed is x number of hours of mandatory education before a license to own an F1 breed cat, along with extremely stiff penalties for possessing and unlicensed F1 cat. Unsure whether this legislation should apply to F2'sbor F3's

These cats seem more dangerous than what we were told about pit bulls.

If you play alot with a bengal they will behave and be nice

Can you do more videos on maybe the care of them?

amen! i think it's cruel.

The cats you worked with in video you showed were not f1 and f2, but F2 and F5 🙄

Jackson galaxy love your videos and posts. Look to you for all advice. Your video said what do you think…….(after many rescue cats) got a now 7 year old Bengal female from kitten, is now loving sweet and loyal. So mischievous and quick. Defo hard work. Had an F6 Savannah female - one of the most placid friendly (but hunting) lovely cat. From a Great amazing breeder. Sadly now not with us rip. She was One of the best cats we had. We also have a Bengal X female. Wow!! She is so Bengal! Loud. Crazy. But love her. People need to know these cats need full on regime. Not for the feint hearted. Honestly as much as we love them. We will probably not go hybrid now. I wish I had pic of them quiet on me bed. That is not a reflection of how they can be. People must research and put in 100% time and effort with these beautiful cats. All spayed. Anyways. Sending cat love xxx

I know i'm a year late to this discussion but I think this endorsement of bans is very un thought-out. Because today it's something you agree with but lets say a tortie or an orange cat bites the face off a toddler and now there is a new ban on orange cats or torties based on some bs idea that they are bad or have bad behaviour. One ban already went through for a "dangerous animal" and now it's your cat they are banning. This is already happening with dogs where i live. Rotties, Pit bulls, people talking about banning German shepherds, and chow chows. It's not the animal it's the owner and you should know that more than anyone else Mr. Galaxy.

There should NOT be any hybrid cat or hybrid dogs (wolf plus a dog). Wanting an exotic pet bit Florida in the butt. Look they have the Burmese pythons. My point is it is not a good thing to have exotic pets.

They're destroying the species bit by bit. Another thing that bothers me is Muchkins. I do not find it cute that a cat can't even jump up on the sofa.

I owned an Egyptian Mau, and that girl’s personality was fun but enough for me. She was like having a pet dog !

Loved her dearly, and I miss her. But her personality was a lot a times. I can’t imagine having a higher exotic cat than that.

I’ve owned several cats during the course of my life, and all have been mongrels. I wouldn’t want a fancy breed. Apart from anything else, I wouldn’t be able to let it out for fear of its being stolen (here in the UK we don’t have rabies, so most domestic cats go outside if they want to). It seems to me that some people just go for fancy breeds of cats or dogs because they’re fashionable, regardless of the temperament that may go with a specific breed, and consequently whether the animal will be happy in their home.

My daughter and I volunteer at a no kill shelter and I completely agree. Adopt don’t shop. There are so many dogs and cats that need humans to love and are waiting in shelters in cages.

It's cruel bringing cats into the world and putting them in environments they're not suited for so they end ip going through the trauma of moving from home to home because nobody can handle them. If you want one, adopt don't shop.

Idk if anyone still answers here but I saw on Instagram a savannah cat (or savannah - bengal mix) and she was very pretty. B what catched my eye more: She was very active and loved to go outside. I fell in love but started worrying about ethics of those hybrid cats. I also really love rescues and I have always thought I would rescue a cat one day.
You guys say "Search from the shelters" But I live in very tiny country and we don't have many cat rescue shelters and the couple we have, it's veery rare to have anything that even looks a real breed. The cats are usually called just uhh, Idk if english have a word for is, house cats? In my language it's more like "countryside cat" :D Just "normal" cats. We have history of farm cats and it's still a big problem that people just let their cats go outside as they like.
Also we don't have many savannah breeders anyway, the F1-F4 are also banned in here. I know from Facebook that here lives one person who has Savannah F5? And sells sometimes (Once in couple of years) F6 kittens.
I heard that Bengals aren't somehow consired as unethical as Savannah cats in here but damn, all the bengals here are so inbred and sick! They have so much heart and eye issues, I have heard stories of kittens who died under age of 1 year and a older cat who had to get his eyes removed D: So that's not where I wanna go.
I feel bit biased because I know that looks is a one thing why I fell in love with those exotic cats but the other thing is that I have a senior rescue of my own and I love him so much. He's energetic, loves to play and go outside and maybe I would want something similar when is his time to go 🥺(Also he is maybe similar colored with those bengals??) He is rescue so it would be possible to find cat like that from the shelter but it is veery hard because the rescue cats in our shelters are usually but shy and their true personality comes when they get used to people, but I guess it's possible, needs just a bit luck... I start to feel that getting a bengal would be just dumb and I'm still worried that getting a F6 Savannah would still be unethical 😟So I guess the rescue is the way to go but damn how much I dream of the intelligent and playful cat 😆😭

I never thought about the breeding of those hybrids to that level, thank you! I do have a black melanistic bengal but I am proud to say he is a rescue. My husband found him in the gas station parking lot on his way to work one day and brought him home. He was about 6 weeks old and very sick but we got him to the vet and nursed him back to health and he joined our family. As he got healthy, we started noticing physical characteristics and personality traits that made me go running for some research. I didn't know that a black bengal existed but after some time spent on the computer looking through multiple sites I realized they did and that he had every trait except the coloration. We love our tiny panther and while I try not to play favorites with my fur-babies....Frodo really is my kitty-cat soulmate.

Never understood why people are happy to use animals for all sorts of things for people's pleasure including eating them, but object to breeding cats for that purpose. If you're objecting to caged animals etc, why ignore all the caged animals that are kept to feed all these cats.

Your objections to Savannah cats just don't make any logical sense.

Well, I adopted a cat that was likely part bengal. Didn’t know the full story but I helped my then gf adopt it during 2020 times. The cat became really attached to me. I think they become moreso attached than other cats do to humans, it’s a big commitment. The relationship between me and my ex didn’t work out, and since it was always her cat, she kept him, but he didn’t understand. He hid for a long tome and just really missed me and didn’t understand. I’ve seen other cats really be way more adaptive than that. These wilder cats get very attached. They’re a bug responsibility in thag way and yet there’s still too many other regular non hybrid that need homes. So we should indeed chill out with the f-1 exotic style breeding and just keep the ones we have and perhaps let them breed together. And, we should all worship cats instead of kill them at shelters like the ancient egyptians. All churchs should be homes for cats.

Have been mumbling about the overpopulation of cats and these designer cats since Beiber got one so thank you for voicing my thoughts. Question: where do specific breeds fit in? I own two rescues and a ragdoll.

If bengal breed can exist without making new F1s, so I think we definitely should ban it. Cause Jean Mill has made that to save asian leo cats isn't it?

People with too much money. If these wild cats wanted to be domesticated they would have already done it years ago. Its exploitation. We have enough unhomed kitties in shelters who need homes. I have adopted all my cats from shelters. They make the best pets. Who knows if the mom cat has to be sedated for a male wildcat to mate her. Who knows if the wildcat would kill and eat its mate? A couple weeks ago I got another cat from Anchorage Animal Control. Someone dumped their cat in Decembers' 15 below zero temps and at the time -83" of snow. She was practically frozen. I love her. (I love her enough to eat Tiki Cat at every meal while I eat oatmeal with peanut butter in it for dinner).

Bengals are seriously difficult, l have just taken in another one who was seriously badly treated and bashed, his impossible but lm working on him.

Wow, who would want a cat that doesn’t use a litter box ? 2nd that’s going to tear up your house . And third scratch the hell out of you when it’s pissed off

We love our bengal, BUT they are an investment! My little elitist will paw any kibble out of the bowls of other cats, prefers fresh meat, will pee anywhere to let us know there should be a litter box there, expects his water straight out of the faucet, and removes (and nibbles on) drain covers and other things. He loves to play. I had to learn how to properly work with him so as to not get scratch marks all over my ankles and hands. I found that getting more rescue cats, two of them feral, were the best fit for him and gave him the outlet he needed. He’s the favorite of my husband and friends, and he sheds the least, but I honestly think he’s comparable to the rescue kitty I got him as a buddy from the SPCA.

You didn’t even get your own information correct from your video of the guys with the two cats. I just watched that video and in that video you said they were an F2 and F5, but in this video you changed it. Geeze

I have a rescue bengal and have had a rescue savannah. They were not F1-4 but they were diffcult to home becuause they were wildies. I always rescue.

Pedigrees in general are overrated, I wouldn't give up my Tabby for the world.

I can’t wait for genetic engineering to become more proliferant in the exotic pet hobby.

If it doesn’t look cool then whats the point😂😂

with the exception of one, all my cats until this week have been SPCA, barn, local kittens etc. the one exception was an accident with a purebred siamese getting out in her first heat and finding love on her own... i ended up with a hybrid kitten that i raised from a minute old until 19. i'd never recommend an F1 to anyone but an experienced breeder, i lucked out with my bobcat hybrid, she was very good and i trained her a lot. while it would be nice to have another cat like her, no way i would have done it, so she was spayed as soon as she was old enough. at the time, bengals were pretty much unknown, though she looked a lot like one(silver/black/fawn with full spotted bobcat markings, short hair of the siamese). this week we picked up two f5 bengal girls, but not until we had a lot of discussion, as my hubby only met my bobcat when she was a far more mellow 13. it's not a breed anyone should just get, no matter how pretty, unless they're many, many generations removed and even then some of the traits breed true. i have the experience of 20 years of an accidental f1, so i feel at least somewhat prepared and i'm definitely willing to take the time and effort to train them, but many just don't and that's part of the reason for their mixed rep. they're getting a wrong generation, or not taking the time and effort to deal with their intelligence and energy, or sometimes there are just issues with the cat themselves(inbreeding, separated too soon, wrong behavour reinforcement etc). it's just like with certain types of dogs, some are working breeds, some are guard breeds, and while you can train and teach them, they will have certain instincts and needs that also have to be met or dealt with.

You lost. Savannahs will now become genetically dominant because of traits.

I had a Bengal that I rescued from an abusive home. She was about a year old and very shy, but it only took a short time before she was following me everywhere and talking constantly. It was amazing the number of different sounds she could make and the content was almost always decipherable. For instance, when she thought it was time for me to go to bed (with her of course) she would get on the bed and scold me until I gave in. I have always had cats but she was a handful; super energy, requiring lots of attention and with those powerful back legs she just could get up pretty much anywhere. I don't recommend a Bengal for a beginner cat owner, but if you are willing to put in the effort you will not find a more loving and gentle cat. Not only that but she was absolutely gorgeous. She was with me for 17 years and although I have taken in other cats since then I will always miss her. She was an F5 by the way.

I feel so guilty. My Savannah is F4. She’s so sweet. But she’s terrified of basically everything. I never even thought about her great grandparents

Jackson, you da best and da beast!! Thank you for your awesome and hilarious insights😸

My hope as hybrid pets have become popular is for the improved health of our domestics. I wish they wouldn't be used the way they ARE being used, but I would love to see the breeding of over mutated breeds (folds, rexes, short legged breeds) banned INSTEAD and for those breeds to be bred back to an F6 wild cat/more ancient domestic breed hybrid or later (9-16 or whatever f it goes to. In gardening we call a plant breed "established or stable" after f6) Much like I would love to see the breeding of over-mutated dogs like straight Frenchie dogs banned and existing Frenchie dogs bred back to healthier older breeds (Akitas, Canaan dogs, haired xolos- prime candidate for the Frenchie imo, red heelers, Carolina dogs) or yes, late generation coydogs or wolf dogs or dingo dogs to fix some problems but keep whatever personality traits possible.

I think banning these animals is a mistake, but licensing them specifically only to breeders trying to improve the health of existing domestic cat breeds works would be a vast improvement. (And it would be my hope that there enough f2s-f6s out there to do this at this point and go ahead and ban F1s)

I've got 2 bengals, 1 cloudy 1 spotty, Not by choice, but my aunt died and it was us, the street, or Battersea cats home. They are the sweetest, most loving and compassionate cats, after 8 years i couldn't imagine life without them.<3

I doubt you are still monitoring this since it is so many posts ago. I admit I haven't read all of the thousands of comments here. I have had cats all my life and I am trying to decide if I should get a Chaussee. we move in a few weeks and we will have a yard enclosed for the cats, which will protect them from the awful birds around here. We will have a 12 year old Siamese-ish rescue, a modern Siamese pure-bread that i never registered with CFA, an F4 Bengal, and an f5 Savannah. should i reconsider the Chaussee? I am sure once i see her it will be too late.

I have a F 10 Bengal female. Still a tiny bit crazy but essentially a domesticated cat.
I can see where the ban is coming from but you do have the problem of inbreeding and lack of hybrid vigour in the genetic stock.
Hybrids are not for 95% of cat owners, they require a lot of effort. But you get a cat with a lot of personality.

I have only been a domestic cat owner and don’t know anything about the various wildcats. But, from the little I’ve seen and then watching this video, here’s what my impression is.

While there are also many who feel that domestic cats should not be owned and kept inside, even as an owner, I do agree, to a point. I wish mine had more open space to roam and live a natural life. Soon, I may be moving and, if they’re still alive, when I do, I will be able to offer them that.

But, I also know these are DOMESTIC CATS. Domestic cats will always have a certain amount of wildness in them. But, at least they’ve been domesticated for quite some time, they do not pose much of a life threat, and owning them can afford them a certain amount or great deal of protection, from the realities of human life.

When I see people breeding cats, for $$$, yes, there are those sacrificial parents. They live a forced, caged life. Miserable. I would never do that. I feel that it’s almost like narcissistic objectifying, only it’s done quite freely, legally, and socially, because animals don’t have rights. But, I think it’s an ugly business.

In addition, perhaps, some of the buyers who buy these F1s, etc., having Dunning Kruger Effect. Because I think they typically buy the pet, seeing it only as an object, treating at F1, like a Ragdoll. They don’t know anything about their pet and not only may expect that an F1 will conform to only what a Munchkin might be comfortable with, but may punish or release the cat, for not doing so.

There was some clown idiot whose 3 year old Savannah cat got out or was released and was shot and killed in MI, back in 2013. Obviously the owner was a danger to the cat and the cat could’ve become a danger to the neighborhood.

And, yes, I remember the skydiver with the 2 Savannahs. Hopefully, everything’s OK.

I also wonder what Jackson thinks about people owning Caracals. Because if I’ve ever seen a permanently angry feline in captivity, a Caracal would be it. The owners “say” they’re happy. But, when I see an animal bearing teeth, ears, pulled back, eyes glaring, even if they never swipe at you, something tells me they’re not happy and I don’t think I have to be an HSP to catch onto that. If anything, it may indicate that these animals feel further confined, by any off camera swiping, where there may have been severe consequences. If so, owning them is a pretty bad idea.

There is no need to ban the cats already here as long as no more purely ‘wild’ cats are used

Government:
Always worried about things they should not be.
Totally ignoring issues that matter.

I love ("love") people who get hybrids because they want something wild... and then get mad when it acts like a wild animal. What did you expect, my guy? There's a reason we domesticate animals! Wild animals are not good at living in houses!