First of all, I believe in being totally honest about the health problems that have been reported to me by kitten purchasers. You can evaluate whether or not you then feel comfortable taking a kitten from us. If any breeder tells you they never have health problems in their cats, or that they will absolutely guarantee that they will never get an FIP or HCM case, they are lying to you. High health catteries are those that do all they can to prevent infectious disease by good hygeine and excellent vaccination protocols, and prevent inherited disease by choosing cats from healthy lines of cats and screening cats for diseases where practical and medically sound to do so. No breeder can produce kittens that will all live to be 15 years old without ever having a health issue, and no matter how much you pay for a cat, you need to have the financial resources or else pet health insurance in place to deal with these health problems.
In the entire time I have been breeding Bengals, here are the problems I encountered.
3 cases of FIP in related cats, 2 within the same household occuring about 2 years ago. These cats were less than one year old and I refunded the purchase price in one instance, replaced the kitten and then refunded the purchase price when this kitten also developed FIP. I have a 1 year guarantee on kittens for FIP if they are kept solely indoors.
1 kitten with eye discharge within a day of leaving here - I paid for exam by the owner's vet.
1 kitten with a crusty nose - helped the owner with advice via email
3 kittens with diarrhea within a few days of leaving here. I have kept some of my kittens to raise to adulthod and have never had a problem with diarrhea in them. I have tested my cats repeatedly for intestinal parasites and they have always been negative. In talking with other breeders, this is a fairly common syndrome in the Bengal, and may be a stress, diet change or water change issue. I send home my choice of kitten food with the owners, and generally diarrhea issues seem to clear up with just consistent diet. I have tried putting these kittens on medication, but it seems that consistent, high quality diet does the most for resolving any diarrhea issues.
1 3 year old cat developed hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. I did not own the stud cat, and do not use him anymore, and still own the mother, along with a daughter, a son and a granddaughter who are all healthy with no heart murmurs.
I basically guarantee that kittens leave here healthy, and I recommend that you take them to your own vet for an impartial examination within 3 days to both reassure you and to document the health of the cat. If they come down with any infectious disease within that time, then obviously they were infected while in my care and I will take the kitten back with a full refund. I also extend a one year guarantee against any inherited, genetic disorder such as polycystic kidney disease and cardiomyopathy. I also give a one year guarantee against the development of FIP if you keep your cat indoors, because I believe that the development of FIP in kittens may be the result of a genetic susceptibility. I do not guarantee kittens for infectious diseases they catch on your premises, or accidents or traumas that occur in your care, even if the cat caused the accident themselves - I cannot guarantee for a cat with common sense or good decision making skills! Veterinary bills for your cat are your responsibility - you can understand that I cannot be responsible for the veterinary care of every cat that I raise, and to be frank, if you cannot accept that you may eventually incur some veterinary bills for any pet you own, then you are not ready for a pet. I try to do my best to raise these kittens to be happy, well-adjusted, healthy cats and we care very much for all of them, and have trouble parting with them. I don't raise cats to make a fortune, but to at least recuperate some of my costs, and as a hobby and because my kids and I really enjoy our kittens and cats. Yes, they cost a lot of money, but that is not a guarantee that they will live forever, and I can certainly commiserate with your concerns as I spent many times more than the retail price of my kittens to buy my breeding cats, with less of a guarantee that I offer.