Bengal Cat Thriller Profile

This is a photograph by Helmi of the well known Bengal cat Thriller showing a close of up his head and shoulders in profile. You don’t see many photographs from Helmi like this. Thriller is a very glamorous Bengal cat. You can see him again on this page.

Bengal cat Thriller in profile by Helmi Flick
Bengal cat Thriller in profile by Helmi Flick

One thing that is immediately noticeable is the way Thriller’s whiskers are pointing forward slightly. This is a reflex reaction to the presence of the cat tease being waved around by Ken Flick that Thriller is looking cat. Cats move their whiskers forward in readiness to ‘feel’ prey when about to attack. You can see that reaction when you play with your cat. It is almost instantaneous. Ken is the ‘wrangler’ and he gets the cats into position for Helmi.

Thriller has a very solid and compact head and shoulders with high contrast markings on his coat. The zig-zag markings on the side of his face echo the small Asian wild cat, the leopard cat, and indeed other small wild cat species that live in the forests or similar habit.

This is an opportunity to refer to the breed standard from TICA for the profile of the head. Of course there is no Cat Fanciers’ Association breed standard as they do not accept wild cat hybrids.

It says that there should be no break between the ‘curve of the forehead’ and the ‘bridge of the nose’. My black moggie has an identical profile to Thriller. Thriller has a break between the nose and forehead. I don’t how that impacts on judging at cat shows. Thriller is a champion show cat. The other page linked to above gives a list of some of his awards.

For me, Thriller has a powerful stocky build. Not all Bengal cats are quite so powerful looking. They can be more slender. You’ll notice that his ears are quite small. The breed standard demands relatively short medium to small ears. Often the purebred cats have unnaturally large ears. The coat should be ‘short and dense’.

4 thoughts on “Bengal Cat Thriller Profile”

  1. The author of the best comment will receive an Amazon gift of their choice at Christmas! Please comment as they can add to the article and pass on your valuable experience.
  2. A great capture! My first impression was that he was a powerful looking cat as well Michael. What I wonder is why something as beautiful as this could be kept out of a pedigree cat club. The wildness is supposed to be breed out by the 8th or 9th generation? Anyway, their loss.

    Reply
    • I agree that Thriller is a strong cat. Bengal cats can be pretty strong both physically and mentally. Thriller has the body of a middle weight boxer.

      Reply
  3. Classic Photograph.Feel sad that two of the world’s most rare and higly prized pedigree cats, “THE BENGAL CAT” and the “BOMBAY CAT” have Indian origin names, but, till date India has no recognized “Pedigree Cat Club” .Another fact, barring the Indian names, both the “Bengal Cat” and the “Bombay Cat” have no Indian connection, either in their breeding nor in their breeders, all bred in U.S.A.Will an Indian cat breeder breed the “PUMA CAT” in India?Hoping that some of the ladies in India join together to form a cat club affiliated to either “T.I.C.A” or “C.F.A”.

    Reply
    • I would love a cat fancy in India. The potential is very good and India is ready. Plus the Asian leopard cat (the wild cat ancestor to the Bengal cat) is present throughout India. India still has lots of exotic wildlife. Cat fanciers in the West think India as exotic so it is time for India to come up with their own exotic cat breed! It would do well in America.

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