BREAKING NEWS!!! We are retiring!!!

Its been exciting watch the breed develop over the years, and we're thrilled to have been a part of the development. Its just now time for us to enjoy some personal family time. Thanks to all who have been a part of our cat family for so many years. We've met so many nice people along the way and we will certainly miss our special friends.

Gene & Ken

Gogees Cattery has been actively breeding and showing cats with TICA since 1985, when we had Persians and Ocicats. In fact we produced many national award winning Ocicats. When we discovered the Bengal breed, we knew that was the breed for us, and gave up the others. We got our original Bengals from Jean Mill, the first was Millwood Rajin Cajun of Gogees, and he has become one of the best known foundation Bengals in the breed.

In an early breeding, we produced Gogees Warhawk, our first "Glittered" Bengal, and were suddenly awestruck. He was so spectacular, with his silky coat of golden glitter. To isolate and "lock in" that gene, we bred Warhawk to his sister, and the rest is history. Our bloodlines have become famous for producing and perpetuating the wonderful gold-tipped glitter that is so unique to the Bengals. There were times, when we were showing Warhawk, that judges were trying to wipe off the glitter, thinking we had sprayed his coat with something to make him sparkle.

Along came Gogees Nitro Glistening, son of Rajun Cajun, who was an awesome cat with wonderful coat, color and conformation. We showed Nitro all over the US while trying to get the breed known and recognized with The International Cat Association. Nitro won many Best In Show NBC awards, and was televised several times, including being on NBC's Today show and on ESPN.

About this time, we did an experimental breeding, since our gene pool was dangerously small. We bred Warhawk to a black Bombay, and the second generation from that cross gave us the first "green-eyed" sepia snow leopard, Kotton Pickin. That started a whole new line for us, and for the Bengal world. Today most mink and sepia snow Bengals trace their ancestry back to Kotton Pickin.

After the brown spotted Bengals gained recognition with TICA, we continued showing Kotton in the New Breed and Color Class. We spearheaded the effort to have the snows and marbles recognized, and were instrumental in forming the standard for those colors. Meanwhile, we were continually striving to produce Bengals that looked less like their domestic ancestors, and more like the wild. We concentrated on coats with color and silky texture, on patterns to get the marvelous rosettes, and on heads with full whisker pads and small ears. We like the large size of Bengals, and have kept breeders that produce robust bone and heavy musculature.

Since then, we have produced kittens that have become the foundation of many breeding programs, here in the US and in Europe and Asia. We exported our top quality cats to help establish bloodlines abroad, and now we have International Grandchampions and Champions.

And last, but not least, we wrote THE book on Bengals. (Originally written by Gene Johnson, who is now Gene Ducote). At a time when nothing was known about the breed, barely no one had heard of them, we published a book to help familiarize the public with this wonderful breed of cat. Being a new breed, there were lots of rumors and false information being spread, so we thought there should be a source of truth, and a guide to those seeking information. Our book was a tremendous success, especially at a time when the breed was just becoming known. The book is still popular throughout the world, as it offers advice on selection of a kitten, health, care, training, breeding, and many other aspects of Bengal ownership.

We pride ourselves on our reputation, on our quality cats, and our honest evaluation of kittens. It is very important for us to find the perfect kitten for interested buyers. We maintain pure Bengal lines, doing no outcrossing to other domestic breeds. We are working with bloodlines from 5 different Leopard Cat lines. From precious pets, to spectacular show prospects, we strive to place kittens that display the awesome appearance of little living room leopards, but with the personality of the most loving pussycats.

Gogees Bengals are well-known for their spectacular plush coats, displaying the unique "glitter". All of our breeders have the ultra-soft coats, and produce this consistently. We breed for intense black markings on bright gold backgrounds, and all of our breeder are totally rosetted, so that all our kittens are too. We believe that in order for rosetting to be a factor, it must be dramatic. That is, the rosettes must be vivid, not faded, and must be produced on coats with little or no ticking to obscure them. So we are producing large vivid rosettes, on clear bright backgrounds.

Our kittens are raised indoors and are thoroughly socialized. They are used to being handled, and loved and cuddled. They are guaranteed healthy, and we have minimal problems since ours is a closed cattery. The kittens are vaccinated, wormed, and vet-checked before going into their new homes.

We rely on repeat business, and on word of mouth advertising. We have satisfied customers all over the world, who can testify as to the quality and temperament of our Bengals. So it is most important to us to protect our reputation, and ensure that each and every new kitten owner is delighted with their new Bengal from Gogees.

If you are looking for a special Bengal kitten, let us know what you want. If we have a kitten that we think you might like, we will send photographs and pedigrees. A deposit from you will then hold the kitten till it is ready to go (at about 10 weeks). If air shipping is necessary, we will make arrangements that meet with your schedule. Average domestic airfare can range from $175-250 plus shipping prepration charges ($50--vet certificate, shipping crate). Because of the huge demand for quality kittens, it may be necessary to be on our waiting list for a short while.

Let us reassure you, that we have shipped kittens worldwide and have been very satisfied with the service. Never have we had a kitten mistreated, and all arrive safe and sound. New owners tell us the kittens don't seem to be affected by the flight, that they just march right out of their pet taxis and start exploring their new home.

Lately, we've had to rethink our policy on allowing visitors, so we no longer conduct casual tours of our home and cattery. We can send references from former customers, and there is a wealth of information including many photos here on this website. We also must respect the privacy of both our pregnant girls and those with new babies, as they find intrusion into their safe areas quite upsetting. Mothers with newborn babies feel very threatened having strangers come in, and in some cases can be so upset they will hurt or even abandon their babies.

It may seem like a good idea to come visit young kittens to see which one might "fit" you best, but kittens aren't like puppies. Until they are weaned, they focus on their mother and littermates, and they don't readily go to strangers. Cats are much more wary than dogs, and need time to get to know someone before they totally accept them.

Besides that, please understand that we at Gogees are totally responsible for the health and well-being of these little lives. By allowing visitors to come into our nursery area, we are potentially exposing these young babies to disease or bacteria that may be carried on the hands or clothing of well-meaning visitors. Once you've selected a kitten and it is past the risky stage, their immune system is no longer in jeopardy and the first immunizations are giving the kitten necessary protection. You will then be able to make an appointment to come visit your kitten.

Please understand that we feel this policy is necessary in order to protect our very young and vunerable babies. We will not risk their health just to make a "sale".