ELYSIAN
BENGALS
ABOUT
Hello! My name is Meghan Waals. I am a Breed preservationist and animal wellness coach. From the young age of 7, I wanted to be a veterinarian. My connection with all animals was undeniable and even as a young child, I had a special bond that often skipped right passed my peers and translated to friendships with my childhood companions which over the years has included cats, dogs, lizards, salamanders, fish, rabbits, gerbils, rats, and even some ant and worm farms. Because of this natural connection, everything that followed after the age of seven has related to my thirst for knowledge and compassion for animals.
In 2014 I graduated from Albright College with a Bachelor's Degree in Psycho-Biology, Pre-Veterinary with a minor in Evolutionary Studies. After college, I continued my education at a local community college completing courses in organic and inorganic chemistry as well as microbiology. In addition I am double certified in animal nutrition and raw feeding as well as animal psychology.
We are the creator of the TICA Charcoal Breed Standard and home to the father of the very first Supreme titled Charcoal Bengal in TICA history BengalLily Mamba Sheikh.
OUR FIRST BENGAL
The love affair with Bengals began in 2004 when at the age of 12, I attended my first TICA cat show and immediately fell in love with the breed. After months and months of saving money and research, Tayla Jade a Brown (black) Spotted tabby entered my life at 8 weeks of age from Myra Klayman at West Sleepy Hollow Farms. Not only did we grow up together but she saw me off to college, moved with me into my first home, and even gave her blessing when my husband and I got married in 2016.
For my husband, Tayla was his first cat as well. Despite giving him the cold shoulder for the the first year of our relationship, when Tayla realized Jan was staying he became her second favorite person (second to me of course) Tayla wormed her way into Jan’s heart and without a doubt turning him into a cat person!
Sadly we lost Tayla in September of 2018. She forever changed my life and to this day she is the reason the Bengal is my spirit animal.
WHY BENGALS
To say the Bengal is my spirit animal is an extreme understatement. This breed speaks to me in no way a domestic cat has (despite sharing my home with two wonderful domestic rescued cats Remy and Qaedo).
Bengals are intelligent and stubborn, beautiful, and graceful, full of personality and intent. They are confident, talkative, and interactive. They are everything I am and everything I want in a companion. Their beauty is drool-worthy, their genetics intriguing and their history unique.
WHY BREEDING
At 8 weeks of age (an age we now know is way too early), Tayla was brought into my family's home with not only the intentions of a loving family companion but with rights to show and breed. Despite the full support of my parents, I decided it was not the time to start a breeding career with Tayla however that never stopped my eventual pursuit with the breed in the future.
Over the next 14 years I had prepared myself to be the best Breed Preservationist I could. Not only has this included high school and college courses in the sciences, but through lots of reading and personal research, volunteer work and jobs in various facets of the animal world. Today I hold a degree in Psycho-Biology Pre-Veterinary with a Minor in Evolutionary Studies and specialize in Companion Animal Species Appropriate Nutrition.
Becoming a Breed Preservationist was never about money, it was a way to bring together all my passions into one arena. My passion for animals, animal behavior, genetics, carnivore nutrition, genetic research, writing and much more. A lifestyle I could impact people's lives with on a large scale and continue to contribute to advancements made not only in my breed but in many other fields of genetic research, human health, mental health, animal behavior and much more.
WHY ELYSIAN BENGALS
1. Before breeding, we had Bengals as pets since 2004
2. We have a degree in psychobiology pre-veterinary with a minor in evolutionary studies, a special interest in genetics and carnivore nutrition with extra courses in microbiology, organic and inorganic chemistry, double certified in animal nutrition and raw feeding and animal psychology
3. Our kittens are exposed to over 200 stimuli with an extensive socialization program
4. We work from home and are with our cats and kittens 24/7
5. We health test all our adults AND kittens including HCM screening, PK-def, PRA-b screening and through the use of the Wisdom Panel, test for 50 genetic diseases and mutation plus random respiratory PCRs and fecals
6. The most extensive health guarantees of any breeder including 72-hour health guarantee, Lifetime congenital guarantee and lifetime HCM guarantee*
7. We have kittens in spoiled homes worldwide
8. We are extremely transparent
9. You get updated pictures and a live video of your kitten every week
10. Your kitten comes with a huge welcome pack
11. You become part of our Elysian Bengals family through constant contact including the Elysian Bengal Premier Kitten Club before your get your kitten and the Elysian Bengals Chattery facebook page after your kitten goes home
12. Each year we host a Secret Santa Paws for the cats and kittens and print a Elysian Bengals Calendar and yearbook
13 . We are active in genetic research, the show hall, and The International Cat Association (TICA)
14. We wrote and campaigned the TICA Charcoal Pattern Effect Standard
* if screened annually
