Some Bengal cat owners say that their balls of fur have this unexplained tendency to chew on the corners of soft boards and cardboard boxes.
So much, that keeping a Bengal under your roof has become almost synonymous with having a pile of cardboard in one corner of your living room. But is there any tangible, plausible explanation for this?
Well, let's see.
​1. Your Bengal Could Be Bored
This is one of the main reasons why Bengals love playing around with cardboard, especially if your Bengal has no playmates or enough toys.
Bengals are evolutionally related to wild Asian Leopard Cats. Although they have been domesticated successfully over the past several centuries, they still possess the same primal instincts as their evolutionary relatives in the jungle.
These primal instincts involve the inherent predatory instinct to hunt, prey and kill.
In the wild, these usually involve tearing and ripping apart their prey before proceeding to eat them or shelving the meat for the uncertain future.
That's why they will chew on cardboard boxes, poke your sofa occasionally and, generally, make a mess of anything they can get their paws on.
Chewing and ripping cardboard is just a way of your Bengal mimicking the animalistic behavior of their more aggressive cousins in the wild.
2. Possibly A More In-Depth Health Problem
​Aside from boredom, a Bengal's craving to chew cardboard boxes could be linked to a myriad of health issues.
Let me explain. Cats will, at times, develop irritated, itchy, and inflamed gums that ache to be rubbed and patted down.
Usually, in the wild, chewing on rough bones does the trick.
Now, considering that Bengals are fully domesticated, they tend to settle for the corner of cardboard boxes among other random items.
What's more, the excessive need to keep on chewing cardboard boxes may indicate a serious nutritional deficiency.
How's your cat's diet? Is your little Bengal getting enough minerals and vitamins?
Make sure that the food you buy is laden with enough additives to satisfy the nutritional needs of your cat.
A good way of ascertaining this is by doing a thorough scrutiny of the label, or the product overview of the manufacturer's brief.
​3. Your Bengal Could Be Marking Their Spot
Cats, just like dogs, have the inherent propensity to mark their territories.
Sometimes, they can do this by leaving their scent ( pee ) on things.
Most of the time they love chewing on any nearby cardboard as a subtle way to claim their spot.
Think of it as a peculiar way the cat is saying, 'Hey, I was here. This is mine.'
​4. Smell or Scent Of The Cardboard Box
The smell or the scent of the box could also be a contributive factor to your Bengal's inclination to scratch and bite on it.
For example, what was originally in the box? As you may already know, just like plastics, some foods or strong smells will linger for a while.
And your cat, having a sharp sense of smell, could pick it up and develop an interest or fondness of the box.
Similarly, if you recently moved houses and the cardboard box was used to ship items from your previous place, the Bengal will still smell your old residence emanating from the box and, consequently, be drawn to it.
​5. A Cardboard Box Represents a Safe Nest
There's nothing that cat's love more than curling around in a small, warm and enclosed place especially during the coldest months of the year.
Just like in the wild, your Bengal knows that they can comfortably rest and even nap within some random cardboard box in the corner of the room without worrying about uninvited guests disturbing their sleep.
Even in the wild, you could walk right by a tiger or a leopard without ever knowing that he was just a few meters away from your path.
It's a feline's way of liking the prospect of being invisible while still watching their immediate environment
As much as it is typical for a Bengal to occasionally chew on cardboard, make sure that your kitty is not ingesting so much of it.
It is not healthy for a cat to chew and swallow cardboard boxes excessively.
Find a way to slice some time off your schedule and play with him if he has no playmate or enough toys.
Thanks and very accurate on the chewing of the cardboard