Breeds of wild cats: overview, features, types and interesting facts

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:53

Keeping a wild cat at home is very difficult. Tigers, lions, jaguars look harmless and cute as babies, but they grow up and become dangerous for their owners. Of course, if you are a circus trainer or an Arab sheikh, then in the first case you will have enough experience, and in the second - money for such a whim. But what if you just love wild cats? How not to expose animals to suffering, and yourself to danger? As if specifically for this occasion, there are breeds of cats that look like wild counterparts.

Toyger cat

Can you imagine a small tame tiger? A sort of beautiful short-haired toy with a recognizable striped brindle color. By using the word "toy", we do not want to offend a beautiful animal. When breeding the breed, Judy Sugden set out to create a mini-tiger from the genotype of a domestic cat, crossed withbengal cat. The name of the breed is made up of two English words: "toy" and "tiger".

Toyger introduced in 1993. To date, the breed has been recognized by several international associations, but the process is not yet complete. According to the breed standard, a cat should have an elongated low body, dense shiny fur with a clear striped pattern.

The head of a toyger should be decorated with circular marks, which ordinary domestic cats do not have.

Special requirements are put forward for the color of the fur. The background color should be brown, orange brown, or golden brown. Stripes are required to decorate not only the back, but also the stomach, chest, head, and even ears. A prerequisite is the absence of longitudinal stripes on the body of the animal. The toyger fur should feel like plush to the touch. Ideally, the sides of the muzzle are decorated with sideburns. The shape of the ears of this breed is rounded, the eyes are medium-sized. They are slightly covered by overhanging eyelids.

Despite its wild appearance, the toyger is a very playful pet. He is sociable and non-aggressive, while he is strongly attached not only to the house in which he lives, but also to the owners.

Marble Cat

Pardofelis marmorata, or marbled cat, is a wild breed. This feline in appearance resembles a clouded leopard, although it is slightly larger in size than a domestic cat. According to genetic examinations, the direct relatives are the Kalimantan cat and the Asian golden cat. In 2002, it was listed in the Red Book as a species subject todisappearance.

Appearance description:

• The marble cat has a brown-gray color with a reddish tinge. The wool is decorated with black stripes.
• The shape of the head is rounded, short. Forehead wide.
• The cat has big brown eyes.
• The legs are short in shape, while the paw is rather wide.
• The tail is very fluffy, of great length, sometimes it can exceed the size of the body and head.

Ocicat breed

Not all rare breeds of wild cats can boast of real predatory ancestors. For example, representatives of the Ocicat breed are insanely similar to wild ocelots. But they do not have the genes of these predators. The breed is bred entirely on the basis of pets. In the long list of progenitors, you can find the Siamese, Abyssinian, American Shorthair cat.

Ocicats have a light brownish-gray coat with elongated dark spots. The base of the tail, neck and head are decorated with rings and stripes.

Bengal cat

This cat breed is amazingly beautiful. She resembles a small leopard not only in appearance, but also in habits. The creation of this hybrid was painstakingly worked in America. The first attempt to cross a wild Bengal cat with an ordinary domestic "Murchik" occurred in 1961. American Jeanne Mill brought a wild kitten from a trip to Bangkok. Very beautiful offspring were born from him, but most of them died of leukemia. This happened in every litter. Around 1976The University of California took up the issue of breeding a new breed. Here they managed to achieve the emergence of a viable breed of wild cats for home keeping.

The Bengal cat turned out to be a little larger than the usual domestic breeds. She is agile, strong and graceful. But the most important quality for the owners is an extraordinary mind. The animal is considered the most intelligent cat breed. The Bengal cat has rounded paws and a smooth, medium-length tail. The muzzle of the cat is wide, and the large oval eyes are set wide apart. Eye color can be anything, but if you are offered a colored cat with blue eyes, then this is not a Bengal breed. Only the snow bengal has blue eyes. This is the name of the silver color, which is the rarest and most expensive in this domestic breed of wild cats. The ears of the animal are medium, but they are slightly tilted forward, which is also considered a sign of the breed.

The coat of the Bengal cat is dense and short. It shines like it was rubbed with a special tool. Regardless of the main color, clear spots or rosettes go through the coat, the color of which can be either brown or black.

Savannah

This is another hybrid obtained by crossing a predatory bush cat (serval) with domestic breeds. Savannah was bred around 1986. The work was carried out by lovers of the breed of big wild cats, so the result is larger than ordinary pets. The first kittens were bred by Patrick Kelly and Joyce Sroufe. Breed standards are approved by the international association, but they are recognized only in 2001year.

At the withers, the Savannah can exceed 60 cm, and a unique pet weighs up to 15 kg. And in this case, we are not talking about overfed, beloved pets, but about active, lean animals. The body of these cats is elongated, the neck is elongated, and the paws are rather long. The ears are large and round, because of them the head seems somewhat small. The coat is short, pleasant to the touch and very thick. Colors can be quite varied. There are brown, chocolate, golden and silver savannahs. The coat of the breed is covered with numerous spots.

Wild domestic cat (Savannah breed) is a bright representative of the struggle of opposites. She is active and calm at the same time. The cat needs to move, she spends a lot of time on the street. But at the same time, dog-like devoted to the owner. And savannas are not afraid of water at all.

Usher's cat

In 2007, the wild breed of cats Ashera was presented to specialists. She was positioned as a large hypoallergenic pet, bred on the genetic basis of African servals, Asian Bengal cats and domestic breeds. The price of a kitten reached 27 thousand dollars, an adult cat could be bought for 6 thousand

Later it turned out that the new breed was not so new after all. The enterprising swindler was just trying to cash in on his love for unusual pets. Breeder Chris Shirk suggested that the wild breed of cats, whose name is Ashera, does not exist, and the specimens presented are savannah cats from hisnursery. To prove his assumption, the breeder demanded a DNA test. The official examination exposed the swindler.

Serval

Several hybrids have already been bred by crossing the African serval with other breeds. But it turns out that wild predatory servals can be kept at home in a pure, rather than a hybrid form. If a serval is taken into the house as a kitten, then it is well domesticated. But with such a pet you need to be careful. Although the animal becomes a devoted and affectionate pet, it does not lose the reflexes and habits of predatory ancestors. By the way, servals are excellent swimmers. They are not afraid of water at all.

Sand cat

We described the breeds of domestic cats that look like wild ones. But our story was about large animals. Now imagine an adult fluffy animal that looks like a kitten all its life. This is a dune cat, which is the smallest representative of wild cats. The body length of the baby along with the tail is about 80 cm. The maximum weight of an adult male is 3.5 kg, the females are somewhat smaller.

Sand cats are well domesticated. They make pretty fluffy pets with curious wide muzzles. The head of the animal seems to be a little flattened, and beautiful sideburns grow on the sides. The ears of the dune cat are large, slightly pointed. The animal has excellent hearing.

Pixie bob

Many breeds of wild cats look funny, not aggressive. These include the pixie-bob obtained bycrossing domestic cats with a short-tailed forest cat. Outwardly, the pixie bob looks like a wild lynx. The breed is often confused with the Maine Coon and the domestic lynx, but there is a slight difference - a short tail and a special look. The eyes of cats are set deep, their shape is similar to a closed triangle.

Among the features of the breed are polydactyl paws. Animals with such a deviation are even allowed to show.

The character of the pixie bob is very similar to a dog. This is a smart and loyal animal, amenable to training. He is attached to the owner's family and participates in her life, while not making any special requirements for maintenance.

Bombay

Remember the beautiful panther from the cartoon Mowgli? Would you like to have one like this at home? Of course, a large predatory cat is not very suitable for home keeping, but a miniature bombay is just right! Mickey Harner worked on the creation of the breed for almost 20 years, but the result was worth it. The Bombay Mini Panther looks amazing. The animal has a blue-black shiny coat and bright orange eyes. The movements are smooth and graceful, like a real wild beast.

Shawzi cat

Wild cat breeds can be very different. But oddly enough, they most often make sociable, unpretentious, devoted pets. The Shawzi breed, obtained by crossing reed cats with domestic cats, was no exception. The animal turned out to be large, tall and heavy. An adult cat can weigh more than 15 kg.

For breedcharacterized by an elongated triangular head shape with a small muzzle. The ears are large, with a wide base and pointed ends. Tassels are often visible. By standard, the tips of the ears and tail should be black. Shawzi wool has a unique structure. She has a very dense undercoat, and each hair is decorated with two noticeable dark stripes. These stripes form a pattern on the legs and tail, and on the body it is almost not noticeable. Color can be black, gold, brown, silver. The chest and belly are always lighter than the back.

By nature, the breed is curious and energetic. Cats love to jump and master heights.

Every cat owner is sure that his pet is unique. But some breeds of animals are actually unusual. If you like the feeling of having a tame predator living in your home, then get a cat breed that looks like wild animals.