Content
- Origin of the caracat cat
- Characteristics of the caracat cat
- caracat personality
- Caracat care
- caracat health
- Is it possible to adopt a caracat?
The beginning of caracat cats was totally accidental in a Russian zoo in the late 20th century, when a wild caracal bred with a nearby domestic cat. The result was a cat with a wild character and character. snail-like, but smaller size and different color, so it was rejected and forgotten.
However, they later began to breed intentionally, as interest in this mixture had increased as they considered it easier to domesticate than a wild snail. Crossing with the Abyssinian cat was considered the best mixture for the small caracat to be born with the colors more similar to the wild caracal, as both the coats of the parents are similar. Still, it is morally questionable that the cross between these two felines and offspring can have serious problems. Read on to learn about the curious caracat cat, its origin, personality, characteristics, care and health.
Source
- Europe
- Russia
- thin tail
- Big ears
- Slender
- Small
- Medium
- Great
- 3-5
- 5-6
- 6-8
- 8-10
- 10-14
- 8-10
- 10-15
- 15-18
- 18-20
- Active
- Intelligent
- Shy
- Lonely
- Short
Origin of the caracat cat
The caracat is a feline resulting from cross between a male caracal and a female domestic cat, mainly of the Abyssinian cat breed. The caracal or desert lynx is so called because it has tufts in its ears similar to lynxes, which consist of small black hairs up to 6 cm in length, with which they help to locate the origin of sounds and use them as sensors. However, they are not really related to lynx, but rather to serval. It is a medium-sized solitary nocturnal cat that lives in the steppes, savannahs and stony and sandy deserts of Africa, Arabia and India. It feeds on multiple prey, but mainly on birds, to which it jumps up to 4 or 5 meters to hunt them.
The first cross between a caracal and a domestic cat occurred in 1998 quite accidentally, in the Moscow zoo, Russia. The news was published in the German magazine Der Zoologische Garten, Vol.68. This cross brought a baby they called “bastard” and was forgotten and sacrificed for not having the colors that a snail should have, even though it had its wild behavior.
Currently, however, it is one of the most sought after hybrid cats, especially in the United States and Russia, as they are considered easier to domesticate than wild snails. Because of this, they have been bred in captivity in order to satisfy the increasing demand of these cats. Nowadays, it is preferred to cross them with an Abyssinian cat as it is the closest in color to the snail. This crossing is carried out in captivity, with snails bred “artificially”, because in the wild, snails see cats as prey and not as equals to mate and have offspring. So, the creation of this hybrid is morally questionable. due to the whole process and, as we will see, to the health problems that the offspring may have.
Characteristics of the caracat cat
The caracat is smaller in size than the wild caracal, but much larger than the small Abyssinian cat. The weight that these cats can reach can reach the 13-14 kg, measure about 36 cm in height and reach 140 cm in length, including the tail.
The coat color is very similar to the caracal if it is mixed with an Abyssinian cat. In this way, the caracat is characterized by having the coppery orange fur with dark stripes or stripes (ticking) or for having the same coat tones as the caracal (brown, cinnamon and black, with a white chest and belly). The coat is dense, short and soft. In addition, in caracat you can also see the black tufts on the tips of her long ears (called tufts in caracals), black nose, large eyes, wild look and strong body, but stylized and aesthetic.
caracat personality
First-generation hybrids, that is, those that come directly from the cross between a snail and an Abyssinian, tend to be more restless, energetic, playful, hunters and wild than those of the second or third generation, when they already cross caracat with caracat, who are more domestic and affectionate.
It depends on the luck one has with the first generation specimens, they may or may not be good as companion animals, as some may have unpleasant wild instincts, being irritating, violent and destructive in the home and, although their wild instincts sometimes surface, in other times seem like a normal cat, but more independent and lonely.
Something to keep in mind is that the specimens that have a higher percentage of caracal have, instead of a common meow, usually roar or emit a mixture between squeak and roar.
Caracat care
The feeding of the caracat is more similar to that of the caracal than that of the domestic cat, so it must be based on dead flesh or fangs (small birds, rodents or small mammals) because they are strict carnivores. They eat more and require more daily calories than a standard house cat due to their larger size and greater strength, energy and vitality. However, some eat large, wet and dry cat food. Find out what cats eat in this article and what is the natural food for cats, as when it comes to caring for a caracat, this is more than recommended food.
In addition to taking food needs into account, it is important to provide the caracat with adequate environmental enrichment. If in domestic cats this aspect is essential to avoid stress, anxiety, boredom and frustration, in caracat it is even more. Likewise, this feline tends to have more need to explore and hunt, so it is convenient to take a walk.
On the other hand, caracat cats can be affected by the same infectious diseases as domestic cats, requiring their vaccination and deworming. THE brushing it is also important, as is monitoring the condition of your ears and teeth for disease prevention.
caracat health
The main problem of caracat cats occurs at the end of pregnancy, when giving birth. It is necessary to think that a male caracal is crossed with an Abyssinian female. For starters, Abyssinians are cats that are not characterized by having a large litter, usually giving birth to just two puppies. If you add to this that she was bred to a feline much bigger than she is, she'll only have a huge cat or two smaller, but bigger than a kitten normally gives birth to. Thinking about giving birth under these conditions is quite unpleasant and these females spend a lot of time suffering, often needing veterinary assistance. Unfortunately it's not hard to imagine that some female dies during childbirth, lose a lot of blood or suffer damage to your reproductive system during the process.
Once they are born, many caracat chicks die in a few days because the gestation of both felines is different, with caracal being about 10-12 days longer than domestic cats. others suffer from intestinal problems, such as inflammatory bowel disease, difficulties in digesting the diet for cats, increased predisposition to disease or increased urine marking due to its wild and territorial nature.
Is it possible to adopt a caracat?
There are very few specimens of caracat in the world, no more than 50, so finding one is extremely difficult. Furthermore, this creation is cruel, therefore, first of all, it is necessary to think about the damage it causes to Abyssinian cats and force something that is not natural just by human whim.
On the internet you can search until you find some, although they usually ask for a lot of money for them, so the inability to adopt them adds to the unethical of this crossover. The best thing is to enjoy the two animals separately (the snail and the Abyssinian cat), both are beautiful and big cats as they are, without the need to force a third of your mixture.