Chausie
| Chausie | |
|---|---|
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| An adult Chausie cat. | |
| Alternative names | Jungle Curl Stone Cougar Mountain Cougar |
| Breed standard | |
| TICA | standard |
| Hybrid cat (Felis catus × F. chaus) | |
A Chausie (pronounced /ˈtʃaʊsi/; also known as Jungle Curl, Stone Cougar, Mountain Cougar[1]) is a hybrid of the domestic cat (Felis silvestris catus) and the Jungle Cat (Felis chaus).[2] Despite their wild appearance, they are domestic. The Chausie was first bred in the late 1960's and early 1970's, and it was granted Advanced New Breed status in TICAnin 2003. Chausies should be long and lean, with sufficient boning without making them seem overweight. Gold or yellow eye color preferred; hazel and light green allowed. Coat has enough length to accommodate at least two bands of flecking.
[edit] Breeding history
Generations are identified by F1, F2 and F3, with F1 being the offspring of the original cat and the jungle cat mating. Males in the F1 to F4 generations are usually sterile. The domestic cat breed most widely used for Chausies is the Abyssinian, because they have the same look and active habits as a Jungle Cat, but are much smaller. A Chausie, due to the various sizes of the parents, can weigh between 15 and 22 pounds (when full grown, the males are larger than the females). They were first bred in the late '60s or '70s to provide a safer alternative to keeping full jungle cats as pets. The breed was granted registration status with TICA in March 1995. In February 2001, the breed's status was changed to allow only animals three generations or more removed (F3) from the wild cat into show halls. It was changed to Advanced New Breed (ANB) status as of May 2003 and all cats shown now need to be "C" coded which means 3 generations of breeding Chausie to Chausie.[3][4]
[edit] Appearance and behaviour
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Their size depends on the size of their parents; adult Chausie males typically weigh about 10-22 pounds, and females are usually smaller. They appear to be found in three colours: brown ticked tabby, solid black and black grizzled. Brown ticked Chausies have golden fur with a faint grey brown undertone and black markings on their face, tail, and legs. Black grizzled Chausies have dark brown to black fur with silver ticking giving their fur the "grizzled" appearence. Their ears are notably special- a large mobile-type. Individuals considering keeping Chausies should be aware of the cats' high activity level. They are very loyal to their family and do like other pets.
Digestive tract problems have been occasionally associated with this breed; some cats may be gluten-intolerant, and have trouble digesting commercial cat food which contains wheat or other gluten grains. Similar to other hybrid cats, Chausies can take up to 2 or 3years to reach full size. Chausies are known for their speed and nearly six foot vertical leap.
[edit] References
- ^ The Chausies and other cat breeds.
- ^ The Chausie cat identity.
- ^ http://tica.org/public/breeds/cu/intro.php The general information and much more on the Chausies.
- ^ Chausies granted evaluation breed status in TICA.
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Chausies come in two color varieties: brown ticked and grizzled black.
