Cat Chausie

The Chausie Cat was born out of the desire of some American breeders to have a cat with the appearance of a wild jungle cat, with the character of a domestic cat. Around the 1960s, the first Chausie was born, which is a hybrid cat, born from a cross between a domestic cat and a wild cat native to certain regions of Central Asia, Africa and the Middle East, called Chaus.

The breeders are still working on its characteristics in order to make it more and more like the wild cat, so it has been crossed with Abyssinians, Bengal cats and domestic cats without pedigree with wild features, the wild cat being very difficult to find.

Character of the Chausie Cat

The Chausie Cat is a very lively and active feline. It is sociable but becomes very attached to its owner with whom it establishes a unique and special relationship. It does not tolerate loneliness and is in constant need of human company or even the company of other cats, and if it has been accustomed as a child even that of a dog. It is a breed, however, not suitable for everyone; it is always lively and hyperactive, sometimes even restless and exuberant, so it needs a human who has time to spend with it.

He loves the outdoors, climbing and running, so he is not suited to living only in a flat, also because being large, small spaces condition him a lot. However, he also loves the comfort and warmth of a house in the bad weather. It is therefore a rather demanding cat. It is suitable for large families, even with children, because it loves to play a lot. It is not suitable for lonely or elderly people, as it needs to release its energy by climbing, running and walking, even on a leash.

One must not forget, however, that there is a bit of the wild in its DNA, so it needs freedom and can hardly stand constraints. It is a formidable hunter and if free in a garden this is the activity with which it spends most time, bringing its owner ‘gifts’ that are not always desired. And it must be very well controlled outdoors because its desire for freedom and its curiosity lead it to venture far from home.

Appearance of the Chausie Cat

The Chausie cat is a large cat, the male can weigh up to 15 kg, but much heavier specimens are known. It is athletic and muscular, but slender and well-proportioned. Long legs with a medium bone structure emphasise the cat's ability to run and jump. The tail is slightly short.

The head forms a triangle and the eyes are oval and close together and can be gold, yellow, green or hazel. The ears are wide at the base and with longer tufts of hair at the tip. The coat is short and thick and varies from black to brown to silver. It is the only breed to have black and silver in addition to the other colours, i.e. each coat is three quarters black and one quarter silver. Another type of coat is not uniform but has streaks in which brown and black alternate on each individual coat. It has a thick, soft undercoat.

Care and health of the Chausie Cat

This cat is quite long-lived, its life expectancy ranging from 15 to 18 years. It is a fairly healthy breed, but a lot depends on its diet as it is more susceptible to certain intestinal problems, many cats are intolerant to gluten and cannot tolerate industrial kibble.

Ideally, they should be fed raw meat, but this must be of excellent quality as it exposes the animal to risks of infection. Alternatively, wet food, even industrial, as long as it is of excellent quality, has the advantage of favouring hydration. However, one must try to give him a controlled diet as he is always very hungry and therefore tends to eat more than he needs.

One of the reasons why this breed has not yet spread is that most males are born sterile, so reproduction is difficult.

The hair does not give any particular problems, it loses a minimum amount, except during the moulting period, and it is sufficient to brush it once a week.