The Caracal hybrid
Caracals are a beautiful and majestic wild cat that can make wonderful lifelong pet companions. But owning an exotic animal isn't an option for many: they require special dietary needs, enclosures for exercise, and a lifetime commitment. For years breeders have tried to hybridize the caracal with little success until recently.
Enter the Caracat, a hybrid of the Caracal and a domestic breed, usually Abyssinian or other domestic shorthair.
First successfully bred in Ukraine, the Caracat is slowly making its way into cattery programs in the US and Canada. An incredibly rare hybrid, there are only about 200 Caracats today.
Expect to pay $15-20,000 USD for an F1 from a reputable breeder. If you find someone selling one for less, it's probably too good to be true! Check our Breeders List for contacts around the world of legitimate breeders.
history & Ownership
History
Diet & Exercise
About Caracals
With only 40 or so registered Caracats in the world this is one of the rarest and most sought after hybrids. Development of the breed began in the 1990s when a hybrid kitten was born at the Moscow zoo. The next Caracats weren't born until 2007 when breeder Joy Geisinger successfully paired a caracal with Abyssinian. The next breeder to pick up the work was Alison Navarro who produced F1 and F2 Caracats in 2015 in Moscow. Today only two breeders in the world are producing their own F1s (caracal x domestic or purebred cat). New breeders in the U.S. and Canada are building on these foundations and creating F2+ generations at the moment.
About Caracals
Diet & Exercise
About Caracals
Caracals are an incredibly loving and well socialized medium sized cat that has adapted incredibly well to living with human companions. But caracal ownership is not for everyone, they need special enclosures, enrichment and diet that most aren't suited to handle. But with such wonderful temperaments and social personalities they are a perfect candidate for hybrid offspring. Enter the Caracat!
Diet & Exercise
Diet & Exercise
Diet & Exercise
Caracats are no different than their hybrid cousins: Bengal, Savannah and Chausie. The closer to wild ancestry (F1) the more they will require specialized diet and enrichment, and the farther you travel down to an F5 or F6 they are considered domestic and can adapt to almost any other environment like a regular housecat.
Even an F1 however does not require much extra effort, they do need some supplemental raw diet if not 100% raw, but most can thrive with a commercial feline product plus raw or whole prey for the occasional treat or enrichment.
They are currently an experimental breed with TICA.