Mixed breed cats are increasingly popular in recent years. And I don’t mean your regular moggy of unknown origin, I mean cats that are produced from two purebred parents of different breeds. These mixed breed cats are sometimes known as hybrids, but that’s not really the right word for them. Which matters in the case of cats, because there are true hybrids in the pet world, bred from two different species, not just two different breeds.
Let’s take a look at mixed breed cats first, how they differ from purebred cats, and then have a look at the fascinating world of true pet cat hybrids.
What’s the point in purebred cats?
Although there is a lot of reverse snobbery towards purebred cats, there are some benefits to buying from an established breed.
If you bring home a purebred kitten you can be pretty confident in what they will look like as an adult, what size they will turn out to be and even some likely aspects of their personality or noise level. Some owners really love particular coat patterns, types or colors too.
But there are also some significant disadvantages.
A risky business?
Pedigree or purebred cats are registered, listed and deliberately bred from pairs of cats with common characteristics. This creates an isolated population, where there are fewer choices for potential pairings and therefore a limited gene pool. This is known in biology as an island population, and can increase the risk of genetic health problems.
There is some evidence that mixed breeds or moggies outlive purebred cats by several years on average, and are likely to have better health, which is evidenced by the insurance policies being offered to purebred cats often being higher than those offered to the average cat owner.
Buying a purebred cat doesn’t guarantee worse health or a shorter lifespan, but it does stack the odds unfavorably.
Wildcat hybrids
You’ve almost certainly seen a wildcat hybrid, but possibly didn’t realise why the cat you’d noticed was so distinctive and, frankly, beautiful. Hybrids have mostly been used to create pet cats with incredible spotted or striped coats, or exaggerated ears and long legs. Both civet cats and Servals have been used over the years to mix with domesticated cats and produce offspring that have, ideally, the looks of the wildcat but the mellow temperament of the pet cat. But this isn’t an ideal process.
The hybrid cats sold as pets don’t actually have a wild cat parent, they are often several generations removed and will be given a title like F1, F2 or F3 to show how many generations ago their ancestors were truly wild. Depending on where you live, there will be legal rules about which of these cats the average owner is even allowed to bring home without a special licence. This is because the closer related to the wildcat your kitten is, the more likely they will be to have a temperament that isn’t a good fit for a family home.
Is One Type Better?
Moggy, mix, purebred or hybrid, there are positives and negatives to every cat type. But for me personally, I’ve always wanted my decision for a pet to be guided by health first, personality next, then appearance and any other factors.
Avoiding cats with noticeably changed appearances, like those with flattened faces, dwarfism or unusual floppy ears, is sensible on a health basis. You’ll mostly find these conditions associated with pedigree cats, but not always. Purebred cats can also often have the most reliable temperaments, although that isn’t always the case. There will always be a little dash of luck involved!
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