The history of the Likoi breed, the appearance of werewolf cats and the character of the animal, a description of the health of the breed representatives, caring for the animal, the purchase price. The first meeting with a cat-lykoi never leaves anyone indifferent. Someone is in admiration of such an exotic species of animal, someone is scared and disgusted with it. For some, lykoi evokes sincere pity and a desire to heal them, while for others it is downright panic horror and memories of nightmares.
Yes, the Vidocq of these cats is really not for the faint of heart. No wonder the name of the breed literally translated from Greek means - "wolf cat" or "werewolf cat".
The origin of the Lycoe breed
The history of the Lykoi cat breed began quite recently in the state of Virginia in the United States. In July 2010, the American cat breeder Patti Thomas found two babies of a very strange and somehow painfully shabby appearance among the newborn kittens of an ordinary shorthair cat. An interested and surprised breeder showed these kittens to breeders of Sphynx cats, suggesting a Sphynx mutation. Subsequently, DNA analysis refuted this assumption.
In September of the same 2010, several more kittens with the same characteristics were specially obtained by breeders. By that time, a DNA test showed that the observed mutation had nothing to do with Sphynx, Rex or any other breeds of hairless cats and was an unexpected mutation of an ordinary shorthaired cat. Further clinical studies have shown that such unusual and somewhat scary kittens do not suffer from either dermatological or infectious diseases and are absolutely healthy animals that do not have any dangerous pathologies. It's just that as a result of the genetic mutation that has occurred, the hair follicles lack some components to create a full-fledged coat structure, which is why Lykoi not only do not have an undercoat, but also become completely or almost bald during seasonal molting.
Having defined all this, and deciding that cats with such an original exotic appearance could be of interest to many people, the breeders began to create a new cat breed, naming it with a Greek bias - Lykoi, in full accordance with the repulsive and frightening appearance. However, there was another variant of the name of the breed - "copossum", composed of two words: "cat" and "possum". But this name somehow did not take root.
The first official registration of the breed in TICA (International Cat Association, USA) took place in 2012. Re-registration of the obtained breed with the possibility of its participation in show championships is planned for 2016.
Currently, there are only 14 broods of these unique scary animals in the world, not obtained from the original sire. Breeding work on the breed continues.
The appearance of cats of the Lykoi breed
Likoi are exotic cats with very sparse, almost peeling hair, with receding hairline around the eyes and on the nose. Outwardly, they resemble a cross between a half-mangy cat and a shabby wolf. Even the eyes of these strange cats are more wolf-like.
- Head medium in size with a wedge-shaped muzzle. The transition from forehead to nose is almost straight. The nose is rather wide, slightly humped, bald. The cat's neck is long, muscular, medium in fullness. The ears of a lykoi cat are somewhat larger than average, alert, triangular in shape with rounded ends. The spacing between the ears is standard for a normal domestic cat.
- Large eyes, round, very expressive, somewhat reminiscent of a wolf. Eye color - yellow, gray, gray-green, bluish-gray, ash-blue, sometimes coppery-yellowish - the color of a young emerald.
- Cat torso slightly elongated, flexible, muscular, with a rather wide chest. Because of the "moth-beaten" rare wool, it gives the impression of an emaciated, sick animal. The line of the back is raised and slightly arched (the impression that the cat is preparing to attack). The mass of an adult cat-lykoi is from 3.5 to 4.5 kg, cats weigh less - from 2 to 3.5 kg.
- Medium-length animal legs, either completely naked or covered with very sparse hair. The tail is of medium length and thickness, also with sparse hair. In some individuals, the tail is so shabby that it almost resembles a rat.
- Lykoi cat hair is their main business card. The coat is short and very sparse with a tendency to complete baldness during shedding. There is no undercoat. The most woolly parts of the body are the head, neck, back and sides of the animal. The general appearance of the cat is such that it seems that it suffers from lichen or has been "eaten by a mole".
- Color. Work on the color is still underway. At this stage, the main color of the lycoa is black or grayish-black (roan). The bicolor and blue kittens obtained by the developers of the breed, as an experiment, did not receive further development - they turned out to be not so effective. Further experiments with color are not yet planned by the breeders.
Champion standards for the new breed are currently in development.
Lykoi's character
The Lykoi breed is very young and is not yet available on the sales market, therefore, we can only judge the character of Lykoi cats from interviews with the breeders of the founders of the breed.
According to them, lykoi cats have three main passions:
- The first is an amazing love and affection for humans, which does not fit well with the frightening appearance of these werewolf cats. They really adore the company of people, they are very friendly and affectionate. But strangers are treated with some caution and caution. That is why, with a little training, wolf cats do a good job with the position of a house watchman or security guard, suddenly and very ferociously attacking an intruder and throwing him into flight.
- The second passion of representatives of the Lykoi breed is increased playfulness. All free time is devoted to games and fun. If only there were more toys and people willing to play.
- The third passion of cat-wolves is quite amazing (especially when observing the condition of their fur) - they adore combing and are ready to do it forever.
And also these amazing werewolves, as breeders joke, sometimes “pray”, assuming the pose of a gopher and folding their front legs on their chest. In this position, they can meditate for a long time looking into the endless distance. And if at this moment the Likoi cat gives its hand, then it always gives its paw in response. Here's a funny observation.
Werewolf cats are always very active and mature much faster compared to other breeds, the same sphinxes, for example.
Lykoi cats are excellent hunters, and in this they unexpectedly resemble lively hunting dachshunds. Likoi, like dachshunds, are always ready for pursuit. It doesn't matter who, an insect, a rodent or a bird. And this is where they behave very aggressively. Therefore, werewolf cats are unlikely to be companions to other pets: mice, hamsters and canaries. Likoi will not tolerate such a neighborhood and will certainly solve this problem.
But in general, these seemingly shabby animals really behave like real "werewolves", as needed, becoming like an affectionate cat, then an exemplary watchdog, then suddenly becoming a wild predatory beast. The creators of the breed do not recommend getting these cats to older people, families with small children or already having any pets, especially rodents and birds (for their own safety).
Likoi are too active cats and are suitable for energetic and able to find an approach to animal people who are able to devote considerable time to communication with such difficult and restless animals as werewolf cats.
Lykoi health
At present, all veterinary and genetic tests carried out by breeders have shown that the new breed does not suffer from any infectious, dermatological or other pathologies.
The conducted ultrasound and other laboratory observations, according to the project developers, also showed the absence of problems with the cardiovascular system and high overall vitality of the new breed of cats.
Time will tell to what extent all this corresponds to reality.
Lykoi cat care
The lack of complete information from the developers on the care and maintenance of werewolf cats at home at this time does not allow giving any specific advice to people who want to start this breed in the future.
We can only assume that the recommendations for the care, maintenance and feeding of Lykoi cats will not differ much from the usual rules and recommendations for energetic short-haired medium-sized cats.
Likoi kitten purchase price
At this time, the breeders-creators of the Likoi project are still conducting breeding research and developing breed standards. In fact, only the first 14 litters of kittens of this unusual, but already interesting breed connoisseurs and lovers of cats were bred. The pricing policy of the project has not yet been determined by the developers, as the sale of kittens of this breed by manufacturers is not planned in the near future.
Therefore, now it is impossible to find representatives of lykoi cats on the animal market, and any offers to sell kittens of this breed are deliberately fraudulent and punishable.
A detailed description of lykoi cats in this video:
