Homeland and origin of the domestic lynx, behavior, reproduction, advice on care and maintenance at home, purchase and price. Who only does not live on our big and beautiful planet, but there are some living creatures, looking at which, it is simply breathtaking. All people are completely different in their preferences and tastes, this also applies when it comes to choosing a pet. Today, when in our modern world there is, perhaps, nothing unusual, people choose their smaller friends, approaching such a choice with great responsibility and thoroughness. People were so puzzled by the fact that the range of choice of animals is no longer limited to the familiar and beloved by all cats, dogs, in our era, even a raccoon or chimpanzee is not particularly surprising to anyone.
But there are also people who really dream of getting some kind of unusual friend from the animal kingdom, but they are not ready for completely cardinal changes, they do not allow such a thought that a snake, a lizard or the rarest beetle. Then such exotic lovers can opt for more familiar animals, for example, cats. Is it possible to find such a person who would not feel tenderness at the sight of such a fluffy? Probably not. Believe me, there are such representatives in the world of cats, seeing which, it is simply impossible to take your eyes off and they can be kept quite calmly at home. One of these exotic species is the domestic lynx or, as scientists call it, the caracal.
This is a truly unearthly beauty beast, nature has endowed it with everything - grace, delightful beauty, grace, power and many other enviable features. In addition, this eccentric can absolutely safely be kept in a house, an apartment, like ordinary cats. Of course, some difficulties may arise with such extraordinary kittens, but, firstly, you must be ready for this, because no matter how you yourself decided to bring a resident from the wild into your house. And secondly, as soon as this living beauty appears in your home, you will forget about any problems and troubles. But before you bring such an extraordinary pupil to your monastery, it would be better to get to know him a little closer.
Home territories and origins of the domestic lynx
Domestic lynx, caracal or steppe lynx - all these names bear the same representative of the world fauna. Mankind learned about this amazing animal relatively long ago, the discovery of this species dates back to the distant 1776, then the scientist Schreber attributed this creature to the genus of lynxes. But 67 years later, in 1843, Gray began to study this handsome man and it was he who denied the fact that the object of his study was a representative of the lynx, he decided to attribute this beast to the caracal genus of the same name. In addition, the steppe lynx has been classified into the class of mammals, the order of carnivores, and the family of felines.
In the event that the thought came to your mind that you want to see the steppe lynx in its natural environment, then for this you will have to travel a little, since it is rather rare in the territories of Eurasia. Only a few individuals inhabit the desert regions of the southern part of Turkmenistan, and occasionally can inhabit the territory of Uzbekistan. Most often, this amazing animal lives on the lands of the hot African continent. As his permanent place of distribution, he chose mainly savannahs, desert locations and areas in the vicinity of mountainous regions.
Features of the behavior of the domestic lynx in nature
In its native habitats, this most beautiful predator is active mainly at night, but when spring comes - the caracal cannot deny itself, in the daytime, admire the time when everything around blooms and transforms after winter rest. In addition, it can be active during the daytime in winter, since during this not entirely favorable period of the year, there is sometimes a shortage of food, so this animal has to sacrifice its rest in order to have more time to hunt.
These wildlife dwellers most often choose crevices in the rock as their personal home. But if luck turned to face him, and on his way he happened to stumble upon a mink, which was built by some chanterelle or porcupine, the caracal would happily settle there, no matter how it was a finished house, and not some kind of cavity in the stone. A graceful cat can live in such holes for many years. The territory occupied by these peculiar lynxes is rather large in area, especially for males, two or three times more space is allocated for them than for female lynxes, and they should always live in the central parts of the ranges. Females will be more modest, and they are quite satisfied with the periphery and even the outskirts.
It is very rare that this mammal remains hungry, as by nature it did not get some talent for the hunting craft. Although his long, muscular legs do not allow him to run for too long, he has a gift for making big jumps. In addition, this graceful predator simply has an extraordinary speed of reaction, and as soon as the prey appears in its field of vision, it is immediately overtaken by all the power of the animal's body and sharp claws. A caracal can easily grab a couple of three birds from a flock, which is just about to take off. We can say that this handsome man absolutely does not like to share with his relatives and neighbors, for this reason, immediately after catching his lunch, he picks it up high in a tree and already there, in splendid isolation, he enjoys the meal.
The diet of the steppe lynx consists exclusively of animal products; it can happily devour small-sized antelope, predatory animals, for example, a fox or a mongoose, in addition, the caracal often hunts a variety of rodents, hares, reptiles, porcupines and ostriches. If this sly man lives near agricultural holdings, then he can easily afford to steal poultry, a kid or a lamb. A lynx can live without water for a relatively long time; the lack of fluid in the body is usually compensated for from juicy food.
Continuation of the genus of domestic lynx
The attainment of sexual maturity in these animals begins from six months of age, in some individuals, puberty lasts up to one and a half years, according to some sources, caracals can reproduce effectively if their body weight exceeds 9-11 kg. It is impossible to say for sure about the exact beginning of the mating season, mating can occur all year round, but these animals show the greatest sexual activity from mid-autumn until the end of winter, since during this period an abundance of food reigns on the territory they occupy and they have enough time and energy to reproduction.
The mating season in the steppe lynx is very interesting, it is always supported by mating games and enticing gestures. So, during the breeding season, female representatives begin to secrete specific substances with urine - pheromones, which do not produce any attractive effect on individuals of the opposite sex. Males, in turn, must give a kind of signal that notifies of the beginning of the mating season, while they make sounds resembling a cough. The mating process in this species of animals usually lasts for several days, and the female is rarely limited to only one male, as a rule, she chooses for herself more mature, large and, one might say, mature "male" rats.
The role of the male in the process of reproduction of offspring is only in fertilization, then the expectant mother takes everything into her own hands and under her responsibility. The duration of pregnancy in caracals is approximately 2–4 months, closer to the end of this period, the female begins to search for a secluded place for childbirth. Most often, such places are burrows forgotten by everyone, old distant caves or cavities under the rhizomes of trees. It is in such hot places that the cubs of the steppe lynx are born, in one litter from 1 to 7 kittens. In the first days of the life of these "babies", their responsible mother constantly tries to change their place of residence, dragging her offspring, this is all for their safety, such daily movements continue until the kittens reach the age of one month. When babies (little lynxes) are six months old, they gradually begin to leave the parental nest and begin to establish themselves in their adult and independent life.
Features of the appearance of the domestic lynx
If you are lucky to see this miracle of nature, then we can say with absolute certainty that you will definitely not remain indifferent to it, with all its grace, majesty and extraordinary beauty, the caracal is able to enchant, inspire and simply saturate the soul with beauty. After all, this is not just an animal, it is one of the highest works of art.
At first glance, it may seem that this animal bears a great resemblance to the common lynx, and to some extent it is. The features are almost the same, but the color and parameters differ dramatically. If we consider a caracal, then it is a relatively large cat, the length of its beautiful body is about 60–90 cm, the tail process can grow up to 28–32 cm. The height at the shoulders is up to half a meter, body weight can vary from 10 to 20 kg. Probably the most memorable attraction of such a predator is its ears, decorated with tassels, the length of which sometimes reaches 50 mm. There are also some features on the limbs in the form of a brush formed from tufts of coarse hair, but this is by no means a decoration, these brushes help the animal move well in places of large accumulation of sand.
The excellent body of this mammal is covered with a short, but very thick coat with a very beautiful color. If you don't look very closely, you may get the impression that the color of the caracal's body is monochromatic, but this is not entirely true. The dorsal side of the body of the lynx is painted in sandy or brownish-reddish shades, the abdomen is presented in lighter colors. On the face there are small dashes of black color, the same color and ears and tassels on them. In nature, there are also absolutely black steppe lynxes, the so-called melanists, but this phenomenon is very rare.
Steppe lynx: keeping at home
People bred such amazing pets as caracals in their homes for a very long time, only in ancient times they did this so that later this domesticated predator would help them get food for them and their families. Domestic lynx was once the lot of poor people, so it was once dubbed “a cheetah for the poor”, but now its status in the world of pets has changed a lot and it can be safely called “a cat for wealthy people”.
The domestic lynx is to some extent a universal pet, it can quite easily live in your apartment or in an aviary on the territory of your site.
If you decide to bring this companion from the wild into the house, then it should be noted that it is best to buy a very young animal, babies are much easier to tame, get used to human society, and to new living conditions.
Before bringing such a miracle of nature into the house, you should decide where it will live. In the event that you live in an apartment, then for your pet, first of all, you need to equip a place for a restroom, it can be a litter tray, only much larger than that of an ordinary cat, litter training according to the same principle as and ordinary kittens. Also, a home caracal can be taught to relieve himself on the street during a walk; it is necessary to teach him to walk in the same way as in the case of puppies.
Keeping such a pupil in an apartment is sometimes not very convenient, because this cute cat is used to being active, then your home may be susceptible to the sharp claws of your new friend. It is best to keep the lynx in a fairly large and spacious enclosure. Such a dwelling must be properly designed. So if the floor is concrete in the caracal's personal house, then it will be good to cover it with earth and sand, it is not cold and more familiar for the paws of this animal. You can pour a fairly wide layer of earth into which you can later sow different plants, so your friend will feel "at ease", and from the outside it will look very interesting.
In order for your pet to always have cleanliness and order, you must also install a toilet in the aviary, namely a tray with sand or some other filler. Do not forget that this animal needs to constantly keep its body in good shape, and this requires physical activity. For this reason, different shelves can be installed in the caracal's dwelling at different heights, reinforcing them with tree cuts, if the size of the aviary allows, then it would be nice to plant a small tree there or form a kind of terrace. You should also give this pet some toys that he will play with when you do not have the opportunity to entertain him.
You also need to make a shelter for your friend, it can be a kind of wooden booth, on the bottom of which you should put a large amount of something soft, such as straw or fabrics, so that the animal is comfortable there to rest.
The presence of personal housing at a home caracal does not in any way imply the fact that the pet should spend all its time there, do not forget to let it go for walks and play with it, your attention is the key to a happy life for your pet.
It is very important to correctly formulate the diet for such a pupil; the basis of his daily menu should be low-fat meats, such as beef. But, no matter how much you feed him, he is by nature a predator and this is his unchanging essence, therefore it is imperative to give him live food, as the latter, rats, rabbits and even chickens are perfect, which he will hunt on his own. Periodically, but not very often, you can offer fish to your lynx.
Since in captivity the animal spends much less of its energy, you need to be careful not to inadvertently overfeed the animal, since the obesity of the domestic lynx is fraught with many health problems. To avoid such troubles, it is recommended to arrange fasting days for your pet.
From time to time it is necessary to feed your pet with vitamin and mineral complexes, in addition, do not forget about antiparasitic therapy, since this animal eats thermally unprocessed meat in large quantities.
Drinking bowls filled with clean drinking water should also be installed in his aviary.
Buying and price of a domestic lynx
Although such an unusual pet at home is a rather infrequent phenomenon, it will not be difficult to buy it, although the pricing policy may scare off a little. The average cost of such an animal varies from 400,000 to 1,000,000 rubles.
What a domestic lynx looks like, see below:
[media =
