Breed of large cats. Names and photos of large breeds of cats

Today we will talk about big domestic cats. If you are not familiar with such amazing creatures, then this article is for you.

Maine Coon

Pride and genuine joy for any person can become a big cat. The maine coon breed came to us from North America. Colossal body size, harmonious coloring and tassels on the ears make these cats look like a lynx, but only a fluffy noble tail suggests thoughts of kinship with raccoons.

History has not determined the true origin of the giant cats, but it is known that the breed has maintained its identity for several centuries. Marvelous coloring and all the physiological features completely repeat the cats of the ancient Vikings.

This breed of large cats is characterized by a very decent weight of males - about 11-12 kg, females are more fragile - reach only 5-7 kg, but such indicators have long been a wonder for the most experienced felinologists and simple cat lovers.

The nature and appearance of cats of this breed

Maine coons are distinguished by moderate playfulness and mischief, but only with those to whom they are trusted. Predatory gaze and muscular body often frighten people, especially children. This breed of large cats is famous for its average head with a flat skull. The Maine Coon's nose is rather peculiar and unusually wide, it crosses the cat's face with a dense line, busily emphasizes the piercing eyes of the animal.

The eyes of the Maine Coon can be shimmered with noble shades of green and flame-gold, and bright individuals are distinguished by cornflower eyes and frequent heterochromia.

Strong and strikingly large limbs can boast of cats of large breeds, photos of which can not often convey their greatness and grace. Mei-kuns, on top of everything else, are distinguished by dense wool layers between the fingers, which allows the animal to easily move around the snow-covered expanses.

Good, amazingly silky coat protects Maine Coon from frosty winds, and dense undercoat regulates temperature balance. Like any breed of big cats, Maine Coons need a certain care: captivating hair requires scrupulous combing at least 2-3 times a week and painstaking washing once a month, especially if you breed Maine Coons in warm latitudes.

Siberian cat

Breeds of large cats also include a long-haired beauty Siberian cat. Asian origin was reflected in the colorful animal, giving the color of the offspring of native cats camouflage effect. The predominant colors of the Siberian cat are ground black, stony gray with separate strips of white and red motifs.

Sibiryak is a rather memorable breed of large cats: a convex cat's forehead combined with low cheekbones emphasizes the size of the head and the overall impressiveness of the animal. The adult cat (and the musculature and skeleton of the animal develops up to the age of five) often weighs about 6-8 kilograms, and the males catch up with the maine coons by weight - 12 kilograms.

The origin of the "Siberian" led to an amazing transformation of wool: the super-thick undercoat in the company of optimally tough wool perfectly balances the heat balance of the cat. Also, due to the density and the number of undercoat, the cat's coat does not get wet at all and thus protects the inhabitants of the harsh expanses from the vagaries of the weather.

The eyes of a Siberian predator always blend in with his camouflage color, varying between noble golden and emerald, while light representatives can boast of bluish or gray-green eyes. Their shape in the "Siberian" is oval, with a rounded lower eyelid. A feature of the giant is the impressive distance between the eyes, which gives the cats a kind of nobility.

The character of the Siberian

Siberians are marked by amazing restraint in respect of man, to impose or pursue the owner in the hope of getting attention, the Siberian beauty will not. But at the time of the acute need for it, the "Siberian woman" will appear as if by magic.

Some features of care

The undoubted advantage of this breed is the ease of care: a long and imposing coat of dough does not get bogged down and does not require constant combing. To wash "Siberians" is necessary often, but this breed is not afraid of water procedures.

The only rule of neighborhood with Siberian cats is regular paddock, because predatory instincts in the cat are highly developed. Living in the countryside, the Siberian hunts not only on small rodents, but often brings the owner a prey in the form of a rabbit or a ferret. Siberian cat, like a dog, boils down to only one person, with the presence of the rest of the household, it rather tolerates.

Serval

With huge ears and high feline growth, a serval can boast - a breed of the largest cats whose photos have been adorned with fashion magazines and celebrity blogs for the past five years. Serval is an amazingly powerful and enduring African predator. During the hunt, it can be fixed for about 15 minutes, and jumps in length reach 3.5 meters.

A special sign of the endurance of a serval is the ability to develop a speed of up to 80 km / h. Such indicators allow the African cat to hunt antelopes and small gazelles. The effectiveness of hunting trips of the Servala is 50%, which exceeds the figures of mighty lions (30%) and graceful leopards (38%).

The servalovs are proud and single, the male is left to himself and controls the territory essential for cats - 30 km ² , the females are more economical: under their authority there is about 20 km ² . Continuation of the genus of the servalis is also controlled independently, and the cat's March tides African predators are not at all burdened. Pregnancy of the deft beauty lasts up to 77 days, and they produce from 2 to 4 kids. Self-trapping fishing starts at the age of six months, and a year the self-sufficient African cats leave the maternal hole.

The life span of a courageous servant in the natural environment is no more than 10 years, in captivity and with a balanced care, an African cat can live for about 20 years (there are known cases of serval life for a quarter of a century).

Take in the family can only serval, born in captivity and accustomed to human society. Wild and untamed servals are the most dangerous animals.

Diseases that affect large domesticated cats

The breed of large cats, whether Maine Coon, Siberian or Serval, is famous for its endurance and powerful life potential. But still these animals are subject to a very widespread and dangerous disease - hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. The danger of the disease is that the congenital defect causes the compaction of the walls of the ventricle of the cat's heart, which significantly reduces the volume of pumped blood. Often the sign of such a disease becomes a lethal outcome: cats die in an instant.

No less dangerous and inexorable cat's disease is spinal-muscular atrophy - an ailment in which even the most healthy and developed individuals die spinal cord neurons and the skeletal musculature is destroyed. Cats-giants are also susceptible to this disease, which is caused by a recessive gene. For the prevention of large breeds of cats are required to undergo an annual examination for the presence of abnormalities and propensity to transfer such a pathology to the offspring. Cats with such a gene are deprived of the opportunity to multiply, in order to protect the future of the breed.

Conclusion

In this article we introduced you to some great cats. We hope that this information will be useful to you.