WildNWonderful Highlanders
About the Highlander Breed
Highlanders do not require specialized diets. They thrive on a good quality cat food, dry or canned. Some owners prefer to do a raw diet, this isn't necessary but is a healthy alternative for your Highlander. Dietary supplements or vitamins used for any other domestic cat may also be used with these cats.
General Description from the TICA web site
Edited by Me :)
The striking look of the Highlander with its long sloping profile and loosely curled ears draws attention to this substantial cat. But it is the fun-loving nature that steals hearts as it entertains you with its crazy antics. This is a cat that loves to be the center of attention and its big cat look also helps keep it front and center. The Highlander comes in both short and long hair.
History
Development of the breed began in 2004 with the intent of creating a domestic cat with a powerful "big cat" look. In 2005, the name Highlander was settled on and breeders focused on defining the breed and its characteristics as they worked toward championship status in TICA - one of the largest registries in the world. The cats used to develop the breed were carefully chosen from the domestic gene pool and not from any existing recognized breed. The Highlander is actually to product of the Highland Lynx. The Highland Lynx is a breed of cat registered through a registry called REFR. TICA does not recognize REFR or cats registered with REFR. Hints the "not from any recognized breed" part. REFR is a paper registry that hosts no cat shows, which is why breeders wanted to bring the cats over to TICA, but in order to do so they had to drop the "Lynx" and thus the Highlander was born. The ears are a key feature of the Highlander. TICA recognized the Highlander for competition in the Preliminary New Breed class starting May 1st, 2008.
Personality
Despite their "big cat" look, the Highlanders are the clowns of the cat fancy and love to play and chase. They love human company and will be there to greet you at the door or will show off to visitors. Vocally they are relatively quiet cats but physically they are high energy cats. This energy comes out in entertaining chase games and it is this energetic activity that helps build the powerful musculature that is so characteristic of this breed.
Traits
The Highlander has a long, sloping forehead and medium to large eyes shaped like a slightly flattened oval set on a bias that look at you with great intensity. The nose is wide with large nose leather. Together, the nose, muzzle and chin provide a boxy look to the muzzle. The chin itself is deep and strong. These features make the head appear longer than it is wide. The ears are unique: the top 1/3 has a loose curl. They are set as much on the top of the head as on the side and stand tall and open with good width at the base.
The powerful, muscular body is substantial and entrances you with the beauty of its movement. Flexible long hind legs combine with the rippling muscles developed in the torso from its active play. The feet are large and have prominent knuckles. These are big powerful looking cats with a gentle disposition. The naturally short tail ranges in length from 1 inches to hock length. It is thick and articulated, and sometimes has kinks and curls in it. It also has a fat pad at the end. The Highlander’s tail is an incredibly expressive element of the breed and will wag like a dog from sheer joy and signal its happiness and playfulness.
Want to know more about the Highland Lynx? Well, an east coast breeder named Joe Childress at Timberline Cattery developed the Highland Lynx in 1993 and although the name included “lynx”, these cats were not of any lynx ancestry. Some claim bob cat heritage but that isn't proven. To be honest it isn't known 100% what all was bred together to make the Highland Lynx but it is believed that the ears came from a Canadian breed of cat called the Hemingway Curl. Some believe the ears came from the American Curl with it's tightly curled ears... but the Hemingway Curl with it's looser curl is a better fit. Others say the Jungle Curl but it is believed to Hemingway Curl was used to create the Jungle Curl so... kinda the same thing. The Hemingway Curl was mixed with the Desert Lynx and... that is the Highland Lynx. Now the Desert Lynx is believed to be a Abyssinian X Chaus X American Bob Tail X Domestic Polydactyl AKA Hemingway Polys. Now, none of this is set in stone and I make no claims to be 100% correct, (although I am a woman, so just let me believe I am) but wherever these cats came from, they are here now.
Highlander cats have a narrow ear canal and a natural dark waxy build up in their ears. It is not ear mites. Their ears can be cleaned easily by carefully using a precision q-tip dipped in ear cleaner and removing the wax. you can also put a couple drops in the ear, massage, then wipe out with a tissue. Try not to squirt a lot of cleaner into the ear, yes I know this is the common way of using it, but with their narrow ear canals they can have issues getting the fluid back out causing more issues than helping. I recommend weekly ear cleaning as kittens, then decreasing the frequency as they age to as needed.
These cats have no wild blood and require the same veterinary care as any other domestic cat. They have the same life expectancy and receive the same inoculations. But we recommend not using Ketamine Anesthesia during surgery. The use of Ketamine Anesthesia can be fatal or cause blindness. Talk to your vet before they put your Highlander under, better safe than sorry.
Keep in mind Highlanders will need a larger litter box than most domestic cats. We recommend a good quality litter that is low on dust. Dr. Elsey's Ultra Precious Cat Litter is a good one. Dust can cause upper respiratory infections, urinary tract infections, and bladder infections. Better to spend a little more on cat litter than a lot more at the vets office.
Please, if you see your cat eating litter stop it and if it persists switch to a non clumping litter. Clumping litter when ingested can kill your Highlander!
Here we use disposable litter boxes from
I don't know about you but I have quite a few litter boxes and got tired of bleaching them out. Disposable is so much easier!
This is the brand and formula I use on my highlanders and highly recommend.
