Yes

by Rex Trulove

Created on: March 05, 2011

Many people feel that bobcats are so different than domestic cats that they can't breed. Others feel the opposite way. The truth is actually quite interesting.

Bobcats grow far larger than most domestic cats, and they tend to be wild. However, genetically, they are so similar that it could be the difference between comparing a Siamese house cat to a calico. Can these two breed, would be an appropriate question, and the answer would be yes.

According to Dr. McFadden, DMV, "There is no physical reason bobcats and house cats can't breed, except maybe size. Distribution to produce the opportunity, though, may be a different matter."

The last part is understandable. Not all areas have bobcats. If the house cats and bobcats don't come into contact, the answer would be a resounding 'no'. The truth is, however, that the bobcat has a wide range. They probably aren't nearly as populous as they once were. Still, they are found in places where people live and have house cats, particularly in the northern US.

While it may be rare for a male domesticated cat to breed with a female bobcat, partly due to the difference in size, a male bobcat only needs a female cat in heat in order to have the interest to breed and to do it.

Oregon Fish and Wildlife has a number of documented cases of cross breeding in their files. In one case, a man named George Woodley was out in his yard and heard a persistent meowing. He searched all over before he discovered a little gray tiger striped cat under the porch. With difficulty, and getting hissed at and scratched, he managed to get what looked like a healthy six to nine week-old kitten into the house. The little thing had really only two things that were a bit different; long ear tufts at the tips of the ears, and a very short tail, much like that of a Manx.

Named 'Tiger', the kitten settled down quickly. George and his wife didn't have cat food, but the kitten eagerly lapped up canned evaporated milk. He soon became a member of the household. Later eating day old liver, canned clams, and canned shrimp, Tiger grew fast. When he was what George judged to be about six months old, Tiger was taken in to a vet for his shots.

The vet (name not known or given) took one look at Tiger and told George that he had a beautiful three month old bobcat mix. As it turned out, the vet had treated and cared for many bobcat-house cat mixed breeds from the same area.

With proper care and food, Tiger continued to grow. He became huge compared to a large domesticated feline, yet he wasn't at all fat. He was simply tall, wide, and muscular. Tiger got to the size of a medium sized dog, though not nearly the size of a cougar or lynx, and even neighborhood dogs stayed well away from the Woodley residence when Tiger was outside, doing his business.

Could two highly skilled and long practicing vets be wrong about the cross-breed status? Of course, they could be. That is despite the fact that one practiced for well over 40 years, and the other over 20 years. Still, except for coloration, Tiger had all the signs of being a bobcat. Nobody who saw him had any doubt. At the end of his life, in the 80s, tests done on him, attempting to find a way to cure a rare form of cancer, confirmed that he was indeed half bobcat.

Tiger was finally put down because of his pain from the rectal cancer. George died a month later from Lung cancer. This is an aside, but Tiger was the child the couple were never able to have.

Can domesticated cats and bobcats breed? There is little doubt that they can, and have, most likely continue to do so. The same question was asked regarding if lions and tigers could interbreed. It was proven that they could, by breeding them. Bobcats are a lot more similar to house cats than lions and tigers are.

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