List of experimental cat breeds
The following is a list of experimental cat breeds and crossbreeds that do not have the recognition of any major national or international cat registries, such as The International Cat Association in the US, Europe, and Australasia; the Governing Council of the Cat Fancy in the UK, the Fédération Internationale Féline in continental Europe, the Cat Fanciers' Association in North America, or the more recent World Cat Federation based in Germany. Such a breed may be recognized by one of the smaller cat registries. Smaller registries include the Rare and Exotic Feline Registry, and others.
Breeders of some minority breeds actively seek major recognition for them, but have yet to receive it. For example, in regions where the formal cat fancy is in its infancy, naturally occurring native varieties – landraces – can be classified as minority breeds when attempts at selective breeding have begun to produce a formal natural breed with consistent traits, as is ongoing with the Aegean and Van cats. Other minority breeds are bred for private reasons and inadvertently attract an informal following. Minority breeds may be recognized by some registries, or none at all; recognition can be refused for a variety of reasons. Some may have "preliminary" status in one or more registries, with experimental conformation standards already in place, but turn out to be non-viable over the longer term.
Discrepancies between breed names can often cause confusion; occasionally the name adopted by one registry is used elsewhere for an entirely different breed; for example, the breed known in Australia as "Burmilla Longhair" is analogous to the "Asian Semi-longhair" in Britain, but Australia already has a quite different breed known as the "Australian Tiffanie" and both are different from the American "Tiffany". Such conflicts are decreasing due to better communication between registries, largely facilitated by the Internet and by the World Cat Congress.
Aegean
The Aegean is a cat of Greek origin that has been developed since the 1990s by the Feline Federation of Greece, using cats from the Cyclades. The name comes from the fact that the cats were originally found around the Aegean Sea. They are considered a national treasure of Greece. Aegean cats are a landrace, and are one of the oldest distinct populations of the domestic cat. They have an affinity for fishing and water, and are numerous in Greek fishing ports. It is a medium-sized, muscular cat with a lighter European or Continental type body, medium-sized round paws, and green almond-shaped eyes. The coat is always two or three colors, one of which is always white. The breed is mostly free from common feline diseases.Alpine Lynx
The Alpine Lynx is a white, short-tailed cat breed that can have either curled or straight ears. They may be either short- or long-haired, and may have tufted toes. They are a medium-sized breed whose back legs are longer than their front legs. It was developed from a cross between a [|Highlander] and a white barn cat. It is recognized by the Rare and Exotic Feline Registry.American Lynx
The American Lynx is a short-haired cat breed with a spotted coat. This breed is bob-tailed or short-tailed. The coat pattern bears some resemblance to that of the bobcat. This breed is recognized by the Rare and Exotic Feline Registry.American Polydactyl
The American Polydactyl is a polydactyl cat, meaning that it has more than the usual number of toes. This breed is currently in development. it is recognized only by the Rare and Exotic Feline Registry.American Ringtail
The American Ringtail, also known as the Ringtail Sing-a-Ling, is a cat breed with the ability to hold their tail in a ring-like shape. It is recognized as registration only by The International Cat Association.Aphrodite (Cyprus, Cypriot, Aphrodite's Giant, St. Helen, St. Nicholas cat)
The Cyprus cat is a landrace of cats native to Cyprus; it is a localized variant of the Aegean cat. As with the latter, attempts are underway to true-breed certain traits and establish a standardized breed, under a variety of names by different breeder groups. Recognition so far, under the name Aphrodite, is limited to the World Cat Federation/World Cat Congress since 2012, provisionally by The International Cat Association since 2017, and various more localized bodies such as the Cyprus Cats National Breed Association and the Cyprus Feline Society.Australian Tiffanie
The Australian Tiffanie is a cat breed derived from crosses between the short-haired Burmilla and the long-haired Chinchilla Persian. These cats resemble the old style of the Chinchilla Longhair. Some name confusion exists with this breed; this Australian cat is not the same as the Tiffanie breed in Europe or the Tiffany breed in the United States. It is recognized by the Waratah State Cat Alliance.Bambino
The Bambino is a dwarf cat cross between the Munchkin and Sphynx breeds; it has the short legs of the former and the lack of fur of the latter. It is recognised by the Rare and Exotic Feline Registry.In 2005, two cat breeders, Stephanie and Pat Osborne, started the Bambino breed at their Holy Moly Cattery in Arkansas, which later went defunct. They likely named it Bambino because of its properties. One year later, The International Cat Association recognized the Bambino as an experimental breed of cat.
It is technically legal to own a Bambino, but owning and breeding of it is discouraged and considered unethical due to health problems. In 2019, the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority ordered a couple to stop breeding the Bambino due to welfare concerns, which include painful limited mobility as a result of dwarfism.
The Bambino has also been given the name "XL Bully Cat" due to its similarities to the American Bully.
Bramble
The Bramble is a large wire-haired cat breed with a spotted coat pattern. It was derived from crossing the Bengal with brush-coated Peterbalds. It originates from the US and is recognized by the Rare and Exotic Feline Registry.Classicat (Jungala)
The Classicat is a cat breed originating from New Zealand. It is overall an Ocicat-type, but has a coat with the classic swirled tabby pattern. It is recognized by the New Zealand Cat Fancy.Desert Lynx
The Desert Lynx is a bob-tailed or short-tailed cat breed of US origin. This cat has spotted or marbled markings and resembles the bobcat, and the breed is recognized by the Rare and Exotic Feline Registry.Dwelf
The Dwelf is a dwarf cat cross of Sphynx, Munchkin, and American Curl stock, and has the defining traits of all three breeds: hairlessness, shortened legs, and curled ears. The breed is of US origin and was recognized by the now-defunct Dwarf Cat Association. Later, it became recognized by the Rare and Exotic Feline Registry.Elf
The Elf or Elf Sphynx is a nearly hairless variety with ears that curl backward. The gene responsible for hairlessness in the Sphynx produces skin that is not completely hairless; two types of hair formation occur: a few patches of light hairs particularly around the nose, tail, and toes; and a fine downy all-over covering. Care issues are as with Sphynx cats. this in-development variety is not recognized by major breed registries and cat-fancier organizations such as The International Cat Association or the Cat Fanciers' Association. Some breeders have published draft breed standards for the Elf, based on those for the foundation breeds, but these documents are not entirely consistent with each other. Breeders are seeking TICA recognition as a preliminary new breed. The Elf has been included in the Australian National Cats breed list as experimental.Foldex
The Foldex cat, also known as the Exotic Fold, is a cat breed developed in the Canadian province of Quebec by crossbreeding a Scottish Fold and an Exotic Shorthair. Foldexes are medium-sized cats with a rounded face, short legs, and sometimes folded ears; while the latter are intended to be the defining feature of the breed, only about 50% of them exhibit it. The eyes are rounded, the ears small, and the body stout like that of Scottish Fold, with a short face between those of the two originating breeds. The coat may be of any length, colour, and pattern. The variety is recognized as a breed in its own right by one cat registry, the Canadian Cat Association, but not by any of the major international ones. Foldexes have genetic predispositions to multiple medical disorders, primarily inherited from the Scottish Fold, and their breeding has been banned in some countries as a result.In 1995, a Foldex was first exhibited in a cat show by breed Betty-Ann Yaxley in Quebec. It was originally produced by crossbreeding a Scottish Fold with an Exotic Shorthair, resulting in a cat with a comparatively round head, shortened nose, and folded ears. Further breeding and promotion by Jeanne Barrette resulted in the Canadian Cat Association accepting the nascent breed in its Experimental category in November 1998. It was promoted to the CCA's New Breed category in August 2006, and granted Championship status in 2010.
The Foldex is known for its signature small, folded ears with round tips. However, only half of all Foldex inherit this trait. Those with non-folded ears are referred to as "straights" ; their ears grow straight in their adult stage as in most other cat breeds. Folded kittens' ears begin to show a visible fold between 21 and 28 days old. The Foldex's body stature is medium-built with strong muscles, short legs and a short neck. Their ears may resemble those of the Scottish Fold breed, but they only have one crease which folds forward and downwards, while Scottish Folds have multiple creases that result in their ears laying flat. Their coats have variety of colour, patterns, and lengths; the CCA standard permits any coat colour and pattern, and any length, since it also permits outcrossing to Exotic Longhair. The Foldex breed has a round face with wide-open eyes. Their nose is longer than an Exotic, but shorter than a Scottish Fold.
Foldex cats are genetically predisposed to a risk of feline polycystic kidney disease, which can cause renal failure. This predisposition is inherited from the Exotic ancestry, being a trait of Persian and related breeds. A Foldex cat can be pre-screened for the genetics that cause PKD. Foldexes are also be genetically predisposed to health conditions inherited from the Scottish Fold, including congenital osteochondrodysplasia, chondrodystrophy, osteodystrophy, and epiphyseal dysplasia, caused by the folded-ear genetic mutation which leads to generalized cartilage and bone malformation, not just in the ear. This gene can also be tested for.
Sources disagree on whether straight-eared specimens of this and related breeds can still carry and pass on the gene for it. A laboratory at University of California, Davis, states that even having one copy of the gene will cause a folded ear and a predisposition to some medical problems, while having two copies of it will produce folded ears and debilitating joint disorders, but that any straight-eared specimen will not have the gene at all. A veterinary experts group empaneled by the German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture, disagreed, finding that straight-eared offspring may also carry the gene and simply not exhibit ear-folding; the Austrian government has also accepted the findings of the German body, and the government of Flanders has taken a similar position.
Several countries and sub-national jurisdictions have enacted animal welfare laws or regulations that prohibit breeding of fold-ear cats, including: Germany in 2005, the Netherlands in 2014, Austria in 2020, Flanders, Belgium, in 2021, Victoria in 2020, and even the birthplace of the Scottish Fold breed, Scotland since 2018. Some countries have also banned selling or giving away fold-ear cats, or breeding with any cat that bears the fold-ear gene mutation, including any straight-eared offspring that carry it. The Flanders ban makes no straight-ear allowances and bans entire breeds that carry the gene. Furthermore, some of the major cat registries, including the Governing Council of the Cat Fancy and Fédération Internationale Féline, do not recognise, nor allow for the registry of, Scottish Folds and related breeds due to their health issues.