Highlander Cat Info

Higlander Cat Information

The "Highlander" TICA Preliminary New Breed. Beginning May 1, 2008, look for the Highlander at a TICA show near you. Companion, breeding and show kittens are available from the reputable Highlander breeders listed on the Highlander Breeder Website. If purchasing your Highlander from breeders not listed on the Highlander Breeders's website, ask for proof of TICA registration before you buy. If they cannot provide proof of TICA registration it is NOT A HIGHLANDER!

History Of The Highlander Cat

The Highlander breed first began development in 2004 with it roots tracing back to the Highland Lynx. A breeder developed the Highland Lynx in 1993 and althought given the name that included " Lynx", these domestics cats were not of any lynx ancestry.

The cats immediately attracted interrest because of their devoted playful personalities, their unique looks and size.   These cats are a perfect package so to speak for many cat lovers!!!! Once we brought the cats into our homes we and poeple like us realized that these cats are special in countless ways! A group of breeders unitied and worked together to setup the breeding programs and devlope a standard that is agreed upon to adhere to developing a cat with a " Big Cat Look" in a purley domestic breed.

The year 2005 was when the breeder group took the name Highlander to further identify the cats as a breed of their own merit. The group has worked very hard to educate the public about the Highlanders. The Highlander Cat deserves respectability and the group is working on the eventual championship status as a member of one of the largest cat registries in the world, TICA.

The foundation cats were carefully hand picked for the qualities important to the development in producing the Highalnder's "big cat look" with domestic short hair and domestic long hair being allowed as acceptable out crosses when needed. Itis important to note the Highlanders never used any other recognized breed as an outcross.

The Reasons to Love a Highlander

Highlander qualities and why they are easy to love.
The Highlander is a large loving cat who makes a fantastic family cat.   The wild look is something that many of us love. The first time I had a spotted cat in my living room…..I was spellbound! The magic of those spots!
The Highlander is a large loving cat who makes a fantastic family cat.   The wild look is something that many of us love. The first time I had a spotted cat in my living room…..I was spellbound! The magic of those spots!
The Highlander is a large loving cat who makes a fantastic family cat.   The wild look is something that many of us love. The first time I had a spotted cat in my living room…..I was spellbound! The magic of those spots!
The Highlander is a large loving cat who makes a fantastic family cat.   The wild look is something that many of us love. The first time I had a spotted cat in my living room…..I was spellbound! The magic of those spots!
The Highlander is a large loving cat who makes a fantastic family cat.   The wild look is something that many of us love. The first time I had a spotted cat in my living room…..I was spellbound! The magic of those spots!
The Highlander is a large loving cat who makes a fantastic family cat.   The wild look is something that many of us love. The first time I had a spotted cat in my living room…..I was spellbound! The magic of those spots!
The Highlander is a large loving cat who makes a fantastic family cat.   The wild look is something that many of us love. The first time I had a spotted cat in my living room…..I was spellbound! The magic of those spots!

Although the Highlander has a wild look they are quite tame and loving. They are full of live and they take you along too. They are a fascination breed and we still learn new things about them. They are playful, very loving and devoted to their people. You can look forward to developing a very deep lasting bond with your cat.
This breed like the other breeds we love is very dog like. They want to be with their people. They will cry at a window if you are outside and there are left in the house. This is the main reason why we started to harness train our cats. The Highlanders felt bad about being left behind. Harness training is very rewarding because it allows you to take your cat with you just like a dog.
They love to hunt flys and spiders in the house! The chase is on with the tail wagging when they are doing that! That is an added benefit for all of us especially me, I don’t like spiders much. They are a high energy cat but they also love to spend time being petted and loved. Please don’t think that because they are high energy means they will tear up your house. That is not true. They are very different than say a Ragdoll.   They have a zest for life and love to live it! This breed of cat truly enriches your life with humor and love.
Toys need to be well made and do take care when purchasing them. Make sure they are safe and sturdy and this comes from our experience of having lesser quality toys eaten or taken apart.
Our Highlanders are the first cats to the door when someone comes over. They love to show off and have everyones attention. They are usually quit but they do talk to you to try to express their thoughts time to time.
The physical qualities of this breed are all wonderful. One of the most outstanding ones is the ears. They are born with straight ears and the curl starts at about 3 days old. The curl can range from a tight curl to a loose curl and the curl constantly changes back and forth in the degree of curls until they set permanently. Don’t think this hurts them, it doesn’t. This is natural to them.
The first time I picked up an adult I was shocked at how muscular and solid the body was! The males are around 15-17 pounds and up and the females being smaller and ranging from ten to fourteen pounds. You cat will get bigger when fixed than one that isn’t.
The highlander cat can have either short or long fur and the coat color can vary widely. All Highlanders must show belly spots. This is often considered a camouflage pattern and yes it does resemble that of a wild bobcat.

The head is fairly large and a modified wedge shape with large, intelligent eyes that can be found in shades of gold to green and blue eyes in the Lynx Points.

Dietary Requirements - Being a domestic cat, the Highlander does not require any specialized diet other than any high quality food you would feed other cats and kittens. Our cats' diets consist primarily of dry chow, but we do give kittens a good quality canned food in the evenings. Dietary supplements or vitamins used with any other domestic cat may also be used with the Highlander.

We would also like to thank the Highlander Breeders Group for their support and wisdom.

Robyn Glover of Wild Country also got us started with the curled eared kittens that we fell in love with! She knew just what she was doing when she placed two little kittens into our arms. Just goes to prove that you don't know sure what direction you maybe going in until it licks you on the check!