Chausies: From Ancient Egypt, A 21st Century Breed Like No Other.

In Egypt, more than three thousand years ago, two species of wild cat found their way into Egyptian homes. One was Felis lybica, and the other was Felis chaus. Felis chaus, also known as the Jungle Cat, was relatively tame in temperament from the start, with more than usual potential for domestication, but so was Felis lybica. Whether it was chance or there were other reasons, the Egyptians ultimately developed the domestic cat from Felis lybica.

Nonetheless, they loved the Jungle Cat, enough to honor them occasionally with formal funeral rites, such as mummification -- enough to take them hunting and paint them into scene after scene in murals. Some say that the statues of the goddess Bastet were modeled after Jungle Cats and we can certainly see the resemblance in her long, slender body and large ears!

Occasionally, members of Felis chaus mated with domestic cats. From North Africa to India to Southeast Asia, there were reports dating back centuries of cats that seem to have been Felis chaus hybrids.

In the late 20th century, cat fanciers in the U.S. gained experience in developing purely domestic breeds from selected species of wild cat." The process involves mating a few members of one carefully chosen small wild cat species to a great many domestic cats. In the late 1990s, a group of breeders decided to apply this new expertise to develop a breed from Felis chaus.

Common personality traits in the breed are their activity level, they are thieves, they are loyal and bond tightly to their person - they can learn to open doors and cupboards and love to get into things – they are thought of as the "supervisor" as they want to be in the middle of whatever is going on, they are curious and intelligent. They need stimulation and interaction....they are not a breed that does well by themselves if a person is gone all day.