Cat houses

S

Shirokuma

Well-Known Member
I know the traditional way to display big - and especially - small cats is in a 'cat house' with many species along side one another. Although this style of exhibition is seen as out of date I know there are still a few zoos that do this.

My question is, are there any cat species which can't be kept alongside others or don't seem to thrive with other feline species nearby? I seem to remember reading that cheetah need to be away from lions to breed well for example.
 
I have heard that clouded leopards get stressed if they sense larger cats (such as tigers) in their vicinity.
 
Cheetahs also need a wide field of vision from their enclosure if they are to breed successfully, as in the wild they feel more secure if they can view a wide panorama in which to scan for both potential prey and rival carnivores like lions. Whipsnade was the first zoo to discover this, and now other zoos will take care to make sure their cheetahs have a wide area to view. Marwell's cheetahs will be moving to an enclosure off site of their current one which takes in the whole Western half of the zoo, but the new exhibit will be positioned so they can scan the whole African Valley area.

Some small desert cats, like Sand and Black-Footed Cats, can only be kept in indoor heated enclosures in cold climates, as they're desert adaptations are so well tuned that they suffer respiratory problems outdoors.
 
I think a modern cat house could be done rather well. But some are just plain awful such as Berlin Tierpark garden. However I think if designed properly they could work although most try to have a postage stamp collection of cats which I do not agree with. Though I think a modern themed cat houses could work although the sleeping area's for big cats in zoo's never look good. Has anyone a picture of a good one?

I know caracals dislike lions. I dont think that there are many big cats that hang around in the wild when a pride of lions are round.
 
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Zambar said:
Some small desert cats, like Sand and Black-Footed Cats, can only be kept in indoor heated enclosures in cold climates, as they're desert adaptations are so well tuned that they suffer respiratory problems outdoors.
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Well I can name 2 collections that don`t keep their Black-footed Cats in indoor heated enclosures and they are RSCC and Wupperatal.
 
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