Could a lynx be domesticated?

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Domesticated lynx
Domesticated lynx Max

The answer has to be, yes, when you look at the two videos below. Lynx have been domesticated to a certain extent. One of these cats lives in an apartment in Russia and he looks very relaxed. We don’t know the back story, however. These are quite big cats. We don’t know whether there are any inappropriate elimination issues. We don’t know how content these cats are.

In the first video Max is described as not domesticated but ‘humanised’. Not sure what they mean. He is an educational lynx born in a zoo. Clearly when humans raise lynx the animal will be domesticated as far as is possible.

Technically, it seems that a lynx can be domesticated but is it practical? Is it a good idea? How much space do you need? You certainly need more than an apartment. However, the Russian guy who lives in an apartment with his lynx and child apparently saved this cat from slaughter at a fur farm and therefore living in an apartment is a better ending. It’s far from ideal but it’s better than being farmed for your skin and then killed, probably.

The apartment does not look enriched in any way to suit the cat and don’t forget that this species has a very wide and large range in the wild.

We don’t know if the cat has been declawed. Often when medium-sized wild cats are domesticated, as far as they can be domesticated, the owner sometimes declaws the cat. This is because they’re quite big cats and their claws can scratch you and hurt. It is unfair and it is cruel to declaw any cat never mind a beautiful wild cat.

There are so many ethical issues and indeed philosophical issues surrounding the domestication of wild cat species. In general you could argue that it should never happen. It would be far better if all wild cat species were left to live their lives in the wild and that we provide enough space for it to happen.

You will see other large wild cat species living in homes such as the cougar and serval. You will even see tigers and lions as “pets”. I just wonder how satisfactory these arrangements are.

I’m sure that a lot of people who own e.g. a serval give them up because they find the whole thing to difficult to handle. Often it will simply not work. There have been many examples of servals escaping homes and being killed. These cats require far more space that home owners can provide. This is a major barrier to the arrangement being successful.

But all that said, the lynx appears to have a character which makes the cat a potential pet provided the owner is pragmatic and realistic and provided that the owner has the right expectations. Even then I am against it.

There are four subspecies of lynx: Eurasian, Canada, Iberian and the bobcat.

Servals, pumas, caracals, margays, cheetahs have been ‘domesticated’. Snow leopards are candidates for domestication but as far as I am aware it has never happened:

Can snow leopards be domesticated?

23 thoughts on “Could a lynx be domesticated?”

  1. The author of the best comment will receive an Amazon gift of their choice at Christmas! Please comment as they can add to the article and pass on your valuable experience.

    • Even more house lynxes:
      House lynx Shella: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nin-Ygs-nRU

      House lynx Taya: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9VfCETCaCs (and other videos on that channel). There’s a sad story about her. She escaped and supposedly bit some child, after which they were forbidden to kepp the lynx in their flat ( https://volga.news/article/475465.html ). The owners claimed that lynx is declawed, defanged and generally gently with children; but all videos I saw (rather old at that point) show her with claws (although cut). Possibly the owners were lying about declawing and defanging, to defend the lynx.
      And so she was given away, allegedly to some private zoo in Chechnya.

      Reply

      • Update on Kleopatra (link: https://vk.com/club149346120?w=wall-149346120_3030%2Fall )
        “””
        Lynx Channel
        Aug 18, 2019 at 5:29 pm
        Greetings everyone! Most likely, this is the last post about Kleopatra the lynx in this group. She grew up, and it got difficult for her to live at home. The nature demanded back what is due. Therefore, a decision was made to give Kleo away to a zoo.
        “””
        🙁
        Original text (fragment): “””
        Рысь Канал
        Aug 18, 2019 at 5:29 pm
        Всех приветствуем! Скорее всего, это последний пост в этой группе про рысь Клеопатру. Она выросла и ей стало дома тяжело жить. Природа требовала своего. Потому было принято решение отдать Клео в зоопарк.
        “””

        Reply

    • An American counterpart to Rys’ka, house Canadian lynx Olive: https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2q4nok
      Description saved from Youtube:

      This is Olive, a Canadian Lynx I rescued at three weeks old from a fur farm in Montana back in 1996. The experience of raising her in a high rise apartment was priceless, litter trained and all. I was living in a complex located at the corner of First Ave. & Broad Street (Beltown) in downtown Seattle, WA. She then moved with me up to Sedro Wooley, WA for a few years, and then finally to Prescott, AZ, where she passed away at the age of 12. I miss her deeply. DISCLAIMER: Canadian Lynx is a wild feline, ownership is not recommended. This was a unique chapter in my life. The rescue/adoption saved her from becoming a ‘Sporty Winter Jacket’ on a runway in Europe, and gave her 12 years of living the life of a loved animal.

      Reply

        • That’s just the video description I saved from Youtube before the video in question was deleted from there. It’s not me. Sorry if I wasn’t clear. You may want to add quote marks around the quote – I can’t edit my comments, obviously.

          Reply

  6. At about 02:22s you can see Max’s right front claws! It’s only a glimpse, nice sharp black & tan ones. It’s interesting that when his human is scratching his caudal area, Max doesn’t extend his front claws. Domestic cats tend to do that, a physical expression of pleasure, and often raise their rear end into the lordosis position.

    The Russian Lynx looks to have complete paws too. He looks to be fully weight bearing on his front end as he walks around. The last shot (although soft focus) shows paws that appear well rounded at the ends, the hair following the line over P3, not the awful truncated, stumpy appearance of paws mutilated by declawing.

    The Russian Lynx seems restless, but that could be the presence of the camera.

    I don’t think the term ‘domesticated’ is fully accurate as the process of domestication of wild species takes many, many generations. But maybe the poor fur farm Lynx have been captive bred for hundreds of generations? Even then, if released from that hell, I would suggest that given the chance, wild instinct & behaviour would surface in a wild environment.

    …you can take the cat out of the wild, but you cannot take the wild out of the cat

    I think these two beauties have been ‘habituated’ to human contact. If they ever lose their secure homes, they will be the most vulnerable type of animal, the wild species that is confident to be around humans. They are a psychological chimera.

    The questions arise for me around such issues as life vs existence, enriched life & compromise, expression vs suppression of the feline self etc Both cats look adapted to the lives they have. I wonder if they have been neutered? That would go a long way to ensuring a calmer life within their unnatural environments.

    Damn fine purr on Max.

    Reply

    • > wild instinct & behaviour would surface in a wild environment.
      …until some “blockhead” (“обормот”) shoots him. That’s what happened (according to the owner) when the Russian man’s first lynx escaped (or, possibly, was “released”). This is his second lynx.

      Reply

  7. When I read the title the name “Max” immediately came to my mind. He’s fairly famous on youtube, or at least that’s where I’ve seen him for years. I also think some of these cats can and should be saved and live happy lives under circumstances that are right for the cat. It’s just getting to the point that particular animals that are good psychological candidates are at our mercy to find a properly educated and experienced human who can take care of them for life in the proper setting with the proper permit and legal veterinary availability. Everything has to be just right and even then should the cat find itself outside it’s human’s care, it faces the risk of being killed by almost anyone, sometimes just for fun. I’ve seen videos of lynx cats in the wild and they’re always so calm and not wanting any trouble. I think they’re basically good candidates. Max certainly is a great example. I’ve read that Savanahs, though hybrid are less so and when they change owners it’s very hard on them. Gotta think of the cat’s best interest and be set up and committed for life, as with any cat obviously.

    Reply

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