Jungletrax Toygers

Toygers are the exciting new breed of domestic cats wonderfully reminiscent of the TIGER. The goal is to re-create the iconic image of real tiger in a cat that you can love and appreciate as a pet.

Toygers were envisioned and created by my good friend Judy Sugden beginning in the late 1980s. Utilizing the desirable traits of Bengals, American Shorthairs, Asian Shorthairs and other specially selected cats the Toyger moves ever closer to looking as if they have just stepped out of the Sumatran jungles and into the lap of their human owner.

TOYGERS now compete in CHAMPIONSHIP in TICA! (Right, Eeyaa Photon Glow, SBT Toyger, photo by A. Hutcherson )

Toyger are completely domestic cats in every sence of the word. They eat cat food, use litterboxes, play with shoestrings but most of all LOVE TO BE LOVED.

For more information about Toygers in general, visit www.toygers.org . For more information about the Toygers and kittens of Jungletrax please explore all of the pages and links. These cats are so much fun and beautiful that I usually spend my free time enjoying them and not updating my site...but you never know there could be new pictures anytime! (Left, Jungletrax Reddy 4 Fun, SBT Toyger)

Toygers are bred to look like "toy tigers" and that conjures up images of a heavy boned orange cat with bold black stripes. That is certainly my goal, as a Toyger breeder. Below are colors and patterns of Toygers I have produced to give you an idea of the types of kittens produced her at Jungletrax. I hope this explains what show quality is, pricing and give you more information as you learn more about this exciting breed. SBT means STUD BOOK STATUS (a cat fancy term) that means the cat is at least four generations of Toyger to Toyger breeding. All of colors and patterns you see below are brown mackeral tabbies. As you can see there is variation on what brown mackeral tabby looks like. That is based on a number of genes that Toyger breeders are continuing to explore and affect. Toyger breeders have come up with more descriptive terms to describe the actual appearance of the cats, though they are all genetically brown.
	Eeyaa Rio Brava, shows off a bright orange color with medium brown markings. This color is known as "SUN". She is a wonderful female and loving mother. Brava is a breeding quality female and she has left her mark here at Jungletrax. See more Brava on our females page. A kitten like Brava is priced at $700-$1,000 as a pet.
	"Pete" is shown here at five months old. He is a light tan with dark brown stripes and some spots. This color is referred to as "SAND". "Pete" now lives on Long Island with Joe, who just love him. Pete is a pet quality Toyger because he has too many spots and not enough stripes. He also needs a bit more contrast to win at shows. A kitten like Pete is priced at $500 - $800 as a pet.
	"Ember" is Pete's littermate brother. Ember's rich reddish-orange background a dark dramatic black stripes (and a few spots) make it easy to identify his color as "FIRE". Ember now lives in PA as a valued pet. He could have also been a wonderful show cat if he had a few more stripes and a few less spots. A kitten like Ember is priced at $800 - $1500 as a pet.
	"Azule" has a wonderful pattern of stripes but she is a BLUE. This is a recessive dilute color found in some Toyger lines. It prevents the high contrast markings that we desire for Toygers, therefore all blues are pet quality even if they have a perfect pattern like Azule. Leslie in North Carolina just loves Azule and her color. Azule is a pet. A kitten like Azule is priced at $500 as a pet.

Top 10 Frequently Asked Questions about Toygers (and the answers)
10. Where do Toygers come from?	Toyger come from the careful and planned breeding programs of breeders who have selected cats to breed to improve the look of the existing cats. Toygers are derived from Bengals, American Shorthairs, Egyptian(Indian Mau), Pixie Bob and Maine Coon.
9. Is there any Tiger in Toyger?	Only in the name. Toygers are completely domestic cats. Bengals are derived from crosses between domestics and Asian Leopard Cats. All of the Bengals used in Toyger programs are domestic or SBT.
8. Is a Toyger a stripy Bengal?	NO! A pet quality Bengal is not a Toyger or vice-versa. Technically, to be a Toyger all of the ancestor for 4 generations need to be Toygers. Additionally Bengals and Toygers have different head and body ideals. Not to mention the radically different patterns.

Eeyaa Fireside Chat, SBT Toyger above left. Eeyaa Joan of Arc, SBT Toyger above right.
7. How big do Toygers get?	Toygers are medium sized cats - not the largest or smallest of domestic breeds. Males are bigger than females. On average males are between 12-16 lbs. as adults and females are between 7-12 lbs. as adults.
6. How come I didn't see any Toygers at the cat show?	Toygers are still a relatively new breed and only show in TICA (The International Cat Association). There are a relatively small number of breeders who may not get to every show. Check the TICA calender and see when there is a TICA show near you.
5. How long do Toygers live?	Toygers will thrive with the same love and care of any domestic cat. The oldest Toygers are now nearing their late teens.
4. What is a Toyger personality?	Toygers are active cats who enjoy all manner of engagement with their owners - playing, relaxing, walking. I find my cats to be devoted and easy going. Some lines are quite talkative and others are quiet. Jungletrax Toyers tend to be quiet.

Jungletrax Writing On the Wall, SBT Toyger left. Eeyaa Joan of Arc, SBT Toyger right.
3. Do Toygers get along with other pets?	Yes, Toygers adapt and enjoy the company of other pets in general. Much of this is determined by the other pet, manner in which they are introduced and the amount of space in the home.
2. When will Toygers look exactly like Tigers?	Hmmmm. Toygers will never look exactly like Tigers but we hope that through the continued careful selection and breeding artistry of those involved the Toyger continues to be more and more reminiscent of Tiger. We invite you to enjoy the process.
1. How much do Toygers cost?	There are three primary categories of pricing among nearly every pedigreed cat - pet quality, breeder quality and show quality. Pet quality kittens range from $500-$1500 depending on a number of factors. On the expensive end they should be show quality but the owners chose not to show them. On the inexpensive end they possess a trait that prevents them from being show. Breeder and show quality kittens are evaluated to be able to offer some trait or quality to the breed that determines that they should be bred or bred and shown to improve the breed. They are priced at $1500-$3000. There is usually a waiting list for these cats and an evaluation of the person considering their purchase.

For more information about Toygers in general and Jungletrax cats in specific visit the links below.

Anthony Hutcherson Jungletraxcats@aol.com

Maryland, USA

All photos and text are copyright Anthony Hutcherson, Milestone LLC and Jungletrax Cats 1993-2007 and may not be reproduced without permission.