You are going to see lots of articles on the Internet about the best cat breeds for apartment living. They are all baloney if we are honest. It's all mumbo-jumbo. Believe me. Don't believe them. There might be one or two cat breeds which are slightly better predisposed to living in a confined space for their lives such as the Ragdoll or British Shorthair but by-and-large the confident statements by these authors are simply misplaced.
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| Young British Shorthair. Photo: atquintessence. |
Here is a cat breed selector I made years ago. My research then pointed to the British Shorthair as the best for apartment living but that's not to say they are fine with apartment living. I don't think any domestic cat is, purebred or non-purebred. It is too unnatural. Too confined. I am not criticising. Just saying it the way I see it.
Cat breeders don't create cats for apartment living. They create domestic cats of a certain breed. And all domestic cats have the same fundamental attributes. They are a barely domesticated wildcat. The wildcat persona is just below the surface.
Selective breeding for character??
Certainly, selective breeding over many generations can create cats with a predisposition to a certain sort of character. But that said, cat breeders focus on the appearance of their cats not their character.
The character is somewhat incidental in their breeding programs. Authors who write about cat breeds like to try and distinguish the personalities of the cat breeds, one from another. But they struggle to do this. Their language is rather gray and vague because what they are describing is a domestic cat.
One of the great difficulties in creating new cat breeds is creating one which can be distinguished visually clearly from another. There is not enough space left in the spectrum of cat breeds to create a new one!
The Persian is another cat which might be somewhat suited to apartment living because they been described as bits of furniture. They are kind of decorative. But they are nervous and can sometimes have litter box problems. I don't see them as any more suitable to apartment living as any other breed of cat or non-purebred cat.
Adaptable
In fact, you might do better with a non-purebred cat, a rescue cat, a moggy who has adapted to apartment living. This is the point. Domestic cats are adaptable. If they are forced to live in an apartment, they will object to it initially. They will meow and complain but eventually they will give up and learn to live within this confined space.
They will entertain themselves by looking out of the window. They will snooze and sleep most of the time. That's why you read another improbability which is that domestic cats sleep for 20 hours a day and this sort of thing. If they do snooze but not sleep for long periods it is because they are bored and have nothing to do.
They are snoozing for survival. Some cat caregivers think that domestic cats like to snooze all day long but they don't. They would rather be out exploring, hunting, chasing wildlife. Yes, I know that's not particularly popular and we can't condone the hunting of small mammals by domestic cats but that is what we have achieved in domesticating the wildcat.
Rescue cat adapted to apartment living
If you want to adopt a cat for apartment dwelling you will have to adopt a cat with a suitable personality. Each cat is different. If you are fortunate enough to find a rescue cat adapted to apartment dwelling and who has a personality suited to apartment dwelling then you've got your cat. I would ask your local cat shelter about this. Seek their advice.
But I don't think you can with great confidence say that that a particular breed such as an American Shorthair or Burmese or Birman will be great for apartment living. You can't. Don't be fooled by these authors and these websites. Be more critical. Dig around. But be critical and inquisitive. Find a good rescue cat who has lived in an apartment before. That's my advice.
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