The Lykoi was first discovered in America in 2010, making it one of the newest cat breeds. A litter of feral kittens with a unique “werewolf” coat were discovered, and after genetic testing determined that it was not caused by any disease and had no ill effects, the Lykoi breed development began. Using only cats from that original population, as well as natural Lykoi found elsewhere and determined to have the same gene, the Lykoi rapidly developed one of the most unique looks in the cat fancy! Their name, which is Greek for “wolf”, plays on early comments that the cats looked like old Hollywood werewolves. But they aren’t monsters—this unusual cat is fun-loving, intelligent, and social, making friends of every creature they meet.

The coat is unique, lacking undercoat entirely and displaying partial hairlessness on the extremities and total hairlessness on the face (the “werewolf mask”). Not only that, the Lykoi is the first known cat breed to exhibit roan, a pattern found in many other species. Roaning is a mix of coloured hairs and amelanistic white hairs, blended evenly throughout the body rather than clustered in patches like tortoiseshell. The coat can change length, density, and colour seasonally, with not every cat being fully showable year-round.

Type & judging remarks
Coat should not be too dense or too sparse, with roaning ranging between 30-70%. Eyes are large and luminous (“harvest moons”). Foreign to semi-foreign build; slender but muscular, with a shorter tail and long toes.