With Sokoke, you can bring a very lively and curious cat into your home. She likes to climb and therefore needs a lot of space. At best, they should be kept in a large apartment or a house with free-wheeling facilities. The Sokoke is also one of the more sociable cat breeds. If you are working, you must therefore think about keeping a second cat.
The Sokoke is a naturally evolved breed of cats from Kenya.
The breed has been known for some time among the tribe members, the Girima, who are native to Kenya. It is therefore suggested that she could have lived in Kenya for centuries without outside interference.
For a long time, it was speculated whether the Sokoke was a descendant of the black cat or another wildcat species. However, DNA analyzes could rule out this assumption. Today it is therefore assumed that the Sokoke is a feral domestic cat breed.
It owes its current name to Jeni Slater. The so-called Khadzono cats found this in 1978 in the Arabuko Sokoke forest on the Kenyan coast. Her friend Gloria Moeldrop brought a couple of the cats to Denmark as Slater was concerned for the breed’s survival.
In 1984 the Sokoke was shown for the first time at an exhibition in Copenhagen and in 1993 it was officially recognized by FIFĂ© under the name Sokoke.
Currently, the breed is mainly bred in Denmark, Norway, the United States, and Canada.
Breed-specific traits
The Sokoke is considered to be extremely active and shows a lot of fun climbing. In addition, they have some similarities with oriental cat breeds, especially in terms of their ability to speak. Regular conversations with her caregiver are very important to her. The Kenyan cat is also very curious. She loves to explore every corner of the house and yard and is constantly sniffing something. As a rule, she is initially reserved towards strangers and can only slowly build trust.
Attitude and care
Since the Sokoke is a very athletic cat that needs a lot of exercises and likes to climb, it should by no means live in a small apartment, but needs a lot of space and opportunities to run.
In addition, the apartment or house of a Sokoke holder should be equipped with numerous play and climbing options, for example, a sturdy scratching post.
Sokoke is very sociable and would like to be involved in the everyday life of their owners. They don’t like staying at home alone at all. As a working person, you should therefore urgently think about keeping a second cat. Other pets, such as dogs, are usually welcome in Sokoke society.
Since the fur of the Sokoke is short and rough with little to no undercoat, it is reported, at least from Denmark, that the cats can be sensitive to the cold.