If even lion - tiger hybrids are mostly infertile and develop health problems, think how difficult would it be to make cat - lion hybrids. Most probably impossible. Hybridization attempts would of course take place in a lab, because natural mating between these two animals is impossible. And in the theoretical chance some embryos survive, there is the problem of selecting the appropriate species for gestation, due to the extreme size discrepancies between these animals. For a cat, the hybrid offspring would be too large, while for the lioness too small. Should then we use another medium-size felid to complicate the situation even more? But even if we finally implant them in a suitable womb, I think they will have developmental problems later on and fail.
But a parallel question could be asked about dogs and wolves. They can be interbred, but what happens if a very small breed of dog pairs with a wolf? What happens when two dogs mate, where there is a significant difference in their breed sizes?
I know nothing about this business, but I would guess, since dogs (and cats) give birth in litters, the smaller mother would carry only one pup to term, the rest would not develop.
This Wikipedia page discusses hybrids in Family Felidae.
Halfway down the page there is a nice graphic. It appears many species in Subfamily Pantherinae can interbreed with each other and many species in Subfamily Felinae (MRCA = 9 million years ago) can interbreed with each other but Pantherinae and Felinae (MRCA = 11 million years ago) cannot interbreed.
With all the recent work in genetics, the genetic variation between these species must be known, and change per generation estimated. Are there rules of thumb to guess, from genetic variation, whether hybridization is likely?
I’m sure Uncle Cecil answered this question, but I can’t find it. His answer was something like, “No, for the same reason you can’t park a (something big) in a (something small).”
Step 1: Make sure the mom is a lion.
It has been done. His name is Samson, and he lives in New York City. (Don’t believe any of that “Maine Coon” nonsense.)
That is a real problem, and for that reason some matings between very disparate dogs are avoided. The same with rabbits, where I have more experience, it is not adviseable to breed a female of a smaller breed to a male of a larger breed, because the young might get stuck in the birth canal. Even if the smaller animal managed to keep only one of the larger fetuses to term, still the problem of birth remains. How would it be able to pass it through its smaller birth canal? It is not impossible, but the risks are great.
I get why putting the hybrid in a cat would be a problem but why would putting the hybrid in a lion be a problem? What problems would the smallness pose?
Unfortunately, that question was whether a mans roommate might be having sex with his cat. Ew. Something along the lines of “no, for the same reason you can’t park a Cadillac in a closet.”
Again, ew.
I think the cat would be preferable because of course it is more manageable by humans. With a lion, there would be no complications from a smaller than normal neonate, but how can we be sure if the mother recognizes it after birth and not eats it? Should the mother be anesthetized first?