Wild cats

General Discussion
1

I have never touched the lives of wild cats before I came here to the countryside.


At the end of last year we prepared to trap some wild kittens who were born


on our land. We took advice and managed to get the three kittens and their mother


sorted out....all the kittens were girls...and all avoided life in kitten production.



Our four French cats are happy little people and mingle with the wild little girls.



But the wild cats are so so different and I wonder about their expectations of life


and this aggressive defence mechanism and fear of other creatures. I have a good


in Bath who runs a cattery and she worked as an assistant to a vet in London but


she does not have a clue as to the different life style that the wild cat leads.


She tells me that when we move on to down size I should take the wild cats with


us and in time they will change.....but she has not a clue.


One of the wild cats was limping very badly and we made plans to capture her and


take her to be seen by our local vet.


We collected her yesterday,paid a very substantial bill and was told that the ex ray


showed a clear break....Not good news for Sheeky.


Surgery in Bordeaux could be possible but so difficult.


How do you tell a wild cat that care about what happens to them but you


can not change the course of nature or how life moves in her strange ways....


choosing, challenging the weak and supporting the strong?






2

A crow spent several months with us a couple of years back.

He was a youngster and had some flying difficulties ....the vet had a look at him

and said that he should be fine.

What a character he was....

As I set the table in the garden he would steal the cutlery and fly high

playing a game with me. He was a joker and a happy bird and everyone who met

him enjoyed his antics.

Watching him chase our cats was funny.

Chip could fly.....but not too well...

One day he walked across the D18 to journey back to where he was born and he

was hit by a car.

It was so nice to have known him.

3

I have lived alongside populations of feral cats in all sorts of places, they always kept themselves to themselves... happy to come & eat food left outside but with a flight-distance of a metre and a half minimum, often a lot more. I have taken cats to the vet on several occasions when I've found them injured, probably why my car smells so nice ;-) useful tip - keep a blanket in your car. I haven't come across any vets who are reluctant to treat them.

The one time a vet wasn't very happy was in the UK, when I brought in an adolescent stoat one of my cats brought in ;-) saying "they play dead & then they bite" the stoat DID play dead but then zoomed around the room several times at head level & dived behind the 'fridge. We fished it out & had a look (she wore v impressive gauntlets, I didn't have any)... she pronounced it 'fine' & we finally stuffed it back in the cat basket & I took it home again to set it free... Oh and a tawny owl, he was good value, amazingly long legs and big talons for a little bird. The vet kept him for 48 hours & gave him back to me so I could let him go where I found him. My vet here took very good care of a poor one-eyed crow I found on the old bridge in Bergerac in the rain, all confused and not flying - again they kept him for 48 hours & I took him home & let him go.

4

Vera I know how different wild cats are....I can see the fear..... and all I want to offer is

food and help if I can.

BUT vets do not like treating wild cats.

Have you any experience with feral cats?

I have no demands for affection I have 4 cats who live with me and seem to enjoy

my company, my cuisine and the comfort of the house and garden.

I WISH I could help all the creatures in the world....

That would be my dream.

5

Barbara I'm surprised you have to go to Bordeaux, I haven't seen the X-ray obviously but have had cats with broken bones + complications (& worse) - all dealt with extremely competently by the vets in Bergerac, cats in question now fine.

Feral cats don't become like domestic cats - they won't ever be like them. This isn't to say they won't accept you at a distance or use the facilities you provide, which will probably extend their life-span by a lot.

I think you can tell any cat what you like it won't make a blind bit of difference ;-) deeds not words!

6

Survival of the fittest governs every aspect of life.

7

Survival of the Fittest, this is what governs rural life, as wild cats are self sufficient and roam free they will only survive for a few years. you will never be able to tame a wild cat in one generation, even domesticated cats are wild at nature. yeas care for them and look after them, but try not to get attached to them.

8

Missing word.....Friend