In an effort to stave off the possibility of extinction of the Scottish wildcat in the wild, a collaboration between the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, NatureScot, Forestry and Land Scotland and the Cairngorms National Park Authority under the umbrella of project “Saving Wildcats”, twenty-two wildcats were bred in captivity and the first group …
Scientists have looked into whether wild cats are smarter than domestic cat. Their study is entitled: “Are domesticated animals dumber than their wild relatives? A comprehensive review on the domestication effects on animal cognitive performance.” I discuss the study below and start off with a general discussion on the difficulties in making a comparison. …
The question seems innocuous and the answer obvious but the explanation is not quite as simple as people might expect. The comparison will be to the pet cat’s wild cat ancestor. Here is my answer for what it is worth. Please add yours in a comment. The difference between a pet cat and a …
It is an astonishing thought. About ten thousand years ago at least five different individual female cats of the Near Eastern wildcat (aka North African wildcat) population living in the savannah had the courage to overcome their fear of humans to live in an agricultural settlement in the river-rich lands that form an arc …
We are referring to domestic cats. Perhaps wild cats do it as well. Some of them probably do and one species definitely does: the African wildcat, the ancestor of the domestic cat. I have just this minute watched my cat eat some dry cat food and immediately after eating he flicked or briefly shook …
NEWS AND VIEWS: The police have been at it again; screwing up and messing around. And telling fibs, I’d say. In the UK can we trust the police anymore? No, I’m afraid not. In this story, a wildlife charity in Wales, Wildcat Haven, was looking after a rescued Scottish wildcat kitten called Finlay. He …
In the image below I have tried to present a feel for what the Fertile Crescent was like around 10,000 years ago when ‘at least five different females from the wildcat population’ befriended farmers and founded one of the greatest populations of domestic animal companions the world has seen: the domestic cat. Of course, …
Intro: this page contains some opinions too! Here are 20 facts about the closest relations of the domestic cat. The Near Eastern wildcat aka North African wildcat is the ancestor of the domestic cat. There is one group of small wild cats which are very similar in appearance to the domestic cat, specifically the …
