Noticeable difference in facial expression when feral cat is rehabilitated

by Michael Broad · August 16, 2021

Do you detect a faint smile on this cat’s face after a few months of love and care when removed from his feral cat life? I think I do. And I think, too, that you can detect that his face is more relaxed. You can see the eyes in the first photograph are closed more than in the second. A sign of tenseness. There is no doubt that the feline face does express discomfort and pain albeit in a subtle way.

The photograph comes from the Reddit user: u/PoetsSquareCats. The post title is: This is my feral friend Sad Boy, showing off how good he looks after a few months of love and care. He or she cares for Sad Boy.

Can you see a smile on this cat’s face after coming in from the feral cat life? Photo: Reddit user: u/PoetsSquareCats.

There is also a faint hint of lion in his face in the right-hand photograph. That, I think, is due to his muzzle which is very strong for a random-bred cat. Another interesting aspect of the before and after photographs is that he must have been neutered when rehabilitated to domestic life and as a consequence he’s lost his jowly, chubby cheeks which are the hallmark of an unneutered feral cat. The loss of that sign of masculinity goes with the territory of castration.

I think that the alteration in the coat colour in the before and after photographs is to do with the lighting. The photograph on the left was taken in late afternoon, I believe, and Sad Boy is surrounded by yellow fencing of some sort which reflected warm light onto his coat. In the right photograph Sad Boy is in the shade and the sky is blue which has reflected light onto his coat and neutralised to a certain extent what appears to be a faint red coat colour.

We all love to see before and after photos when they reflect a great improvement in lifestyle. Sad Boy is a lucky feline. He is no longer sad, I hope.

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