Wildlife and Conservation 9: The Big Cat Sanctuary
My passion for Cats, The Big Cat Sanctuary, a red wine from South Africa and a ninth century Irish poem translated by Seamus Heaney
Video clip: Born Free (1966) trailer YouTube
Introduction - my passion for Cats:
Cats - domestic cats; black cats; tabby cats; long-haired cats; russian blue cats; stray cats; feral cats; poorly cats; injured cats; lions; leopards; tigers; african caracal cats; native wild cats…..
Anyone who truly know me, knows that cats are my biggest passion. I am what J. D. Vance infamously referred to as a “childless cat lady”….. and proud of it, I am. Defiant and fearless actually.
As a child, I was bewitched by the American CBS children’s television programme J.T. (1969) written by Jane Wagner (wife of Lily Tomlin).
Photo Lily Tomlin
A troubled little boy J.T., living in a New York ghetto, finds his connection to the world through a poorly cat. When he takes the cat home, his mother refuses to let him keep it. So J.T. cares for the cat in an abandoned building. I can remember specifically that the cat sleeps in an old, broken cooker oven. Christmas approaches, J.T.’s transistor radio is stolen and he’s chased by two bullies from the condemned building, only to witness his cat run over in the street by a car. A heart-broken J.T. is consoled by his grandmother. Later at Christmas, the boy’s life is transformed when the neighbourhood grocer gives J.T. a kitten, offering the young boy a second chance for a special, nurturing relationship to endure a world that often seems cruel and unforgiving.
The story is utterly beautiful and I share it with you here. For all fellow cat lovers. Fifty minutes in total, spread over 5 ten minute parts.
Born Free, set in Africa, was another film that made a big impression on me as a child. I imagine that these two films, Born Free and J.T., along with the animated programmes The Aristocats and Top Cat
Image Disney
Image Hanna Barbera
had something to do with the long list of cats that I have been lucky enough to grown up with and share our home with:
Tiptoes - the first one - black, long haired with four white paws that I coaxed home when sent to the shop for errands and my father threw out of an upstairs window - definitely not a cat lover…
Desperado - the tabby kitten that my youngest sister took to the beach in her toddler wooden bricks trolley and who was never seen again.
Dubha - the hunter who could jump up one storey high with a captured rabbit in her mouth to return home through the upstairs cap flap in Roedean - the famous Brighton boarding school where I lived and taught.
Tucker - my first tabby that I kidnapped across the Irish Sea, as a kitten from my family home in Dublin - sorry Deirdre.
Barney & Beany - named after the Batchelors Marrowfat Peas characters on the Irish television advertisement.
Video YouTube
Lucy - the sassy diabetic and hyperthyroid tabby.
Arthur - the handsome, rescued RTA 20 year old russian blue with renal disease and heart failure, who walked like John Wayne with his injured hips and spinal arthritis.
Dubh - the brave black, semi feral, partially blind cat - who survived bilateral eye surgery but was taken too soon by FIV.
And Sulin - the 18 year old plus survivor, a rescued tabby with a deadly dirty look (when annoyed), who infamously left a faecal deposit beside my sister’s beautiful leather boots, when first introduced.
I feel it is important to stress that I believe that we do not “own” cats - they are “born free”- independent, free spirits - and we are their guardians in this world.
As a child, I dreamt of becoming a vet. Unfortunately, my final Irish Leaving Certificate school grades weren’t quite good enough to study Veterinary Science -so I opted for Natural Sciences at Trinity College Dublin.
I was a teacher, subject leader and an assistant headteacher for 28 years, when restructuring and redundancy enabled me to pivot and change careers in 2016. In my early Fifties I became an apprentice, retraining to become a registered veterinary nurse (RVN). It was not without its challenges - I was clumsy (poor fine motor skills) and loud (a necessary skill as a teacher). But I LOVE working with animals …. especially CATS.
I have travelled to Kruger National Park, South Africa to see lions and leopards and Ranthambore National Park, India to see tigers.
Photo author: Lion and lioness, Kruger National Park, South Africa, August 2022
Photo author: Kruger National Park, South Africa. If you look carefully, there is a snoozing leopard, resting in the tree, after capturing an impala and storing it further up the tree. Can you see the dead impala’s rump?
Photos author: Bengal Tiger, Ranthambore National Park, India, February 2023
Video clips author Bengal Tiger Ranthambore National Park, India 2023
I still feel that I have left pieces of my heart in Kruger and Ranthambore.
Photo author: African sunset in Kruger, August 2022
Photo author: early morning safari, Ranthambore National Park, India, February 2023
In 2023, I completed my ISFM Certificate in Feline Nursing and currently, I am in the very early stages of collecting domestic cat neck circumference data to enable Wildwood Trust Kent to release native wild cats back into the wild in Britain, with tracking collars for monitoring purposes. I hope to write an article on this project in the future.
Photo author: Native Wild Cat, Wildwood Trust Kent
But for now, I want to share with you my recent visit to the Big Cat Sanctuary, Kent on Members Day.
Big Cat Sanctuary, Smarden, Kent:
The Big Cat Sanctuary is dedicated to the conservation of wild cats, with the four objectives of welfare, breeding, education and conservation.
The initiatives undertaken are a vital part in saving some of our planet’s most endangered feline species from extinction.
Video clip: The Story of the Big Cat Sanctuary YouTube 3 min
The Sanctuary is actively involved in the European Endangered Species breeding programme, adding more cubs and kittens to the global population. By maintaining genetic diversity within the captive population, there is the option that in the future cats bred in captivity may be used to supplement existing populations in the wild.
The Big Cat Sanctuary is making partnerships to support frontline global conservation strategies, initiatives and research to help protect some of the most endangered cats in the world from extinction. It is by funding projects, raising awareness as well as contributing to the attributed breeding programmes that the Big Cat Sanctuary can help create a future for our planet’s wild cats. In 2023 the Big Cat Sanctuary donated £58,000 to the following organisations:
International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List Category of Threatened Species:
Established in 1964, the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species has evolved to become the world’s most comprehensive information source on the global extinction risk status of animal, fungus and plant species.
The IUCN Red List tells us where
we ought to be concerned and
where the urgent needs are to do
something to prevent the despoliation
of this world. It is a great agenda
for the work of conservationists.
Sir David Attenborough
The current IUCN Red List Categories are:
Extinct (EX)
Extinct in the Wild (EW)
Critically Endangered (CR)
Endangered (EN)
Vulnerable (VU)
Near Threatened (NT)
Least Concern (LC)
Data Deficient (DD)
Not Evaluated (NE)
For more detailed information, please refer to:
And now for the beautiful wild cats that I had the privilege of meeting recently on Members Day. I feel I should point out that the Big Cat Sanctuary is not open to the public every day. There is a very limited number of days per year when you can visit. Which, when you think about, is in the wild cats’ best interests - minimising any stress caused.
Pumas (Puma concolor):
Status: Least concern
Photo author Puma sisters Viktoria & Valentina. Born 02/09/2007. Valentina is the most dominant sister - she is sassy and distinguished from her sister Viktoria by her missing ear tips.
Pumas are more commonly known as mountain lions or cougars. Adult pumas are solitary except when mating/rearing kittens. However, increasing observational evidence of wild pumas indicates complex social behaviours, including sharing of food with unrelated pumas, which suggests that this particular feline species is not entirely solitary.
Kittens are born with mottled spotty marking which provide camouflage until adolescence. The spots start to fade at approximately 6 months, when juveniles start making their own kills. In contrast, adult pumas are one colour only, as their Latin name concolor (of the same colour) suggests.
Pumas have the largest range of any cat (from Canada to South America). They are found in a variety of habitats including mountains, jungle and temperate forests.
Pumas found in the most northern, colder parts of their range have a larger body size and thicker fur coats, than pumas in the south. Pumas found in mountainous areas have greyer fur colour, whereas those that live in the jungle have darker coloured fur.
Pumas make a variety of vocalisations including purrs, chirrups and little chuffs too. They can sometimes “scream”, to attract mates for breeding.
Pumas have powerful muscles capable of taking down very large prey; adult males are easily capable of taking horses. In the mountains, pumas’ adaptations include a long tail for balance, large feet for balance and to distribute weight, small rounded ears to prevent heat loss, and longer hind limbs for agile jumping, climbing and balance. Hairs between the pads of their feet enable them to hunt quietly.
The main threats faced by pumas are habitat loss, depletion of prey, conflict with farmers and bounty hunting.
African Lions (Panthera leo leo):
Status: Vulnerable
Photo author: Kasanga Born 01/09/09. Kasanga was born into the circus in France before moving to Woburn Safari Park. He loves enrichment and enjoys barrels, pole feeds, and new scents. Kasanga regularly takes his toys into his den area to his bed!
Lions are the only truly social feline species, living in prides comprising of 15 individuals on average. Male lions can also be found living together in groups called coalitions.
Lions will roar to communicate their occupancy of a territory. A lion roar can be heard up to 8 km away.
Male lions have a thick mane of hair around their head and neck. It demonstrates good health as well as acting as a form of protection in any altercations.
Lionesses hunt together which enables them to capture a bigger prey animal and provide sufficient food for the whole pride.
Lions are found in the grassy plains and open woodland across sub-Saharan Africa.
The population of African lions in the wild has decreased significantly in the last decade or so. This is due to conflict with livestock farmers, bounty hunters and the spread of disease.
Photo author: The White Lioness Pride, comprising of Sabi and Shaka (sisters) and Jasiri and Nuru (sisters).
The white colouration of the pride is caused by leucism - a genetic mutation. White lions are not a different sub-species to African lions.
White lions are able to camouflage well enough to hunt and thrive in the Timbavati region of the Kruger in South Africa (an environment with very bleached sands and grasses). In South Africa the tawny-coloured lions naturally mix with white lions.
Sadly, white lions are especially hunted for their more unusual and rarer white colour - resulting in a higher demand and price for this bounty hunting trophy.
According to local African legend, white lions are born only every 100 years - bringing happiness to those who see them.
Amur Tiger (Panthera tigris altaica):
Status: Endangered
Photo author: Luca Born 07/10/21. Luca is inquisitive and loves to explore and play with everything in his enclosure, especially in his water pool.
The Amur tiger is the largest of the five remaining tiger sub-species. The Amur tiger was previously called the Siberian tiger. However over time, the population has decreased and the range of this feline species has reduced and no longer includes Siberia. The majority of the population is found in pine forests in the far eastern Russia’s Amur valley. Although some can be found in northern China and North Korea.
Similar to a human fingerprint, each Amur tiger’s wide stripes are unique. For this reason, a tiger’s stripes can be used for identification purposes by conservationists studying wild populations.
The Amur tigers have developed longer, thicker fur coats than other subspecies, to adapt to the sub-zero temperatures of their habitats. Their fur is pale coloured and sparsely striped to provide camouflage in their more open environment than other tigers.
Threats to Amur tigers include hunting for fur trade, habitat loss due to farming and illegal logging and the use of tiger body parts in the traditional medicine trade.
Only several hundred Amur tigers exist in the wild but the numbers are currently stable due to Russian government protection.
Hybrid White Tiger:
Status: Data Deficient
Photo author: Baikal. He was originally born in a French zoo. He is named after Lake Baikal, in Russia – one the largest, deepest and oldest lakes in the world. Baikal enjoys his food and loves to crush cardboard boxes and chase boomer balls.
White tigers are not a separate subspecies of tiger. Their white fur is the result of a genetic mutation called leucism.
Due to having white fur, these cats are unable to camouflage, which greatly reduces their chance of survival. This means these cats are rarely seen in the wild - the last recorded wild white tiger sighting was in the 1951 in India where white hybrid tigers originated. This male tiger was captured and called Mohan.
Almost all white tigers in captivity today descend from Mohan. It is now against regulations to breed white big cats (tigers or lions) in captivity for BIAZA zoos. The reason behind this is simply that the gene pool is not sufficiently diverse.
Video Clip author Baikal
Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus jubatus):
Status: Vulnerable
Photo author: Willow Born 01/07/17. Willow has a loud motor engine like purr. She starred in the 2018 BBC documentary series Big Cats About the House.
Cheetahs are the world’s fastest land animal, with a maximum velocity of 70mph and an acceleration of 0 - 60 mph in 3 seconds.
Unlike other cats, cheetahs hunt during the day to avoid competition from other predators such as lions, hyenas and leopards. They have distinctive dark tear shaped markings on their face to absorb the sun’s radiation and so protect their eyes from the sun’s glare.
The cheetah has a number of adaptations for speed, including a flexible spine and long legs for a large stride; non retractable claws for grip and a heavy, oval shaped tail for balance. A cheetah has a large heart and lungs to pump oxygenated blood around its body quickly.
Cheetahs are found in grassland and woodland in southern and Eastern Africa.
Cheetahs can purr, growl and hiss but cannot roar like other big cats. Cheetahs can make a high-pitched bird-like chirping sound, when calling out to other cheetahs.
Cheetahs have been identified as Africa’s most threatened cat. Their main threat is conflict with livestock farmers.
Cheetahs are now extinct in 25 countries and possibly extinct in a further 13 countries. They have vanished from approximately 91 percent of their historic range. They are extinct in Asia apart from a single, isolated population of approximately 50 individuals in central Iran. It is estimated that there are only 7000 cheetahs in the wild globally.
Jaguars (Pantgera onca):
Status: near threatened
Photos author: Keira Born 02/04/2017. At two years old, Keira was introduced to her breeding partner Neron - she fell in love with him almost immediately. They are literally the perfect couple, they demonstrate love and affection on a daily basis. Keira quickly became pregnant with Inka and proved herself to be a good mother.
“Jaguar” originates from the Native American word “Yaguar” - which translates as “he who kills with one leap”.
Due to their larger jaw muscles and shorter jaw length, jaguars have the strongest bite force of all cats.
Unlike many of the other cat species, jaguars are not adverse to water and are actually very good swimmers.
Jaguars prefer to eat larger prey such as capybara, tapir and crocodiles (if available), but will actually eat any prey they catch.
Most jaguars are a golden colour like Keira above, with distinctive rosette markings. However, 10% of jaguars in the wild are black (like Maya below), with the same distinctive but fainter rosettes. The black colour is caused by increased levels of the dark pigment melanin, due to a genetic mutation. Black jaguars like Maya are described as melanistic jaguars.
Photos author: Maya Born 11/07/2017. Maya was hand reared as a cub because she was underweight and her mother was unable to produce sufficient milk. Like Willow the cheetah, Maya appeared on the 2018 BBC documentary series Big Cats About the House.
The coat of a jaguar is very similar to that of a leopard, but there is a slight difference in the rosettes: jaguars have a small black dot in the centre, this is far more visible on the golden jaguar.
Jaguars are found in Central and South America, in a range of habitats, including pampas grassland and forests.
Globally, jaguar populations are decreasing due to illegal hunting, conflict with humans, deforestation and loss of prey species. However, in particular areas, population numbers are healthy.
Amur Leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis):
Status: Critically endangered
Photos author: Luka Born 09/09/2019. He arrived from Colchester Zoo in November 2019 and will become part of a breeding pair to help populate the numbers of Amur leopards in captivity, creating a safety net for the species if they were to go extinct in the wild.
Globally, Amur leopards are the most critically endangered big cat. There are approximately 100 Amur leopards left in the wild and around 350 in captivity.
They are found in the temperate forests of the Amur valley in far eastern Russia. Due to the very cold temperatures here, Amur leopards have thicker fur coats and larger rosettes than other leopard subspecies.
Amur leopards are expert hunters - however they can fall prey to brown bears and Amur tigers in the same habitat.
The main threats to Amur leopard population numbers are illegal poaching (for fur and traditional Asian medicine); forest fires; conflicts with humans with respect to resources and inbreeding due to low population numbers.
Due to the high risk of extinction, there is strict government protection of the leopards’ environment and sources of prey.
Snow Leopard (Panthera uncia):
Status: Vulnerable
Photo author: Laila Born 04/04/2010 in Antwerp zoo. Laika’s mother died when she was a very young cub, so her father helped look after her. She was partially hand reared.
Snow leopards, despite their name, are a distinct feline species and are more closely related to tigers than lions.
Snow leopards have long, dense fur (up to 7.5 cm), a stocky build and short ears, which gives them the necessary heat insulation in their extremely cold, high altitude mountainous habitat in Central Asia. Snow leopards have large wide paws, which reduces pressure and stops them sinking into snow, when walking.
The snow leopard has short legs which reduces its centre of gravity and a long tail which acts as a counterweight. These two features give the snow leopard good balance when stalking prey up and down sheer cliff faces.
Threats include poaching (for fur and traditional Asian medicine) and conflict with local livestock farmers.
Snow leopards are very typically evasive and sightings are fleeting. Their colouring (dappled shades of grey, yellow and creamy white) offers effective camouflage in the rocky terrain of the peaks and valleys of the Himalayan mountains and foothills. This makes it challenging to confidently estimate numbers in the wild.
Servals (Leptailurus serval):
Status: Least Concern
Photo author: Samia Born 22/03/2010. She is very sweet - natured and became a first time mother in 2012.
Servals have the largest ears relative to body size of all the wild cats. Their excellent hearing enables servals to hear and echo-locate the ultrasonic squealing of rodents.
Servals can use the power and agility of their long legs to jump vertically up to 2 metres into the air and catch birds in flight.
Video You Tube Earth Touch 5 min
Servals use a high-pitched cry to communicate with other servals. If angry, they can snarl, growl and spit.
Servals are found in grassland, woodland and marshland in Central and Southern Africa, south of the Sahara Desert. The serval has specific habitat requirements so can end up being locally restricted to small ranges within Africa, as they tend to live near watercourses.
The main threats to servals are larger predators and humans. Poachers attempt to sell serval fur as pelts from young leopards and cheetahs. Servals are one of the few cats within Africa that aren’t persecuted by local farmers, as they avoid livestock. A new, bigger threat to the serval is the exotic pet trade and they are now being hybridised with domestic cats to produce the domestic breed, the Savannah.
Caracals (Caracas caracal):
Status: Least Concern
Photo author: Griffin Born 31/08/2013. Griffin particularly enjoys venison meat and relishes the challenge of having to search for his food - either hung up in trees or hidden in puzzle boxes.
The word Caracal derives from the Turkish term “karakulak” which means “black ears”.
Caracals have long, powerful hind limbs and large paws which enable them to jump three metres into the air to catch flying birds, similar to the serval.
In the past, caracals were trained by Indian royalty to hunt game birds.
Caracals are solitary hunters, who have the ability to prey upon animals as large as antelope and nesting ostrich.
Caracals are found in woodlands, savannah, scrublands and arid areas across most of Africa, some parts of India and into the Middle East.
The main threat to the Caracal cat is persecution by local sheep and goat farmers, protecting their livestock.
Caracal Red Wine, Neeflingshof Estate, Stellenbosch, Cape lands, South Africa:
When I visited the 300 year old Neethlingshof Wine Estate, outside
Stellenbosch, in the Cape lands, South Africa in 2022, I had the privilege of tasting the red wine called The Caracal, from their Short Story Collection.
The deep red wine was made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Malbec grapes. The taste of the wine was elegant, full-bodied, rich and succulent, with flavours of plum, blackcurrant and cherry. But what really enticed me to buy a bottle to bring home with me was the gorgeous drawing of the Caracal cat in mid flight catching a bird on the wine bottle label.
Photo author
Almost never seen - the Caracal’s enigmatic presence is always felt. There are signs of this beautiful cat known locally as the “rooikat” (red cat) returning to the Neethlingshof Wine Estate, now that islands of renosterveld (a plant and vegetation flora unique to the Cape lands, SA) have been re-established amongst the vines.
Neethlingshof Wine Estate, Stellenbosch, SA
A poem about Cats, writing and books:
From the ninth-century Irish poem, written by a monk about his cat.
Pangur Bán and I at work,
Adepts, equals, cat and clerk:
His whole instinct is to hunt,
Mine to free the meaning pent.
More than loud acclaim, I love
Books, silence, thought, my alcove.
Happy for me, Pangur Bán
Child-plays round some mouse’s den.
Truth to tell, just being here,
Housed alone, housed together,
Adds up to its own reward:
Concentration, stealthy art.
Next thing an unwary mouse
Bares his flank: Pangur pounces.
Next thing lines that held and held
Meaning back begin to yield.
All the while, his round bright eye
Fixes on the wall, while I
Focus my less piercing gaze
On the challenge of the page.
With his unsheathed, perfect nails
Pangur springs, exults and kills.
When the longed-for, difficult
Answers come, I too exult.
So it goes. To each his own.
No vying. No vexation.
Taking pleasure, taking pains,
Kindred spirits, veterans.
Day and night, soft purr, soft pad,
Pangur Bán has learned his trade.
Day and night, my own hard work
Solves the cruxes, makes a mark.
Pangur Bán by anonymous. Translated by Seamus Heaney
And finally, I will finish with some music. This is a very special version of Toto’s 1980s “Africa”, sung by a group of Irish secondary school students in 2016, whilst on their typically Irish rite of passage summer visit to the Gaeltacht to improve their conversational Gaeilge.
I played this a lot during the pandemic restrictions, when I wondered if I would ever get to travel again, let alone fly to Africa to stay at Kruger National Park and search for big cats. I love wild cats and I hope you can too.
Video clip YouTube TG Lurgan 3 min
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Thank you Caroline, great read, so informative. 🐈💛
I loved reading this and reviewing the types of big cats that I used to enjoy reading about when I was much younger. I did not remember anything about the caracal. It was also fascinating to read about your life story! I salute your changes!