Sunday, August 7, 2016

Arabian Sand Cat

Hard for me to believe that this is an actual wild predator, but the evidence seems to be strong.

This looks a little wilder.


But otherwise just cute cats. These were in the news this week because a new effort to count them in Abu Dhabi found about the expected number – which is not many because they have always been rare. According to the usual sources, they have very furry paws to keep sand out of their pads and can live without ever drinking, getting all their fluids from their prey.
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5 comments:

G. Verloren said...

Growing up, I had a pet cat who was a feral outdoor hunter. Typical ordinary example of Felis catus domesticus, she just was born under a shed and lived in the scrub and grew up feral.

She was the furthest thing from a lap cat possible. We left her dry food and fresh water outside and she would let us sit near her and watch her, but she wasn't keen on being touched and had no real affection for anyone. The exception was the half eaten corpses she would leave for us as presents, and she brought us everything. The typical trophies were birds and lizards, gophers, various rodents, and a decent variety of snakes, several highly venomous. On a few occasions she brought us much larger game than she could actually handle, still alive and simply cowed or exhausted into submission - curled up armadillos, possums playing dead, dazed and unconscious raccoons, and once she even dragged a forty pound land tortoise to our door. The only things she never bothered were the squirrels and rabbits, for some reason.

House cats as we know them are quite adapted to lives of domestication, but they're still wild hunters deep down. All it takes is the right conditions and perhaps a generation or two to unearth the old instincts, and they're perfectly capable of being vicious and effective predators.

August 8, 2016 at 7:26 AM
Shadow said...

I was at the animal shelter when they brought in a domestic cat gone feral. That cat was making such a ruckus even the pit bulls were cowering in their cages. Wow, was that cat pissed -- all teeth and claws.

When I lived in Vegas I was awoken one night by a ruckus in the closet in my bedroom. Half awake I heard the walls banging and shoes flying. My cat was in battle with something, but I was so tired I foolishly I fell back asleep. In the morning, having completely forgotten the midnight incident, I arose in the dark only to step on something very weird on my way to the bathroom. I jumped, my head nearly hitting the ceiling. I ran to the bathroom, turned on the light, and looked. There was Hadrurus Arizonenus, probably the largest scorpion in the southwest, lying on the floor, its tail also lying prone. It was alive but barely. My cat had done battle with a large scorpion and won without ever getting stung.

Cats are tough.

He was an ultra predator, though, always bringing home his kills, making presents of them. He wasn't satisfied until I looked and acknowledged his gift. Then he would take it away.

August 8, 2016 at 10:21 AM
Dallas said...

What a great story, Shadow Flutter!

August 10, 2016 at 8:00 PM
Shadow said...

Thanks, Dallas.

August 10, 2016 at 9:29 PM
invenitmundo said...

The most beautiful cat in the world is the Arabian sand cat looking cute but deadly. invenitmundo.blogspot.com/2016/08/Arabian-sand-cat-the-most-beautiful-in-world-reappears.html

September 21, 2016 at 10:31 AM

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