Rosier/NewsProspect Park Zoo’s Pallas cat makes appearance.
Posted on 04/28/2008 8:28:08 AM PDT by Stoat
Monday, April 28th 2008, 4:00 AM
Rosier/NewsProspect Park Zoo’s Pallas cat makes appearance.
Just like typical house cats, Alexandra and Nicholas would rather sleep than entertain humans.
The 10-year-old Pallas cats have been on exhibit for about a month at Prospect Park Zoo, but they rarely make eye contact with people who stop to look at them.
Zookeeper Hulya Israfil, 27, said the wild felines from Central Asia are still getting used to their surroundings.
"We're letting them take their time and hopefully they'll be out on a regular basis soon," Israfil said.
After eying the exhibit for about 10 minutes, Steven Vavasis, 7, finally caught a glimpse of one cat.
"I see them! I see them!" said an excited Steven. "I think they look like wild cats. They're my favorite color, and they look so cute."
Other people had trouble distinguishing the grayish-colored cats from their surroundings.
"It looks like a rock because it is the same color," said Miriam Goldstein, 11.
But some people thought the cats might be shy for different reasons.
"I don't blame them for hiding when people are staring at them all day," said Mary Barba, 49. "They look like cats with an attitude."
The endangered felines usually live alone in the mountainous caves of Central Asia. But in their new Brooklyn home, Alexandra and Nicholas have been found sleeping together in one crate.
They resemble house cats in size and weight and have even been litter-box trained. But they are far from domesticated.
"They're wild animals, so they are not friendly," Israfil said.
"Though they may be small, they are definitely not safe. They might look cute and cuddly, but we don't pet them."
Regal Kitties at the Prospect Park Zoo
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Photos of Pallas Cats, page 5!
Photos of Pallas Kittens, page 4!
That cat’s got some big feet.
I don’t think I’d mess with one of those. It’s just exuding “you want a piece of me?” attitude.
}:-)4
Indeed :-)
Gorgeous animals that would rip a person apart, given half a chance :-)
Round pupils, way weird.
I want one.
Large pussy cats with attitude!
I want a couple.
All cats have keen senses, which they need to locate and their prey. Like us, cats have forward-facing eyes. But they can open their pupils three times wider and see in the dark six times better than people can. Cats have a layer of tissue in their eyes called the tapetum lucidum, which bounces light back through the retina a second time and increases the amount of light the cat has to see by. That’s what causes the “eyeshine” that you see with cats at night, when their eyes seem to glow red or green. Cats can also focus clearly and quickly for long and short distances. Without moving their heads they can detect movement within a visual field of 280 degrees—which means they can see out of the corner of their eyes a lot better than we can!
San Diego Zoo's Animal Bytes Small Cat
(the above snippet refers to cats generally, not specifically to the Pallas cats)
I want one.
If one could be convinced not to eat stoats, I would get one in a heartbeat :-)
Taking 'attitude' to another level:
2 Videos Home comforts for rare white tiger cub (WARNING Extreme Cuteness Alert)
(an old link but the videos still work)
I want a couple.
They would certainly ensure a rodent-free neighborhood :-)
I would bet that a Pallas cat would be a fine rodent cat, and not limited to mice and rats. I would like to have a couple to see how they would adapt to various environments.
Agreed...I'm thinking that their unique and particularly thick fur (most evident in the video) might cause them to be uncomfortable in anything other than a very cold climate, however. Perhaps a Maine Coon cat might be a worthy substitute?
I would love to stroke a Pallas cat though (if he/she would let me)...that fur must be marvelous to the touch.
Interesting to think of the possibilities for these felines.
Beautiful animals, and very unique.
A cursory web search with the keyword phrase "domesticating wild animals" turns up more negative opinions in the results than optimistic ones.
Perhaps over considerable time with selective breeding something could be accomplished, but then the danger would be of breeding out the features that we find desirable in the animal. Although I generally dislike citing Wikipedia, this page provides a bit of an overview of the concept of domestication.
Domestication - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Interesting to think of the possibilities for these felines.
Beautiful animals, and very unique.
Agreed...a magnificent testament to the glory of Nature.
You’re welcome. Thank you for posting the thread.
LMAO
Thanks so much for the great pic :-)
No problem :)
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