The idea of keeping a wild cat as a pet appeals to a great many people. This essay is about the realities and the ethics.
In some U.S. states exotic cats can be obtained through private breeders and dealers. In others the private ownership of cats is strictly regulated and is illegal without a license. As an example, residents of California must have two years of full-time experience working with wild cats at a licensed facility before they can apply for a license of their own. If an unlicensed person is caught with an exotic cat it will be confiscated by the State Fish and Game Department. Given that there are few rescue facilities with enough cage space to deal with a confiscated wild cat, the animal may be euthanized. This is just one of the unpleasant scenarios which can result from private ownership.
There is a reason why wild cats are not generally kept as pets. With the exception of the African wild cat, the forerunner of the modern housecat which took 4,000 years to adapt to living with humans, all other wild cats have not been domesticated. This means that they retain powerfu instincts which serve them well in the wild but which are extremely inappropriate in a domestic situation.
Cats typically become fiercely possessive over meat. In captivity, the same instinct leads to possessiveness over objects such as feeding bowls or pieces of clothing. With little warning they will defend their possession with breathtaking aggression and inflict deep puncture wounds if challenged. In the wild this behavior is a great advantage. It helps them survive. It is a shocking and dangerous characteristic in a pet.
One feature of wild cats, which comes as no surprise to domestic cat owners, is how ‘picky’ they are in their friendships. A cat which is perfectly amenable to one person can injure a stranger seconds later.
There is something in the beauty of wild cats which makes us forget our commonsense. People who would not approach and caress a strange dog are eager to extend their hand to a wild cat. The desire to touch is overwhelming. If we turn the tables for a moment and consider how we would feel if a stranger approached us in the street and began touching us, we can understand in an instant why a cat might react violently to being touched by someone unknown to them.
Although there are many stories of friendly exotic cats (and no doubt such cats exist) we would argue two points: first, that they are the exception and second, that even these are unpredictable. The fact that they have not hurt anyone does not mean that they will not at some time in the future. Approaching a friendly cat after using something as apparently harmless as perfume or scented hand soap can produce an unexpected behavior change.
Tripping accidentally in front of a ‘good’ cat has blown theories of time-honored friendships. The motion makes the victim appear vulnerable and triggers hunting instincts. One likely scenario is that the cat will seize the victim’s skull or neck so quickly it’s debatable whether the cat is even aware of what it is doing. Cats have intensely powerful jaws with teeth designed to inflict a killing bite…
Another consideration is that cute and appealing infant animals change when they become sexually mature. This is the age at which young adults establish their independence from their mother and siblings. Their urine becomes pungent and they begin scent marking in an effort to establish their own territory. Besides the unpleasant smell, it is very unnerving if, in the natural course of events, they begin to challenge their owner territorially. The nervous cat lover may reduce contact with the animal, leave it chained up or caged, and deny it the attention it has become accustomed to. Any animal abandoned to minimal care suffers. The formerly charismatic young cub becomes an adult derelict simply because it expressed a natural behavior.
By far the foulest outcome for an unwanted pet is that it is taken to a remote area and turned loose in the ignorant belief that it will be able ‘to fend for itself’. Animals which have imprinted on humans and are dependent upon them for food are helpless in the wild. They are likely to wander into someone’s yard looking for a handout, be mistaken for a wild renegade and shot.
People who work professionally with wild cats put in thousands of hours just to maintain their relationship with their animals. This helps to reduce the risk of injury but never fully eradicates it. Nor does this time include all the essential support activities such as obtaining and keeping adequate food supplies, cleaning, keeping up with paperwork and veterinary care. Unless you have a vocation, which you should pursue in a professional facility, aspiring wild animal owners should consider the possible consequences of what they are getting into. Owning a wild animal, even if done properly and with good reason, is a lifestyle, not a hobby.
This leads us to the ethical questions: why keep a wild animal as a pet? For many pet owners one acceptable answer is simply “Because I want to”. Exotic animals are just that – exotic, attractive, ‘cool’, unusual. They are fascinating and beautiful. Yet their physical beauty can not be separated from their essential nature. They are appealing because of their wildness. When such an animal is raised in captivity that wonderful characteristic is sadly diminished: the instincts are still there, but not the skills to survive in the wild. The animal is left in a state of limbo – a creature subject to all the natural behaviors it was born with yet without the right context to express them.
Few people are aware of the extraordinary damage which has been done to wildlife by the pet trade. For example, in the 1960’s, for every ten ocelot cubs collected from the wild and destined to be pets in the U.S. households of ‘ocelot lovers’, nine died en route in appalling conditions. Those ten, had they been left to live normal lifespans in their natural habitats, would have been responsible for producing well over 100 cubs. Therefore, for every cat kept as a pet, at least 100 were denied the opportunity to live. Few people realize that keeping a single wild animal could be so harmful to wild populations.
Having a relationship with a wild animal is undeniably one of the most enriching experiences a person can hope to have. The reason such an experience is so rare and so treasured is that housing wild animals in captivity presents major logistical and behavioral difficulties. With so few ‘Hallmark’ moments likely to occur, this essay argues that it is more realistic to aim for a relationship based on mutual respect. Respect means striving to save populations in their natural habitats, where they can be what they were born to be, rather than trying to keep one wild cat in the family room.
If you intend to pursue ownership of a wild cat, ask yourself why you are doing it.
