FIRST KITTENS ARE BEING BORN NOW

Hi All

Thanks a lot for all your messages of support and encouragement about the upcoming hearing next week. We will give it all we have got. It is now mid March and this is always a crucial and magical time of the year. This is when the first kittens will be born in remote locations in almost undetectable dens. As we all know, wildcats are exceptionally elusive and wildcat mothers are extremely secretive, choosing dens sites to provide maximum security and to avoid detection. They can den under tree roots, hollowed out logs, rock piles and they may have multiple den sites so that they will move the kittens from one to another. 

After a pregnancy of 63-68 days those priceless kittens are born and tenderly cared for, but fiercely defended, by their wildcat mothers. It is a very emotional and moving experience to walk through forests when you know kittens are out there somewhere, completely out of sight and hopefully safe. Those emotions are also accompanied by extreme vigilance and we of course closely monitor wildcat areas for disturbance. 

We hope for a very successful and peaceful breeding season and as we have done in previous years, we can't wait to show you any kitten videos that we get. A female can have 3 to 4 kittens and so wildcat populations can grow relatively quickly with the right conditions and protection. We maintain our position that the Scottish wildcat can and must be saved in the wild where it belongs. 

If you are reading this, pause for a moment and imagine what is happening in those wildcat dens. Tiny kittens, lying on their warm mothers fur with her wonderfully thick tail wrapped around them. I guarantee it will make you smile and may even bring a tear to your eye. It certainly has to mine as I write this. 

The year is flying by and Mother's Day is soon upon us. You can get a special gift for your Mum and help us to save the wildcat at the same time, by either adopting a Scottish wildcat or purchasing one of our wildcat soft toys. Here are the links:

https://www.wildcathaven.com/store/p/scottish-wildcat-soft-toy

https://www.wildcathaven.com/adoption-packs

We know that many of you have already done so and we really appreciate it. 

Keep watching as will be updating next week and don't forget to give a thought to those new born wildcat kittens tucked away in their cosy dens. 

Best wishes as always

Emily and the Wildcat Haven team