14th September 2008 : Genet Cats are getting friendly

Ahough I have no pictures yet (I’m nervous the flash will frighten them away before they are completely accustomed to us), I have got to tell you about “our” genet cats who have become so tame of late… Yesterday after dinner, Ian and I were throwing little bits of cheese down in the living room for the genets who wander in from outside whenever they choose. For the first time since the genets have been coming in the house, one jumped on my lap and – also a first – fed from Ian’s hand. We are so thrilled for, when you really think about it, it is quite extraordinary. Here is a wild animal, which depends on its wits to survive against all kinds of snakes, owls and larger predators, coming into our home and trusting us enough to take food from our hand and jump onto our lap, then – when it’s had its fill – it returns to its life outside in the wild. It’s really quite something…
Of course, strictly speaking genet cats are not cats, they are in fact more closely related to mongooses. They are extremely beautiful, with their big eyes, spotted coats, long ringed tails and ever-twitching ears.
I’m sure the genets will soon be tame enough to take pictures of them with the flash, so watch this space…
[Note added on 25th October 2008: Check out the photos I finally took of our genet cats yesterday!]Find me elsewhere on the web:
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