NOVEL NEXT Chapter 567: Cat Mother's Worsening Psychological Issues
Little Cub, lacking the aid of forelimbs, inadvertently slipped after taking two bites. Wanting to eat again, it struggled for a long time but couldn't reach, crying out in distress.
The mother cat glanced at her child, turned slightly to expose her soft belly, then reached over to grab the cub by the back of its neck, lifting it onto her stomach so it could lay there and feed.
Yunyun was somewhat stunned; she originally intended to help by supporting the cub's body from underneath, not expecting the cat mother to make such a sacrifice.
After all, the belly is the softest area and the part they most need to protect. Normally, even while feeding their young, they would at most turn sideways, exposing their bellies around other animals, are you crazy!
Whether the mother fishing cat was crazy or not is unknown, but the cub ate happily. It seemed happy too, with its head raised, paws tucked alongside its body, eyes slightly squinted, and its significantly shorter compared to normal feline tail swaying slightly.
It's well-known that the lynx has a short tail, but perhaps few know that the tail of the short-tailed cat is even shorter. The fishing cat is also a member of the short-tailed group, but its tail is a bit longer than the previous two, only shorter than other felines.
(Made a comparative analysis, just take it casually)
Because of the short tail, the division between the cat and cat tail as two different biological entities is not evident in these three.
For instance, now, the mother fishing cat is clearly very happy wagging its tail, but the movements are subtle, not easily noticeable without careful observation.
Nursing behavior can actually bring psychological and emotional satisfaction to both the mother cat and cub. For example, now, who can say the mother cat still has a death wish? Even the cub's purring is a little louder than usual.
Everyone was very happy, but Chen Ying frowned.
"Brother Chen, this is good news, why do you look not too pleased?"
Chen Ying smiled reluctantly, "This mother cat's psychological issues are quite tricky. Normal wild animals certainly experience losing all their young, but there's no known case of mothers losing all their young and wanting to die because of it."
Although similar cases might exist, there's truly no record according to documentation!
For such rare animals like the fishing cat, whose numbers are continuously declining, strictly adhering to wildlife protection principles is a must. While unnecessary, artificial captivity is absolutely unacceptable.
However, the problem is the cub's body can never return to the wild. If the mother cat needs to raise it, human assistance will be necessary for around a year.
After a year of artificial captivity, can wild fishing cats still return to the wild smoothly? Another issue is this mother cat is mentally so fragile; can we guarantee her next litter won't have issues? If something goes wrong, will she again wait to die?
If it were other more populous animals, Chen Ying wouldn't be so conflicted; after all, nature has its own rules, and survival of the fittest is the basis of evolution.
But given the fishing cat's low numbers, record shows that neighboring countries have attempted artificial breeding several times, with results not ideal and cub mortality rates reaching about seventy percent.
In the country, the only successful artificial breeding project recorded is in Yue Province's wildlife world. Aside from that, there are currently only four zoos or breeding institutions hosting fishing cats, with Sichuan Province limited to scientific exchanges and not open to public display. Moreover, this pair of fishing cats was likely introduced through a translocation protection program.
Previously, Chen Ying had been in contact with them, and perhaps once the disabled cub grows a bit larger, it would be sent to the research center at the base, given the facilities simulating wetlands are more suitable for fishing cats.
Moreover, the base is near Jiamu Gully, allowing Chen Ying to visit the cub anytime.
However, applying to bring the mother cat there too would not be easy, potentially drawing attention from international protection organizations.
It's not that attention is bad, but certain biases are deeply ingrained; any extra effort might be judged as suspicious behavior.
Especially in the case of this mother fishing cat, without evidence, how do you convince people the reason for taking her away is her suicidal tendencies?
After confirming the mother cat's meticulous care for the disabled cub, Chen Ying returned to the office, thought for a while, and sent an email to his doctoral advisor, then called Professor Bai to seek his advice.
He got lucky as he called; a Global Fishing Cat Alliance (GFA) staff member and colleague were visiting Professor Bai at Jiamu Gully.
After hearing that Chen Ying's team discovered a wild disabled fishing cat in the Nanman River Basin of Dian Province, the GFA staff immediately got detailed information from Chen Ying and agreed to visit the next day to verify the cub and mother cat's situation.
"Mr. Chen, if the situation is indeed as described, we will submit a report and application to the project management team, and there's a big chance these two fishing cats will be taken over by the project group."
"No problem, as long as we can solve the captivity issue for the mother cat and cub. Additionally, regarding the cub's disabled limbs, my teacher Professor Bai and I will provide clinical solutions, hoping the project group will consider cooperation then."
After arrangements were made, the GFA staff immediately called their superior and entrusted Professor Bai with copying the relevant materials and videos sent by Chen Ying, as they needed to return immediately to draft the report and application.