African summers over the inland Karoo region create dry, arid flat plains with sparse vegetation. This is sheep and goat farming territory, along with a variety of wild buck, springhare, and hundreds of other small wildlife, all perfect food for the survival of the sub-Saharan lynx, or Rooikat as it is commonly called.
Under the camouflage of this dull, red-brown sandy bush and grass, the ruddy coloured lynx is almost impossible to spot, moving around with stealth and speed. In the open grassland, dotted with large brown rocks, the unsuspecting herd of sheep graze, with newborn lambs at their sides. Suddenly the bloodcurdling scream of a lamb sends chaos throughout the herd. Too late for some, the Rooikat charges through, attacking randomly until a few lambs, too slow and paralyzed with fear, are viciously attacked. This is the lynx’s killing field, excited at the smell of blood, he swiftly darts among the sheep. Apart from groundspeed, the lynx can launch itself up to three meters into the air, easily catching wild geese and pheasant as they take to flight. He has been here for centuries, and along with his larger feline relative the leopard, they have lived off this land. Lion, Cheetah, Caracal, Serval and African wildcat have been just some of the predator cats sharing this vast open land.
As I walk along, the tiny red brown bundle in my hands hisses and spits. Her coat as soft as velvet, with her oversize black ears appearing like huge leaves. She is more beautiful than a rose. Just a few days old and her claws are already razor sharp. She will grow into twenty kilograms of muscle, jaws equipped with fangs to kill, and claws to tear through the flesh of any prey, the most aggressive of all the cats and feared by many. When confronted, this cat does not back down nor retreat, quite the opposite, launching itself into a full frontal attack, and always instinctively going for the soft part of the throat.
This tiny bundle would be called Rosebud, and affectionately to be known for years as Rosie.
For many weeks there would be virtually no sleep, with Rosie chirping like a bird every few hours as she would call for her bottle. The call of a lynx is a high pitch call sounding like that of a bird, cleverly disguised for nature. However, as a mature adult, an aggressive warning of an attack is a growl accompanied by loud spitting and hissing. A milk formula carefully prepared with a supplement of essential trace elements, all years of research involving many veterinary biologists. The basic formula consisting of raw milk, egg yolk, glucose and calcium, to which the supplement is added. Within two months a lynx is weaned onto a diet of solid foods of raw red meat. This was our beginning of our wonderful journey with Rosie the Rooikat.
" A rose has thorns, a cat has claws; certainly both are worth the risk."
Sean
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