The world's deadliest cat is deceptively cute. Meet Gaia

[oldbrownhat]

WaPo article here.

She weighs less than three pounds, she makes you go aww, and she’s one of the best killers on the planet.

Gaia, an 8-month-old black-footed cat, is the newest resident at Utah’s Hogle Zoo in Salt Lake City. She’s part of an effort to conserve her at-risk breed — a pint-size powerhouse species whose hunting prowess makes it the world’s deadliest cat...​

A bit like the Pallas cat - although not as cute. Nonetheless, one reader commented "I want a 24/7 black-footed cat infrared video YouTube channel and I want it now."

 

[Kinman]

Thanks for the post. When I was a kid we lived in Ogden and went to the Hogle Zoo at least once a year with emphasis on the cat sanctuary. At that time they had one of the first Ligers borne in captivity, I think her name was Shasta. She was a cross between a Tiger and a Lion and was a overall buff color with a tiger's stripes visible on some of her body.

 

[cruiserdan]

Shasta's Taxidermy mount is in a museum at BYU.

 

[oldbrownhat]

Shasta's Taxidermy mount is in a museum at BYU.

Here she be:

 

[llowry61]

I read that article before you posted, pretty neat little critter. A 60% success rate hunting is pretty high. Cats are amazing creatures just get a laser pointer and move it around. Their reflexes and speed are beyond comprehension. I would not want to be a small animal anywhere near just my 2 house cats let alone a real wild or feral cat.

 

[bluetopper]

Are Ligers sterile, like mules?

 

[Rustyt1953]

I read that article before you posted, pretty neat little critter. A 60% success rate hunting is pretty high. Cats are amazing creatures just get a laser pointer and move it around. Their reflexes and speed are beyond comprehension. I would not want to be a small animal anywhere near just my 2 house cats let alone a real wild or feral cat.

 

[oldbrownhat]

Only 3 cats? Where were the other 10?

 

[Rustyt1953]

Only 3 cats? Where were the other 10?

You are short by one. We took in another cast off.

 

[DWalt]

At one time, cats were considered to be very valuable crew members of early sailing ships and protectors of distilleries, breweries, and anywhere else that grain was stored or used because of their prowess in killing rats and mice. The Royal Navy had cats that were considered official crew members on their ships until relatively recently. I remember reading that the Vikings especially prized their orange tabby shipboard cats and spread them all over The British isles, Europe, and wherever else the Vikings went.

 

[Greyman50]

Henry the Cat is “ deadly too”. LOL

 

[Rustyt1953]

This is Nora.

Be afraid.

Be very afraid.

 

[Protocall_Design]

Wow, look at those fangs! Might be part rattlesnake!

 

[prairieviper]

Photo of the rare, calico cheetah, shown with prey. We call her Angel.

 

[Imissedagain]

Just in this morning.
Newest cat is a Siberian.
11 weeks old and being held by her
Veterinarian mom.
No name yet but it won't be......
Snowflake.

 

[steelslaver]

One of our cats is a 14 year old Siamese of some sort. Very soft fur and innocent eyes. Also a stone killer, constantly bringing in mice, voles, bird and even cottontail rabbits. She makes more kills than the other 4 combine and I swear she hardly ever goes outside, but when she does something is gonna die.

O'Malley on the other hand isn't likely to kill anything unless it happened to get between him and a Temptation cat treat. Buddy may kill something, after all I have seen him grab on to a full grown deer's leg.

 

[DWalt]

Our two cats will go after a bug, etc, that gets in the house, but that's all the opportunity they get to kill anything. They are pure indoor cats.

 

[oldbrownhat]

...just get a laser pointer and move it around. Their reflexes and speed are beyond comprehension...

The laser pointer was what enabled me to befriend my black cat, Smudge, when he was an orphaned kitten in the neighbour's barn. 8 1/2 years later, he's still trying to kill it, much to my delight