The black-footed cat
Is the smallest wild cat endemic to Africa ( specifically Southern Africa), measuring a measly 50 cm at the smallest. They lead mostly a nocturnal and solitary life only meeting to mate. They spend most of their time hunting small rodents and birds with a complement of insects, having to compensate it’s high metabolism, requiring 250g to 300g of prey a night. This amount represent around a sixth of their whole body weight.
Fact: The black-footed cat is a poor climber and avoids climbing to hunt or escape predators unlike most cats.
Challenges even for the most efficient hunter.
Black-footed are classified as vulnerable and are often a unexpected victim of predation control, by which their prey are poisoned to control the population of servals or african wildcats. The increasing usage of grasslands for livestock, where the black-footed cat thrive the most, is also an important. Information about their whereabouts is scarce since it is one of the least studied cat species in Africa.
Sounds and look like a domestic cat, can I keep one as a pet ?
There is no such thing as a black-footed cat breeder if someone is selling a kitten is has been poached illegaly. If not raised young they will make skittish and even sometimes aggressive companions especially towards other cats or pets due to their solitary nature. Despite their similar appearance to house cats they are very much wild and does not appreciate human contact.
You’d be better off with a domestic cat breed, which there’s plenty with appearances similar to the black-footed cat, such as the pixie bob or Bengals.
Here are some links if you wanna learn more or help the black footed cat:
https://gifts.worldwildlife.org/gift-center/gifts/Species-Adoptions/Black-footed-Cat.aspx
Factual Animals 