The Cape of Good Hope SPCA was called in to assist with treating a male caracal struck by a car in Newlands.
SPCA Wildlife Officer Jon Friedman collected the cat from Belmont Veterinary Hospital after it was hit by a car in Rhodes Drive, Newlands.
“The cat had been placed in a cage, on a drip and was awake but still quite sedated when I arrived to collect it,” said Friedman.
According to a passing motorist, who witnessed the accident and was brave enough to stop and pick up the stunned animal, the vehicle that struck the cat drove away without stopping.
According to the Cape of Good Hope SPCA, x-rays done by attending veterinarians showed that the animal had sustained mild injuries and that there were no signs of internal injury or fractures.
However, the animal showed definite signs of having sustained a concussion.
Before transportation to the SPCA’s Wildlife Unit, the cat was sedated and treated with a sodium lactate drip and given pain medication by veterinarians at Belmont Veterinary Hospital.
Additional consultation was sought from Panthera Africa, who is experienced in dealing with caracals. “Panthera Africa provided feeding guidelines and gave advice on managing concussion. In addition, The Urban Caracal Project was contacted to confirm if the animal reflected on their records. The Caracal had not been registered with them before and they requested that we take fur and blood samples for their studies.”
After 72 hours of careful monitoring the cat showed signs of improvement and recovery.
“He began eating well and responding to audio and visual stimulus and was recorded moving around his enclosure at night. After four days it was clear that he was ready for release back into his natural range,” said Friedman.
CapeNature was notified of the incident and provided guidance as to where the animal should best be re-released. The male caracal was released back into the wild on Thursday 5 May.
“It is always inspiring to be able to see an injured animal recover enough to be released back into the wild, even more so when it is an animal which we don’t often encounter such as the elusive caracal cat. The fact that caracals are the last big predator species on the Cape Peninsula makes this recovery and release extra special,” added Friedman.
Caracals are found across the African continent through the Middle East, Central Asia, Pakistan and north-western India.
