China News Service, Xining, April 21 (Li Jiangning) On the 21st, the Qinghai Provincial Wildlife Rescue and Breeding Center (Xining Wildlife Park) stated to the outside that the center was assisting in Menyuan County, Haibei Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai on October 19, 2020. The desert cat has become the only individual in captivity in the world and is currently in good health.
Desert cats are China's national first-class protected animals and are unique to China. They are mainly distributed in northwestern China. There are currently limited records on desert cats in China.
According to survey estimates, the global population is less than 10,000.
"We used to raise desert cats in the park before, but after the desert cats in the park got old in 2016, there are no desert cats to be kept and displayed in zoos around the world, so this is the only desert cat in captivity in the world. "Now," said Qi Xinzhang, deputy director of Xining Wildlife Park, "(hopefully) let people all over the world observe desert cats up close to get to know and understand such a mysterious species."
According to reports, in 2020, after the rescued desert cat arrived at the Qinghai Wildlife Rescue and Breeding Center, it was judged by inspection that the rescued desert cat was an adult male with a fractured left forelimb femur, a rough coat, and wasting physique.
An X-ray examination by the veterinary hospital revealed that the left forelimb was comminuted fracture, and the professional technicians of the veterinary hospital of the rescue center formulated an amputation operation plan.
After the operation, after a period of rehabilitation, the wounds at the amputation site of the desert cats healed well, their physique gradually recovered, their attack consciousness was obvious, and the stress response was strong.
Although the rescued desert cat is in good health, it cannot be released due to its amputation and lack of ability to survive in the wild.
In order to increase its activity, it was transferred to a small cat house to raise it separately.
Isolation and rearing provide it with a dark and quiet environment to reduce human interference and reduce its stress response.
According to Qi Xinzhang, since mid-January of this year, the desert cats will be exhibited, "it doesn't respond much to tourists' stress, and will take the initiative to go to the paving near the tourists to bask in the sun, so they are more adaptable and accustomed to the lifestyle of the park."
Qi Xinzhang told reporters that the rescued desert cat can now be used as a display animal to carry out science education and protection propaganda to tourists. In the future, this desert cat will be transferred to the normal breeding process.
The park began to transform the venues to enrich its environmental facilities, and the breeders added perches, climbing frames and other enrichment projects in various forms.
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