Sad end as rescued wildcat kitten loses fight for life
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A Scottish wildcat kitten rescued after being found alone and close to death by two walkers near Grantown has sadly passed away.
The young female was discovered near Huntly's Cave on Wednesday afternoon by chef Peter Macnab and his friend Piotr Peretko.
The pair carried what they thought was a domestic cat back to the vets in Grantown where she received treatment.
Mr Peretko was going to give the animal a home until learning that she was, in fact, a rare Scottish Wildcat.
Instead, the kitten was taken into care of the charity Scottish Wildcat Action.
A spokesperson from Saving Wildcats, the partnership project dedicated to wildcat conservation in Scotland, said: "We were very sad to hear the kitten that was found north of Grantown on Wednesday did not recover and has passed away.
"To confirm whether the kitten was a wildcat hybrid or not, we will be carrying out a DNA test.
"The results will then be added to the national database, meaning this little kitten will still have supported wildcat conservation in Scotland."
Mr Macnab said: "We were out for our daily walk up to Huntly’s Cave and spotted a circle of sheep.
"As we got closer we could see they were surrounding a tiny kitten who was literally lying right on the Dava Way.
"We thought it was a domesticated kitten at first. It was in a poor state. It could not stand up, and was sodden through and in a severe state of distress."
Mr Macnab added: "The vets in Grantown were unsure whether she was a wildcat, but said they'd give her a glucose shot and some warm sugary water to try bring her back to life.
"My friend Piotr rang later that evening for an update and heard that she would need to go elsewhere because she was a wildcat.
"Piotr would have quite liked to have taken the kitten. He was devastated about it. After carrying her back to Grantown from Huntly’s Cave he and the cat had developed a bit of a bond!
"Piotr is 6ft 5 and 30 stone. He’s a big teddybear but he was absolutely gutted.
"Needless to say it is a very sad end to a truly inspiring story.
"However we are pleased to hear that our efforts will still aid the conservation of our local Highland tigers.
"A massive thank-you must go out to everyone involved in the attempts to revive this little kitten."
Related article: Wildcat kitten found freezing to death
