Less than 400 wildcats remain in Scotland, they could go extinct within 10 years; don't let it happen!
The Scottish Wildcat Association is a new charitable organisation dedicated to conserving and protecting the unique Scottish wildcat, and supporting due consideration to the reintroduction of the Eurasian lynx to the UK. We aim to raise money for projects such as captive breeding and educating the general public about wildcats and their conservation.Watch a short trailer for the film Last of the Scottish Wildcats
(available on DVD in summer 2008 from Coffee Films).
The Scottish wildcat is a unique subspecies of the European wildcat. 9000 years ago at the end of the last great ice age meltwater separated the UK from mainland Europe isolating the British population of wildcats. Since then they have been ruthlessly persecuted by mankind, through loss of habitat, hunting for fur and persecution as a predator of game birds. Today less than 400 wildcats remain only in the Scottish Highlands where they hide away from people; they are the only species of animal to be 100% untameable. Their greatest modern threat comes from feral domestic cats which are breeding with wildcats diluting the bloodline, in as little as 10 years the wildcat will be extinct in the UK if we cannot change our ways.
The Scottish Wildcat Association supports protection of essential habitat, better protection of the wildcat as a species, and a widespread publicity campaign advocating responsible domestic cat ownership and neutering. We also strongly support the UK wildcat captive breeding program which provides the species with the only guarantee it has of survival.
There will be lots more information being added here soon, our main website has just come online and will also be full of information in the near future; www.scottishwildcats.co.uk .
