We were in the Outer Banks.... the marina in Manteo to be exact. We met this cat (he was actually harnessed and leashed to a post on the pier) who obviously did not want to be petted. He was soaking up the sun and looking very perturbed that he didn't get to terrorize the island. He was so belligerent, he was irresistibly cute. After awhile of photographing him and speaking in soothing tones, his owner came out of her houseboat.
She and her husband commuted on their boat between MA and NC, as they both had marine biology careers. They took this bengal cat in, a cross between domestic and wild felines. She said they were rethinking their life decisions. Apparently, bengal cats are super high energy, somewhat aggressive, and generally display many of the wild cat tendencies of their ancestors.
We obviously had no way of helping or comforting cat or owner with their circumstances. But I walked away with a deep appreciation for animal lovers who persist in loving nature's critters above and beyond what they initially think they are signing up for. Also, I will never craft a life where I travel extensively with a bengal cat on a houseboat. Nope.
We were in the Outer Banks.... the marina in Manteo to be exact. We met this cat (he was actually harnessed and leashed to a post on the pier) who obviously did not want to be petted. He was soaking up the sun and looking very perturbed that he didn't get to terrorize the island. He was so belligerent, he was irresistibly cute. After awhile of photographing him and speaking in soothing tones, his owner came out of her houseboat.
She and her husband commuted on their boat between MA and NC, as they both had marine biology careers. They took this bengal cat in, a cross between domestic and wild felines. She said they were rethinking their life decisions. Apparently, bengal cats are super high energy, somewhat aggressive, and generally display many of the wild cat tendencies of their ancestors.
We obviously had no way of helping or comforting cat or owner with their circumstances. But I walked away with a deep appreciation for animal lovers who persist in loving nature's critters above and beyond what they initially think they are signing up for. Also, I will never craft a life where I travel extensively with a bengal cat on a houseboat. Nope.