Oh, Ye'll take the highroad

The Highlands of Scotland



It's a short plane ride from Stockholm, just under two hours and you can find yourself in the land of haggish and multicolored plaids.  I've visited the Highlands twice before, and each time I felt a sense of awe at the complete 'wildness' of the land.  Two years ago, I took this photo while I was hiking along the coastal paths -in the distance is the Isle of Skye.  Last year, I spent time  exploring hidden castle ruins in the Trossachs, and in a few days time, I shall be venturing into the Cairgorms in search of the Scottish Wildcats.

A Harp Still Resonates in an Ancient Grand Hall



Scotland, for me, is a very musical country, and if one stands very still in a quiet place for any length of time, the melodies of olde can still be heard. They are, of course, hidden away -along with the faeries, the elves, and the legends, but they still carry in the wind, and echo in the stones of ancient castle walls -one only needs to use their imagination, and then listen.

My journey this year takes me into the town of Kingussie.  Nearby is a facility that has devoted time, research, and a great deal of funding to aide the preservation of the Scottish Wildcat -a subspecies of the European Wildcat, and if temperament is an indicator, direct descendants of Winkin!  To date, it has been estimated that there are less than 400 Scottish wildcats roaming freely about in the Highlands -certainly not enough to avoid extinction unless humans intervene to help save the species.

My task for the next 10 days will be to study the behavior of the facility's wildcats.  My original thesis project that I started in Sweden had to be altered -unfortunately, this was unavoidable as the differences in the objectives and priorities were too great between myself and members of the staff.   It is hard for me to comprehend the notion that some people do not see value in training animals in captivity, but this, all too often, is the case.  Lengthy discussions arose and decisions were made, and ultimately, I found myself shaking my head in disbelief, and recalling the quote from the fictious 'Borg' characters on the old Star Trek TV series,  "resistance is futile!" -and indeed, it was. 

            "Resistance is Futile!"

The new project will be a comparative study of the wildcats at two different facilities.  I will look at how the daily routines, the enclosures, and the enrichment activities affect the animals' behaviors.  It is my hope that the study will, in no uncertain terms, show that enrichment activities, animal training, aerial walkways, and certain feeding routines all positively affect the behavior of these very shy, independent creatures.



So the suitcases are once again laying open on the living room floor.  There is no apprehension, however, this time. 

Winkin', Blinkin', Nod, and Tail-Up-Straight all taught me well.

Lessons learned:

  

 If people don't share the same goal,
moving forward will be a long, difficult process.    
&
When a door closes... 
and that window just won't open,
 find yourself a good hammar
 and start smashing out the nearest wall ! 
                                                                    carol