MALTESE ALLEY CATS

| gaiainaction

I just have to share this with all of you. I’m not a sentimental cat person, but you just got to love these guys around here, they are awesome, the Maltese cat! Feral cats have been around humans for a long time, they thrive not only in the city but also in rural areas, and here on Gozo and on Malta you see quite a few of them, they walk the streets, and they are not as used to people as the domesticated cat obviously, they are used to looking after themselves, fending for themselves and finding food. I look at them and see character in their faces! In the park in Victoria (capital of Gozo) there are several cats that lounge about, one lovely ginger is my favourite there, it stands high on its legs, a graceful animal.  (A lot of these Maltese feral cats seem to stand high on their legs I have noticed).  You see them in all sort of shades from grey to white, but most beautiful are the patchy ones who have deep ginger, black and grey colours. They have buckets of attitude, and walk around as if the street is their backyard, I just love their confidence. Here are a few of the guys around the street where we are staying.

Below I would like to share with you my favourite of all time.  It is this patchy cat, I only saw him/her today for the first time and hope to catch sight again, this cat is the type that you could write about with great imagination because that is what she/he does to you, makes you wonder how she/he gets her food, survives the night with all the other toms around.  What an intelligent look in her/his face too, no wonder she is looking after herself so well.  One of the most noticeable things about her is the long full tail, longer than any cat’s tail I have ever come across, she uses it to her full advantage to express how she feels, brilliant!

I hope you enjoyed my cat photos, I cannot for the life of me resist taking more pics of them, goodness me! 🙂

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16 thoughts on “MALTESE ALLEY CATS”

    1. Yes there are questions to be asked Mary, I hope not. This cat reminded me of a tiger too and that is the attraction I think. I read that the only way to control the feral cat is to catch them, neuter them, then put them back, in this way at least there will be a balance of nature between birds and cats.

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      1. Cats as pets are banned in outback Australian towns in Kakadu. When I was in Istanbul I learnt that they catch the dogs, give them a health check, immunise and desex them then release them but I don’t know if they do it to cats.

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      2. It should be done to be fair. It is a huge problem in Ireland for example. The authorities just want to put the stray animals down, then there are some people who will try and set up a cat and dog sanctuary, feeding up to a hundred dog and cats, but it is the people who act irresponsible and do not desex their pets, then leave the kittens or puppies at the side of the roads. Terrible.

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  2. I love cats, they are so cute, dear Agnes. It was a real pleasure to look at your photos. These cats are the same like in Greece. They don’t belong to anyone. But that means they have to find food by themselves and nobody takes care about them. I’m always sad when I see this, but still can’t wait to see some more photos of your cats. Kind regards Mitza

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  4. The final series of pictures truly are of a beautiful cat. I love her coloring, though I would be hard-pressed to describe it accurately. Thank-you very much for the whole bunch of them, and I hope your trip just keeps getting better.

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  5. I have been thinking about this post for days, Agnes, as the images really stuck in my mind. I am a cat lover and have never seen such healthy, almost regal looking feral cats. I imagine the rodent population is well under control.

    I understand that the city government of Chicago has been assembling feral cats, spaying/neutering them, vaccinating them and chipping them in preparation to release them into the city’s main parks to deal with the rat problem. Apparently it’s also possible to rent a pair of cats if a person/family has a rodent issue in the neighborhood. Hope the song birds survive it.

    Thanks for sharing so many wonderful photos and commentaries from your journey; I’m really happy for you that you’ve been able to make this trip.

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    1. Thanks Jan, interesting that, renting out cats to get on top of a rodent problem, a good idea. Here, I sometimes see people giving some food to these cats, so on top of what they hunt themselves they do seem to get food.

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