The world’s second most successful rusty-spotted cat breeding programme at the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) in Borivali has just got more success to it.

Recently, two new additions were made to the family of Sachin and Anjali — the feline duo named after the cricket sensation and his wife who have been visiting the park since 2006— taking the count of the world’s tiniest cats at the park to six. However, a seventh cat, a sub-adult female, was rescued from Satara about two months ago and is also part of the family now.

This breeding programme for the endangered cats at SGNP is second only to Germany’s Frankfurt zoo. 

Born barely a month ago, the two little cubs snuggle to their mother in a tiny cage that connects the main enclosure. The palm-sized, grey-coloured cats are already bringing out sharp claws and making their characteristic spitting sound when they feel threatened.

Dr Vinaya Jangale, SGNP veterinarian, said, “The cub— one male and another female— are about a month old and weighed barely 50 grams after birth. Now they are healthy and spend most of their time with mother Anjali.”

According to the endangered animals’ list of International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), the rusty-spotted cats, found only in India and Sri Lanka, are “vulnerable species considered to be facing a high risk of extinction in the wild”. At a maximum weight of 1.5 kgs and 35-48 cm body length, they are smaller than their cousins — the domestic cats. However, these cats are almost impossible to domesticate and share their genes with the tigers. Unlike the house cats, these cats don’t meow, they hiss and spit.

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