MADABA, Jordan: A cat nursing four kittens has stunned observers by adopting seven baby birds into its litter.
The feline, from Madaba (a city lying just south of Amman in Jordan), accepted the seven chicken chicks into its own family after the baby avians lost their own mother hen a month ago, according to news.com.au.
One-year-old Nimra somehow repressed her natural predatory instincts which would have led her to kill and eat the chicks, instead giving them the same tender loving care she lavished on her own brood, according to the Times Online.
The mixed family lives in a cardboard box and seems to have put its differences aside to eat, sleep and play together in a cardboard box, the Times said.
Observers have been touched by the care Nimra takes for her feathered babies, saying that when the chicks wander too far from home the nursing cat will gently pick them up in her mouth and take them back to the box.
According to the Times, examples of such bonds being built between species which would usually prey on each other are rare but not unheard of.
In 2005, a baby hippopotamus developed a close bond with a giant 100-year-old male tortoise after the infant hippo nearly died in the tsunami that lashed Kenya. That same year in China, a chihuahua took charge of a newly-hatched chick.
heh heh, i think the cat is just letting those chicks fatten up for a better meal. No one ever said cats are stupid.
Omigod, that's so cute. It just goes to show the power of the maternal instinct. I do have fears for the chicks once they grow up into adult birds - will Nimra change her mind and eat her new babies?
I am constantly surprised and in awe of mother nature and how she manages to find solutions for life's problems. I just wish that humans, the alleged 'smartest' species, were as intelligent and caring as this.
okay consider this... 4 kittens (+1 mom cat) vs. 7 chicks. give em some time to grow a little bit, and wait for nature to kick in. who do you suppose makes it? hahaha but seriously, i think it's cute.
oWow, her maternal instinct is remarkable! I've known of mother cats to take care of kittens from other cats- but chicks? Thats really something!
Hey, my cats love chicken too. For dinner :)
I once had a bantam hen who kept taking over a mom cat's kittens. When the mother cat would leave her kittens in the barn, the hen would go "set" on them. The kittens would crawl all over her searching in her feathers for a place to nurse. I kept having to rescue them and place them back with their cat mother.
awwww... isn't she adorable? cats are really sweet. i remember seeing one of my kitties show her mother insticnt with stuffed animals lying at home! lol
That's really cute! I remember seeing something like this before. I was driving home from work and I saw on the roadside a cat licking a puppy. I hope she's grooming the little one and not tasting what's for dinner lol! How I wish I had my camera then so that i could capture the moment.
awwww, that is so cute! cats have always been so loving and affectionate. nice story.
this is a really cute story! i just hope that when the chicks get older, they can still get together as adults.
so cute! maybe when the chicks get older they will think that they are cats! can you imagine those chickens rubbing their faces on your leg? LOL
awww, that is so cute! i just hope that when the chicks grow up, they would still have a good relationship with the cat. good story!
cute story! people think that cats are aloof, but aren't they just the sweetest thing?
sometimes animals can be so amazing. a lot of stories have come out over the years about similar animals who took care of babies not their own and became a mother or father to them. it really makes you feel how special these animals are.
I wonder if the chickens will grow up meowing instead of clucking? LOL!
This is really cute! The cat's a real momma. Amazing maternal instincts. She has a very good heart. That's why I love cats so much!