Wildcat

Synopsis: Man raises an ocelot in Peru, preparing the cat to live on his own. (Streaming on Amazon as of June 2023)

I feel like, if a housecat watched a nature special that follows an ocelot’s life in the jungle, they’d be envious. Especially if their human is gasping over clawed up upholstery or being pesky with too many petties. No more annoying humans! I will hunt mousies. And I will scratch and pee wherever I choose! But after watching the documentary Wildcat, kitty may change their mind.

Ocelots are beautiful wildcats- little, but fierce, with creamy coats covered in dark rosettes and black rings filled with orangey-pigment. Historically, they were hunted for their pelts.  They live from Texas (not too many there) to northern Argentina. They need lots of nature to survive; plenty of small prey species to hunt and trees to escape predators.

The orphaned ocelot kittens we meet at Hoja Nueva in the Peruvian Amazon have to contend with Mother Nature, bigger predators and more. Hoja Nueva is a conservation and wild animal rescue founded by American doctoral student, Samantha Zwicker. The work is essential, as logging and mining ventures destroy habitat and poachers gain access to previously impenetrable forest through logging roads. Oh, and Sam would def be played by her doppelganger Jennifer Lawrence if they make a movie of this story.

The documentary, Wildcat, is as much about wildlife’s struggles as it is about humans’ struggles. Harry Turner is one of the rehabbers at Hoja Nueva. He’s a strapping, but boyish-looking man covered with tattoos –except for his face and back. Harry, like Sam, is in his twenties and has a deep love of animals and the natural world. Harry feels that the jungle has saved his life. I was wondering if it would in the long run. And if he was over-eager with his inking; at the rate he was going, he’ll be out of skin-space before he’s thirty.

As a teen in England, Harry decided to join the military. At eighteen years old, he served in Afghanistan. What he experienced there traumatized him; especially, as he tells it, seeing killed children. Not unlike soldiers before him, he became disillusioned and plagued with guilt. He was honourably discharged due to depression and PTSD. **Trigger Warning** Harry honestly discusses suicidal ideation and self-harm.

It seems that Peru was a desperate bid to reclaim himself and do some good in the world. Good thing that Harry doesn’t mind living rough, because he’ll be doing a lot of jungle trekking and sleeping in the open. I mean, the wildcats don’t know what they are missing, but Harry has been exposed to ice cream and mattresses. Ever see the videos where some black bear breaks into a country home and security cams show them raiding the kitchen and getting comfy on a bed? After these adventures you can see the bears wondering why a human would forsake domestic pleasures. But Harry does it to repatriate wildlife.

The filmmakers filmed for a couple of years, so we get to see Harry with more than one ocelot kitten. He has his work cut out for him. An ocelot’s mother would typically nurse her kitten(s) for up to six months and begin sharing kills (rodents, fish, snakes) at around two months of age. Humans can give nourishing kitten formula to their charges but teaching them to hunt is something else. Harry carries a rifle with him on nocturnal hikes, but explaining firearms to cats is useless. Fortunately, they have sharp claws and teeth.

Okay, I have to digress for a second… my experience volunteering at a cat shelter has given me a healthy respect for felines’ blood-drawing weaponry. I know they are supposed to be domesticated, but one pet too many and, lightning fast, they’ll whack you with a paw or administer a bite. What amazed me in the movie, was how the ocelot kittens were tolerant of being petted. But not so inhibited playing, to which Harry’s scratched-up skin attests.

Harry is dedicated. He moves down-river to another small camp-on-stilts so that any ocelot kitten he is raising will not have exposure to other humans. He wants to keep them wild; approaching a human could be a death sentence. In fact, poachers have set up gun traps in the jungle; shotguns rigged to go off when a wire is tripped.

One of the kittens, Keanu, spends much of the day dozing in a big outdoor enclosure. But, on and off during the day, Harry does try to get him used to chasing prey. He drags small animal carcasses that he has shot and tethered. Nights are the real teaching times. Along the trails, when it’s time to head back, Harry will call out: Keanu, Keanu. I half expected actor Keanu Reeves to pop out from behind  a tree: Hey, I’m just out here chilling after finishing my latest John Wick movie.

Okay, so if you were rehabbing a deer, I guess you could just take a walk and point to the grass at their hooves. But how to teach a cat to hunt? Mother cats will take their kittens hunting with them. Early on, they will just crouch and watch their moms who bring the food to them (sometimes still moving — poor creatures). Obviously, Harry will not be pouncing on any small prey. But he does find and point out prey to the energetic kitten on their night walks. Early on the kitten is clumsy.

It all seems pretty Eden-ic. Harry and ocelot kitten(s) combing through the jungle. And Sam, who flies back and forth to Seattle where she consults with her dissertation advisor, seems happily at home back in Peru.  And… what’s this?Wow…Harry and Sam seem pretty close. They linger together, focused on each other as they walk through a stream. And we see them hugging in Harry’s bed. They make an attractive couple. But are they actually lovers? Video diaries reveal a little at a time about their feelings for each other.

Sam and Harry are both impressive in their dedication to wildlife rehab and they have many competencies in dealing with whatever nature throws at them. But… Sam tentatively talks about a childhood where she trusted her family’s pets more than the people in her family. And Harry’s solution to his mental health struggles, healing through jungle-living, begins to show cracks.

There are many “ups” too. Harry’s family in England– mom, dad and little brother, Jaden– plan on visiting him. Jaden tells his brother that his friends ask why he wants to go somewhere without wifi. They advise him to go to Florida instead.

Sam makes presentations about Hoja Nueva’s work and does fundraising in the United States. We see her relaxing in Seattle with a cat. A very chunky kitty who wouldn’t do well in the wild. Kitty’s exercise is probably limited to walking to their food bowl or the sofa. This is in contrast to the ocelots walking an average of seven miles a day, not to mention all of the tree climbing. In fact, it was pretty remarkable to see one of the older kittens dart up a tree after a small mammal. Wild kitty and Harry were sitting on the forest floor watching the creature’s progress up a tree, when Harry says: Get it. Can you imagine a housecat following your direction? Maybe their recalcitrance is a reaction to the insult imposed on them by domestication.

The re-introduction plan developed for the young ocelots provides for about 18 months of life skills training. Besides teaching the cats to hunt, Harry tries to warn them away from predators and poisonous creatures. His work is obviously very absorbing, but when it comes time to leave each cat, he has a really challenging time. Harry tearfully berates himself, “I’m in the most beautiful place on earth, but I can’t be happy because of what’s going on in here,” he says, jabbing at his head. The sounds of chain saws from illegal logging doesn’t help matters. Sam encourages him to leave the jungle and get professional mental health.

The jungle does seem a natural attractant to humans. Studies show that time spent “forest bathing” is beneficial for people’s mental health. But it can only do so much to heal human-inflicted trauma. All the while, the ocelots’ instincts keep them moving through the jungle, watching and learning under the guidance of a wounded, but very dignified person.

What can one person do? Sam and Harry might not be able to move mountains, but they are making a difference; learning from and assisting the Peruvians they work with and live near and each little life they save feels like a triumph.

Now, a housecat probably has lots of notions about what a person can do: Open  a can of tuna, move this chair closer to the window, quiet down with your music. And a few glances at their wild ocelot cousins onscreen will confirm what the Ancient Egyptians realized: Cats are beguiling creatures worthy of worship.

P.S.   The following article discusses treatment of suicide. Many countries have suicide hotlines that people in crisis can call. In the US, the number is 988 or 911. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/suicide/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20378054

P.P.S.  https://new.hojanueva.org/   The website about Hoja Nueva’s conservation work.

Movie Loon’s Quick Movie Review:

Grade:   A-

Cut to the Chase:  A tender examination of the endangered Amazon, its wildlife and the people who try to keep the animals alive.

Humor Highlight:   Harry’s little brother recounting his friends’ reasons why Florida is a better place to holiday than the Peruvian Amazon.