Scottish wildcats are critically endangered and a captive breeding and reintroduction programme is underway, requiring careful welfare management of a highly stress-sensitive and solitary species.
Scottish wildcat welfare in captive breeding programmes is critically dependent on minimising human disturbance. Wildcats are intensely stress-sensitive - routine human contact causes physiological stress responses that affect health and reproductive success. Captive facilities must be designed to allow natural behaviour while preventing visual and acoustic disturbance from keepers. Feeding must be managed to avoid habituation to humans that would compromise survival after release. The welfare of released individuals depends on adequate prey availability, suitable territory, and effective management of hybridisation risk from domestic cats in surrounding areas.