Domesticated African Cats Relocated After Escaping From House Too Many Times

Four African caracal cats were relocated from a woman's house in Royal Oak, Michigan, after they escaped the property several times. This week, two cats reportedly escaped. Officers with the Royal Oak Police Department tracked them down and returned them to the owner.

Chief Corrigan O'Donohue told Newsweek this is the third time police were called to find the cats. He said it is difficult to determine exactly how many cats leave the property at a time because some may leave but come back before they are reported missing. The first two times that police had to locate them, officers brought back one cat in each instance.

"These cats are nocturnal, and it is likely the animal is bedded down somewhere in the area," read a Facebook post published to the Royal Oak, MI-City Hall page.

By the time officers were made aware of this incident on Wednesday, O'Donohue said two cats were missing. One cat was located early in the morning and the owner brought it home. The second cat was spotted by a neighbor that evening. Officers set up a perimeter and the neighbor arranged for a wildlife trapper to respond with the owner.

The Facebook page for the South Lyon Murphy Lost Animal Recovery posted several videos of the cats since they returned home, including one from the night that one of the cats was captured.

O'Donohue said the size of the African caracal cats was comparable to that of a medium-sized dog.

African caracal cats are not classified as exotic pets, O'Donohue said, so they don't need to be regulated. However, he said there is an ordinance that states animals must stay on the owner's property.

The woman was issued five violations, but she agreed to relocate the animals as part of a nontraditional resolution.

"The suburbs are not the right environment for the animals," O'Donohue told Newsweek. It's best for the animals that she moves them to a more suitable environment."

Though O'Donohue said the woman was upset, she began looking into sanctuaries that would take the cats into care.

"It upset her to give them up, but she recognizes it's something that has to be done," he said. "We're happy to come to a conclusion for the residents and the animals."

According to the San Diego Zoo, African caracal cats, also known as the desert lynx, are the heaviest and the fastest of the small cats and the largest of the small cats in Africa. They eat meat and hunt at night.

The zoo explained that the cat is known for its distinctive long, black ear tufts, or tassels.

"There are many theories about the function of the ear tufts," the zoo wrote. "The tufts may help keep flies out of the cat's face or help to camouflage the caracal in tall grass by breaking up the outline of the cat's head. However, the most widely accepted theory is that the cat twitches its ear tufts as a way to communicate with fellow caracals."

The cats make several types of sounds to communicate, including purring, mews, growls and hisses, though they are usually silent.