Striped Pole Cat (Zorilla)

Striped Pole cats are 12 to 15 inches long, with a tail that adds about 11 inches. They weigh about 1.3 to 2.9 LBS. They are carnivores which is why they have 34 sharp teeth to grind meat. Interestingly, they also get most of their hydration from their food - they hardly ever drink water. The Striped Pole cat is an efficient climber, hunter and swimmer. They live in the sub-Saharan Africa. They have long, curved claws, that they use while digging burrows and searching for invertebrate prey. The Striped Polecat is a nocturnal creature, it actively explores in the night and rests during the day. A female striped pole cat gives birth to one litter per year and in each litter there are 2 to 3 young. When it is in trouble it will spray a stench from the anal gland to defend itself but believe it or not, it is not related to skunks. The spray is not only smelly, but can cause temporary blindness. Sometimes, when threatened, the Striped Pole cat will fake it's own death - and stay that way for up to 30 minutes. When doing so, it sprays it's own fur with the putrid fluid which wards off predators. The Striped Pole cat has an average lifespan of 4-5 years in the wild.