June 21, 2021

You've Gotta Be Kitten Me


You've Gotta Be Kitten Me
These guys are basically the original Grumpy Cats.  Photo by Parken Zoo via CC BY 3.0

Anyone's day might be considered a success when they go for a hike and end up finding a litter of adorable kittens instead, but this group of explorers in the Altai mountains was twice as lucky to find a group of especially rare kittens too. 

And luckily for us, they captured the experience on video so that we can all watch the cuteness through the internet. The sweet babies in the video will someday grow up to be Pallas's cats, a secretive and threatened species of wildcat  

Physically, the Pallas's cat (or Manul) isn't all that much different than your average house cat, except it is a little bit bigger and wears a perpetually disgruntled look on its face. It's extremely rare to see one in the wild, much less a whole litter of them! This is not only due to the fact that their wild numbers are limited, but also because the animals have the habit of hiding (much like their domestic counterparts). 

While the kittens in the video appear to be without adult supervision, viewers can rest assured knowing that the mama cat was more than likely not too far away on the hunt for their supper. Hopefully, she keeps her distance from livestock or ferrets that may or may not be vacationing in the region. 

You Might Also Like

Altai and Beyond
  • August 01, 1997

Altai and Beyond

In this, the final installment in Russian Life on their trans-Russian journey, Gary & Monica Westcott expore the remarkable Altai before racing across the steppe with winter fast at their heels, in pursuit of their final goal: Hammerfest on the northeast Norwegian coast.
Saving the Amur Tiger
  • September 01, 2007

Saving the Amur Tiger

The magisterial tigers of Russia's Far East are on the brink of extinction. Threats to their survival are legion: from poachers to Chinese "healers" to nervous villagers to corrupt bureaucrats. All told, just a few hundred Amur Tigers remain in the wild.
Ferreting Into Adventure
  • June 01, 2021

Ferreting Into Adventure

The world's luckiest ferret is set to go on the vacation of a lifetime in the Altai mountains. 
The Cat Dragged In...?
  • April 26, 2021

The Cat Dragged In...?

A student from the Russian city of Perm got caught out like a cat on a hot tin roof this week when he found himself volunteering to save a feline stuck in a window frame.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

The Frogs Who Begged for a Tsar (bilingual)

The Frogs Who Begged for a Tsar (bilingual)

The fables of Ivan Krylov are rich fonts of Russian cultural wisdom and experience – reading and understanding them is vital to grasping the Russian worldview. This new edition of 62 of Krylov’s tales presents them side-by-side in English and Russian. The wonderfully lyrical translations by Lydia Razran Stone are accompanied by original, whimsical color illustrations by Katya Korobkina.
White Magic

White Magic

The thirteen tales in this volume – all written by Russian émigrés, writers who fled their native country in the early twentieth century – contain a fair dose of magic and mysticism, of terror and the supernatural. There are Petersburg revenants, grief-stricken avengers, Lithuanian vampires, flying skeletons, murders and duels, and even a ghostly Edgar Allen Poe.
Turgenev Bilingual

Turgenev Bilingual

A sampling of Ivan Turgenev's masterful short stories, plays, novellas and novels. Bilingual, with English and accented Russian texts running side by side on adjoining pages.
Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors

Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors

The Life Stories collection is a nice introduction to contemporary Russian fiction: many of the 19 authors featured here have won major Russian literary prizes and/or become bestsellers. These are life-affirming stories of love, family, hope, rebirth, mystery and imagination, masterfully translated by some of the best Russian-English translators working today. The selections reassert the power of Russian literature to affect readers of all cultures in profound and lasting ways. Best of all, 100% of the profits from the sale of this book are going to benefit Russian hospice—not-for-profit care for fellow human beings who are nearing the end of their own life stories.
The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.
Jews in Service to the Tsar

Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.
The Samovar Murders

The Samovar Murders

The murder of a poet is always more than a murder. When a famous writer is brutally stabbed on the campus of Moscow’s Lumumba University, the son of a recently deposed African president confesses, and the case assumes political implications that no one wants any part of.
Driving Down Russia's Spine

Driving Down Russia's Spine

The story of the epic Spine of Russia trip, intertwining fascinating subject profiles with digressions into historical and cultural themes relevant to understanding modern Russia. 
The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.  

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955