November 19 - Spotlight on Tatty the Long Tailed Tat (not a typo) and Matura.

When one thinks of a safari, they typically don’t think about walking with camels for hundreds of kilometres. They also don’t think about walking with a seven-month-old kitten and a two-and-a-half-year-old dachshund. Meet Tatty the cat and Matura the dog, our safari experts (don’t tell John and Amanda!).

We all know how a pet brightens a home, and the same can be said on safari! These two are best friends. Tatty was a rescue at a very young age and was fed by a dropper as he was so small then. He is now only seven months old and, quite honestly, bigger than most full grown cats. An expert at game spotting (loves to climb trees) and sleep on top of tents, and also has a great right hook should one get close to the roof of their tent! During our walking days, Tatty rides on his throne, occasionally reaching his paw out to waive to his subjects (that would be us!). During our breaks, he jumps out to explore the area, always returning when called. The only exception is if we hear about leopards in the area, Tatty is sent to bed early on those nights!

Matura is a 2.5-year-old dachshund who has better stamina than us! She recently walked every step of our 26 km walk (that’s about five times our number of steps in comparison) and refused to sit in her open observation platform, but not missing an opportunity to jump onto Tatty’s throne, flaunting her freedom.

Matura refusing to stay on her observation platform,.

In contrast, Matura spends our rest breaks flopped beside the closest walker, only taking time to drink water first. Once in camp, we don’t usually see much of Matura who darts to John and Amanda’s tent once it is up. Tatty on the other hand, is full of piss and vinegar and relentlessly tries to engage Matura but with little luck. I forgot to mention Matura means “black pudding”, which is appropriate indeed.

If another dog enters the scene Matura is never concerned as Tatty leaps into action chasing the dog away from his bestie. Nice to have built in security!

These two characters are so amazing on safari and trust me, when we get later into our walking day are such a wonderful distraction!