All language subtitles for Snow Cats and Me 1of2 BBC 1080p EN SUB

Two kittens. Two of them, brilliant!

Lynx are some of the most
beautiful cats in the world.

In the wild, they're so shy
and elusive,

it's rare to see them at all.

But in Russia, hundreds of these
big cats are in captivity.

I want to get these animals
out and start this journey

to a better life.

I'm Gordon Buchanan, and I've come
to Russia to join a pioneering

scientist in a
ground-breaking project.

We're rescuing four lynx
from captivity

and giving them
the chance of a new life...

..in the wild.

Oh, there you go.

We'll need to make them
strong again.

Awaken their instinct to hunt...

Oh, got that.

..and prepare them for freedom.

But after a captive life,
can any of these lynx ever learn

to be truly wild again?

Still a baby in many ways.

I'm travelling through
the Russian wilderness,

the largest forest on Earth.

These are the Ural Mountains,
the border between Europe and Asia.

The Ural Mountains of Russia.
Like much of the country,

they contain vast areas
of wilderness.

Still home to species now
extinct in the UK.

Russia is a stronghold for lynx.

There are more here than anywhere
else in the world.

Yet very little is known about their
behaviour in the wild.

They are masters of stealth.

Known for their short tails,
distinctive ear tufts

and their physical prowess.

These powerful predators can jump
four metres straight up in the air

to catch their prey.

I'm on my way to meet
Dr Viktor Lukarevsky.

He is a biologist who has devoted
his entire life to studying

Russia's big cats.

This year, he wants me to join him

on a potentially
ground-breaking project.

Dr Lukarevsky's bold plan
is to rescue Lynx from captivity,

rehabilitate them and release
them back to the wild.

No-one is more experienced
or passionate than Viktor.

You must be Dr Lukarevsky.

Oh, good morning, Gordon.

Nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you.

Yeah, you too, you too.

This is beautiful.

It's a spring.

Spring in Russia, in wild Russia.

Wildest part of Russia?

Let's do it.

Viktor is taking me to where two
lynx are being held in cages.

They're being used to breed kittens
to supply a thriving and legal

trade in furs.

Furs that are then made into coats
and hats.

The man that has the lynx -
is he a hunter or trapper?

What are they captured for?

In the wild, lynx roam
far and wide to find prey.

They can cover up to 30km
in just one day.

It's hard to imagine them
being confined to a cage.

How many years has he had them for?

Four years? Four years.

So they've been taken from the wild
and they've been in cages?

For four years.

It's not what I was imagining.

I was thinking it's going to be
a little hut out in the woods -

this is right in the middle
of the town.

Viktor wants to rescue
the trapper's lynx.

They're in poor health.

Oh, aye, aye, ya.

The trapper has been breeding them
ever since he caught them

in the wild.

I wasn't expecting just to find
them in a garage.

You immediately see how unbelievably
beautiful they are.

But then, hot on the heels of that
is the horror

that they've been in here for four
years without ever being let out.

Incredibly, the male, Miass,
who's named after this town...

..and the female, Koshka,

have managed to produce
three healthy litters.

But every kitten was taken away
from them and sold to pet traders

and fur farms.

There's only one thing that I want
to do now, which is to get

both of these animals out of these
cages and start this journey

to a better life for both of them.

We coax Miass and Koshka
into our transportation crates.

OK, he's moving.

OK, he's in.

From one box into the other,
that was easy.

This could be their first
step towards freedom.

I don't even know if this is going
to be possible,

but I'm full of excitement
and full of hope for both

of these two amazing cats because,
you know, they have a chance.

There's a slight chance that we
can get them back to the place

that they...they should
be in the wild.

That's the easy part in the weeks
and months to come.

We're taking Koshka and Miass on
a journey of over 2,000 kilometres,

to Viktor's recovery enclosure
near his family home

in Alenino.

The whole project is
in three phases.

The first phase is
a recovery enclosure.

It's where Miass and Koshka can
feel safe and secure,

while getting the round-the-clock
care they'll need

to bring them back to full health.

When they're ready, phase two
will be a few kilometres away,

in a much larger forest enclosure.

This is as close to the wild
as captivity gates.

They'll be able to hide themselves
away and hunt for their own food.

Finally - if all goes to plan -
in phase three,

our cats will be released
into the wild.

OK. Whoa.

It's time to get phase one
under way.

24 hours over the Ural Mountains.

And how are you guys?

They're very quiet.

It is OK?

I hope?

You going to look?

GROWLING

That's the noise we want to hear.

It's Koshka, the female,
who's most vocal.

OK, there's noise coming
from this one,

and there's movement
coming from this box.

Miass, the male, is quieter...

..and first to be moved.

Just nice and easy.

Is it level?

We should maybe just move a bit.
Good.

Now it's Koshka's turn.

OK.

These lynx will soon
see the outside world

for the first time in four years.

HUSHED: Oh, look, look, look...!

OK...

She's having a little look around.

KOSHKA PURRS QUIETLY

You would think if that were you or
I, you'd be desperate to get out,

but that is a place
where she feels secure.

Everything outside is new,
it's different,

and it's going to make her worry.

LOW GROWLING

After years locked in a dark garage,

this is Koshka's first
taste of snow.

And the first rays
of sun on her fur.

For Miass, too,
it's been a long time

since he felt fresh earth
underneath him.

I'm really hopeful about this.

I can say with absolute certainty
that both of these cats

look happier than they've
been in a very long time.

It's always been a dream of Viktor's
to rehabilitate captive lynx.

In the wild, lynx are solitary...

..but Miass and Koshka
clearly have a strong bond -

a legacy of being held together
for so long in cages.

They're also too
comfortable with humans.

It's one of the things
we need to change

before they can be released
back to the wild.

We don't want either
of these two lynx

to feel comfortable with people.

Beyond finding food in the wild,

for any lynx, the biggest
threat comes from us.

Whether that's being trapped or
hunted, knocked down by a car..

..erm, yeah.

We're really the biggest
danger that they face.

As the lynx have been settling
into their new home,

Viktor has noticed problems
with their health.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah. Miass seems like an old man.

Up until now, I haven't actually
been able to see how they move,

because they haven't
had the space to move.

Miass has problems with his legs.

His muscles have wasted away.

Not surprising, after living
in a tiny cage for so long.

Every footstep he takes,
there's no certainty to it.

He looks a long, long way
away from a wild lynx.

An adult lynx should be able
to sprint at 60km an hour.

They can hunt prey as large
as deer four times their size.

SNEEZING

The years of confinement
have affected Koshka too.

SNEEZING

The cats' condition
is a challenge...

SNEEZING

..but Viktor is undaunted.

SNEEZING

There's a lot to do before
Miass is back on form.

Good food and exercise will
return strength to his legs.

If all that we do is just give these
cats all the food that they need,

it's not going to take them anywhere
closer to being back in the wild.

But by setting them little tests,
trying build up their strength,

trying to sort of hone that instinct
- that's what it's going to take.

That's what they need to do.

OK, here he comes...

OK, this is what we want. So...

Oh, look at you, you beauty...!

Is that all that he's capable of?

Come on!

It seems as if Miass
knows what to do,

but his weakened muscles
are holding him back.

Come on, boy, you can get this.

You have to be cruel to be kind,

it feels like I'm teasing Miass
with this piece of meat.

But he knows now that
if he wants to eat,

he's going to have to
make a bit of effort.

OK...pull it down, pull it down.

OK, he's got a taste of it.

Nice swipe there!

This is good.

There you go.

You're an optimist.

We're making progress here...

..but I worry whether
it's going to be enough.

I think no matter how uncertain
the future is for them,

we are trying to do something that
is going to better their lives,

and even in such a short space
of time, we've already done that.

The life of Koshka and Miass
are better today

than they were yesterday.

And it's all a process of taking one
tiny step after another tiny step

to hopefully get them
back into the wild.

For now, they look
happy where they are.

I'm heading home to see my family,

leaving the lynx in the
expert hands of Viktor.

He'll do all he can
for them while I'm gone.

I'm back in Russia.
Viktor has been in touch.

He's told me that there's
been a very unexpected,

very exciting twist in
the Koshka and Miass story.

Hello!

How are things?

HUSHED TALKING

Miass...he looks very different,

now that he's lost his winter coat.

And there are other
changes in Miass too.

His legs are MUCH better.

It's Koshka just coming
through the bushes.

She looks great, she looks
really healthy.

And dare I say it, she looks
a lot like a wild lynx.

Koshka's lung infection
has also cleared up.

But none of this is what's
got Viktor so excited.

Wow...!

They are beautiful, look at that.

Oh, stunning...!

You can see that there's a little
depression, they've been using it

quite a long time because the
grass is all flattened down.

KITTEN SQUEAKS

Oh, yeah, right there!

Look at you...!

You beauty!

That is something that
is rather special.

Look at that face...!

It's even got little ear tufts!

At barely a few weeks old,

the kittens have only
just opened their eyes,

and their movements are
clumsy and uncoordinated.

We just wanted to make
sure that they're OK,

and now, pull out and let
Koshka come back to them.

Amazing. I think that is possibly

the two most beautiful
creatures I've ever seen.

Incredibly, female lynx
are only fertile

for three days in every year.

So for Koshka and Miass

to have conceived at all
is a minor miracle.

The arrival of the kittens is
a massive boost to the project.

You can put here.

It was Viktor and his son

Svyatoslav who first discovered
them in the undergrowth.

Is this for me? It is for you, yes.
Thank you very much.

That's so exciting.

Do you think Koshka's a good mum?

If we're to stand a chance

of releasing this family
back to the wild,

we'll need to keep
a close eye on them.

Easier said than done, now
the enclosure is like a jungle.

I'm installing a remotely controlled
camera so we can monitor them.

I want to see if all those
years of captivity

have harmed Koshka's
maternal instincts.

I've set up this
monitoring station

about 40, 50 metres away
from Koshka and the kittens,

it's just on the edge of Viktor
and Svyat's vegetable patch.

And I've got the camera
up and running.

Just going to have a look around.

OK, here she is.

She's here, she's here.

OK. Do you know what?

She is not remotely
bothered by the camera.

There's something about watching...

..young animals in this way.

It's really discreet, we're not
affecting their behaviour at all.

They're able to move around,
oblivious to the fact that...

..I'm watching them.

It's beautiful, it's really...

I'm so pleased.

Being locked away may
have traumatised Koshka...

..leaving her less able
to cope with her kittens.

It's actually quite a sad story,

because every other set
of kittens that she's had,

she's had them taken away from her.

Whether she makes it back
into the wild or not,

it's undeniably a wonderful
thing to let her be a mum.

But Koshka has got her
work cut out for her.

At around 20 days old, a lynx kitten
has only just learned to stand up,

and still relies on Mum
for everything.

The kittens are still suckling.

Koshka's milk will give them the
antibodies they'll need

to stay healthy.

It will only be a matter of weeks

before they've outgrown
this small recovery enclosure.

Half an hour's drive away,
bigger things are afoot.

We've come off the main road,

and we've come into some
really beautiful forest,

and situated in this forest is
the new enclosure for the lynx.

This is a pine forest,
it's a lot more open,

and it looks really,
really beautiful.

The forest is where the crucial
second phase of the lynx journey

back to the wild will play out.

It's a vast area that's as near to
being a wild habitat as possible.

It's going to be interesting to see
where the lynx like to hang out.

For me, this is the perfect spot.

Yeah.

And now this is the castle.

Yeah. That's great.

There's no way of telling

where the lynx are going
to feel most comfortable.

But time will tell. Once they're
in here, we'll see exactly

how they use this new space.

They're going to look for the places
where they can remain hidden -

that's what they do in nature -

and although they've been in
captivity for such a long time,

that's still an instinctive
part of what they are.

And this is great because it
does give them all that privacy,

all of that space that they need,

and they can move around
and explore.

That's what this
enclosure represents.

It is going to be their territory
for the next month or two.

This forest allows Viktor to scale
up his rehabilitation project.

Encouraged by Miass and Koshka's
progress, Viktor now wants

to rescue two more lynx from
captivity and bring them here.

But these lynx aren't
from fur farms.

They're part of Russia's
flourishing pet trade.

Some people in Russia have a
wild animal

living and growing inside
an apartment in a city?

Yes, yes.

So, you can go online, in Russia,
and find lynx for sale?

And you don't need a
licence or anything?

How old do you think these are?

So, for just less than £1,000,

you could have one of these
big cats in your house.

Lynx kittens are easy to handle,

but some owners struggle to cope
with them when they're fully grown.

Do you think it's possible
for a lynx kitten that's born

in captivity, has never lived in the
forest - do you think it's possible

to actually rehabilitate
a cat like that?

In a small city six hours away, two
young lynx are advertised for sale.

They've been living in an
apartment with their owner.

There's a male who's
two and a half years old,

and a female who's
just one and a half.

Though still young, they've become
too big for the owner to control,

and he wants rid of them.

Viktor has decided to buy them.

The alternative would be life
in a cage or a fur farm.

The two young lynx have arrived.

And we're putting them straight
into the forest enclosure.

The male is called Bryansk,

and he seems pretty relaxed.

But Dasha, the female...
GROWLING

..is another story.

She's more aggressive, while
he's not aggressive at all.

It's a really big exciting moment
for both of these youngsters.

Now they've got the opportunity,
for the first time ever,

to explore a real bit of
the forest, a huge area.

Do it? Yeah, let's do it.

OK, door's up.

He's super nervous, look at him.

You can go wherever you want,

anywhere you choose.

If he was a wild lynx...

..he would have bombed for
the cover, he would have wanted

to get away from us and gone
to the densest vegetation.

He's not at all concerned
about the open space,

which is completely contradictory
to a lynx's true nature.

But Bryansk has never seen
a tree or forest before.

Everything he SHOULD know...

..is completely alien to him.

Now for something a
little bit different.

It's time for Dasha.

That is wonderful.

And off she goes.

It is quite easy to feel...

..connected and attracted to the
male, because he's quite docile,

he's not acting adversely to us.

She, on the other hand,

clearly has no interest
in being close to us.

That's not necessarily a bad thing.

I'm checking back in on
Koshka and the kittens.

If they're showing signs
that they're ready,

we're hoping to move them
to the new forest site.

Here is a kitten, right in
the middle of the frame.

And what I'm hoping is...

..that where one kitten goes,
the other will follow.

And where both kittens go,
Koshka will follow.

This is great.

This is exactly what we want to
see with Koshka and her kittens -

this strong bond.

Because when we move them
to the forest site...

..that is something that's going
to completely change for her.

She's going to be in a new place,
she might feel anxious,

she might feel more vulnerable.

And we want to be absolutely certain
that she's got that kind of strong

connection with her two youngsters.

While the kittens rely on Koshka,

they also benefit from
being with each other.

Tussling for their mother's milk
and play-fighting teaches them

the skills they'll need to hunt
when they're older.

At the moment, it's absolutely fine,
it's just a picture of harmony.

But what might happen as they get
older is that element of competition

is introduced, and that one kitten

becomes more dominant
than the other.

And that's quite a hard
cycle to reverse,

because the more dominant you are,

the more food you get
and the stronger you become.

And that's when you can get this
disparity from one young animal

doing very well
and another one suffering.

So that's something we'll
have to keep an eye on,

because at the moment
they're even-stevens.

Back in the forest,
Bryansk, who was a pet,

never had a mum or siblings
to teach him anything.

Hey, fella.

You're such a weird character.

He definitely actively
seeks out company.

He doesn't seem to want
to be by himself.

That's probably because
he's still...

Still a baby in many ways.

And, naturally, he'd still be with
his brothers and his sisters

and his mum at this age.

So although I'm not a lynx...

..he seems to make do
with me as a surrogate lynx.

There's a more urgent
concern, though -

Bryansk is struggling
to drink enough water.

He's not recognising the natural
water sources in the enclosure.

But then, in the past, he's
only ever drunk from a bowl.

If I sit over here...

..I think he'll come over.

Right, OK, some water.

I think he needs a drink.

There you go.

That's what you want.

I think you're very thirsty.

There's two things we
have to be mindful of.

One - that, in time, he
has a distrust of people.

But before that - and more
importantly - we need to make sure

that he's got the skills that
he needs to survive in the wild.

So I'm not worried about this
relationship right now.

I want you to know
that you can trust me.

What we're going to have
to do is just find that

little wild spark inside you
and ignite it properly.

But you don't look as if you've got
much of a wild spark at the moment.

Big pussycat.

I don't need to worry about
the young female, Dasha -

she couldn't be any more different.

She's super cautious.

Every single time she moves,
she goes for the thickest cover.

Having to cross over these open
areas, she's super nervous.

It's interesting to see
how different two cats -

two lynx of a similar age - can be.

But the instincts to
stay out of people's way,

to remain hidden, is great.

THUNDER RUMBLES

The heavens have opened.

At the recovery enclosure,

my first thoughts are for
Koshka and her kittens.

THUNDER RUMBLING

That's not good.

At least I've got some cover here.

Koshka and the kittens
don't have any.

Until now, Koshka's been making
all the right moves as a mum.

But it seems she's chosen
the wrong bedding site.

The kittens don't have any
waterproofing on their coat.

They're like little sponges
at the moment.

And if this continues, they're just
going to get wetter and wetter.

They can't run around and move
around to generate heat.

The kittens can't maintain
their own body temperature,

so Koshka needs to keep them
warm if they're to survive.

The only warmth that they're
getting at the moment

is from Koshka.

And just when they need her most...

..she takes off.

SOFT SQUEAKING

I don't know why she's...

..she's left them.

In these conditions, that's when
she should be sticking with them,

keeping them sheltered.

But she's gone.

Oh...they're getting
absolutely soaked there.

Yeah... Yeah, that's not good.

If left any longer, the kittens
will become hypothermic...

..and could die.

She's back, she's back, she's back.

Right, she's picking up....

Yeah, she's picking up the kitten.

And off she goes.

She can't carry both kittens
at the same time,

so she'll have to put one
of them in a safe place,

come back and get the other one.

Finally...Koshka's back.

It took her a while, but at last

she's found some proper shelter

for her kittens, in a hut
that Viktor provided.

The success of Viktor's project

rests on these lynx
having wild instincts.

By the looks of things, Koshka's
maternal instincts are blossoming.

In the forest enclosure,

we're having to take a more
hands-on approach with Bryansk.

Let's see if I can find...

..our young male in the same
place as he was before.

They have been fed ground beef,
minced-up meat,

so they don't know what to do with
something that's got fur on it.

So what I want to do...
I've got a piece of chicken.

I think we need to make sure
that they're feeding properly

before we start the next phase
of their training.

Hey, you.

Do you want that?

Come on, there's some food there.

Unbelievable. He didn't even pay the
slightest bit of attention to it.

Come on, you.

Are you not interested?
Come on, pal.

I would have got a better reaction
from a domestic cat.

Bryansk must be really hungry...

..so his inability to recognise
food is staggering.

Get your claws into it.

Come on...it's moving.

That's a boy, that's it...!

Just ignore me.

Have this.

It's just a bit worrying,
his lack of response,

or lack of interest in anything.

Ordinarily with a predatory
animal, if you get something

that twitches and moves,
especially for a cat...

..they should want
to engage with it.

He's kind of plodding
about like he's...

..one of my best mates.

Bryansk is more used
to a carpet, a sofa,

and the sound of a TV on
in the background than this.

You can't blame him
for being confused.

He's got a long way to go if he's

ever to be released into the wild.

I'm really excited by the prospect

of being involved in a project

like this, that's taking cats

from lots of different scenarios,

all pretty horrible, and putting
them in the place that they

should be,
which is out in the forest.

Free animals.

But it's not all easy.

During her stay in
the recovery enclosure,

Koshka's shown she's a good mum,
and the kittens are strong.

Viktor thinks it's now safe to move
them all to the forest site.

We're hoping using this
piece of prime beef,

maybe we'll be able to
get them into the box.

Do it quickly, do it as
quietly as possible,

trying to minimise the stress.

We're rigging up an automatic
release system.

So when Koshka goes in to
the box, we pull this string,

the pin comes out,
the door drops down.

OK, she's coming, she's coming.

OK, I'm getting ready.

OK, in you come. Come on, come on.

Yes!

Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.

Well done.

Fantastic.

Miass will be moved later.

For now, the priority
is the little ones.

We're going in to find the kittens,
they'll still be in the same place.

It's pretty dense and we have
to be super quick.

This is the first and only
time we'll ever touch them.

They're both there?

Yep, he's got one, Viktor's got one.

Svyatoslav's got one.

Success.

Look at you, you little beauty.

You stunner.

Here we go, I've got you, OK.

I've got you. It's OK, it's OK...

KITTENS FUSS

I've got you... Shush, shush,
shush, shush...

Their little hearts are beating.

KITTEN CALLS OUT
Shush, shush...

We've not got long, but there's
something we need to check...

..while we still have the chance.

What do you think?

A little boy and a little girl.

Perfect.

Pretty critical that we get
the kittens and Koshka

to the forest site
as soon as possible.

Let's go.

We need to minimise the time Koshka
and her kittens are separated.

If she gets stressed,
she could stop producing milk,

or even abandon them.

HISSING

So we've got the kittens here.

And then we're going to
get Koshka into position.

Open the kittens first so
that when she comes out,

she'll hopefully see them.

She's a lot heavier
than two kittens.

We just need to do this very
quickly, because if we leave

the kittens on the ground,
they're going to crawl away.

So what we want is for Koshka

to come out and see
the kittens straight away.

Ready? Right, Koshka's coming.

OK, here she is. Come on, girl.

Good girl, perfect.

Perfect.

Koshka has no idea where she is.

She doesn't know this
enclosure is safe.

She'll be worrying about potential
threats, like bears and wolves.

Koshka will only settle once she's
found a safe place for her kittens.

It's stressful for us.

It's stressful for both kittens.

It's stressful for Koshka.

What we're going to do
is just pull out.

We all move back, take this
box away, and let her settle

and do exactly what
she wants to do herself.

We don't want to add to the stress,

so we're leaving the enclosure.

It's a hard thing to do,
but from this moment on...

..we have to leave it to Koshka
to make all the decisions.

Small cameras are in place
to capture the moment

she returns for the second kitten...

..but they can only record
for one and a half hours.

KITTEN SQUEAKS

We're all worried.

Maybe this move has
been too much for her.

And I feel sorry for her,
because all she wants to do

is to keep those kittens safe.

KITTEN CALLS OUT

Today, there's nothing
more we can do.

We have to trust Koshka.

KITTEN SQUEAKING

SQUEAKING CONTINUES

It's been a night of strong
winds and heavy rain.

At first light, we hurry back.

With all of this upheaval,

we have to make absolutely sure

that the kittens are with Koshka.

The box is empty,

so both kittens have gone.

Erm...but we have to make sure
that they're all together.

THUNDER ROLLS

Either Koshka did come back last
night to collect her kitten,

or it's wandered off.

In this weather, it may not
have survived the night alone.

We'll breathe easily
once we have found her,

and make sure that they're all OK.

Over there, that's where she is!

Koshka's just visible
in the long grass...

..but I still can't see the kittens.

I've got a clearer view
of Koshka, and I'm...

..fairly sure that I saw some
movement in the grass

just to her left.

And that movement, I'm hoping,
is one of the kittens.

Come on, little guys.

I can see the grass moving, but
I can't actually see the kitten...

Oh, there's a kitten,
there's a kitten! Oh!

Two kittens. Two of them, brilliant!

You beauty...! That's great!

Phew! That's amazing.

Aw, that is tremendous.

Koshka and the kittens
are safe and sound.

This extraordinary lynx family
can now enjoy their forest home.

We struggle to bring
Bryansk up to speed...

OK, he's enjoying his reward.

But I don't think he worked
for that at all.

Koshka's hunting takes off...

Wowzers!

And the kittens take on
more than they can handle...

That must be about eight,
ten metres up?

My God, look at that.
There's a lot of danger.