The Ark Wildlife Park near Boston stepped in when the cat survival trust in Hertfordshire was closed down after the owner was prosecuted for animal welfare offences, leaving many neglected wildcats in need of new homes.

Jungle cats, male Teddy and female Binks, were days away from being euthanised before they were moved.

The park’s owner Jamie Mintram said the pair were settling in to their new home, despite health issues.

“We are putting these two in strict quarantine at the moment,” he said.

“We’re probably envisaging they’re going to be in quarantine for about three or four months whilst we get them healthy and we assess that they are going to be absolutely OK to go out and join and be on site near our other cats.

“It’s going to be a long process getting them back to full health.”

Jungle cats are slightly larger than domestic felines and are native to the Middle East and parts of Central, South and South East Asia.

Binks is a rare black jungle cat, with the animals usually being light brown.

They will join the animal sanctuary’s existing jungle cat, with three more due to arrive soon having been seized from an illegal dealer in Europe.

The Ark, which specialises in rescuing animals from the illegal pet trade, is building an expanded enclosure for the cats and is fundraising to cover veterinary bills and other costs.

“We’ve had a lot of expenditure this year of rescues and these guys just sort of popped up on our radar literally a few days ago completely unexpected,” Mr Mintram said.

“Obviously, with any rescue situation like this there is an added cost that we hadn’t factored in, but we couldn’t see these guys get euthanised.”