Cactus cat

The cactus cat is a zoophyte or animal plant of the Phylozoan family. Their natural habitat is the dry, dusty deserts of the Buffalo Nation. Due to their habitat, they dislike excessively wet and/or cold environments.

Biology
Their appearance is similar to that of a standard domestic cat but approximately double the size. In rare cases, they can be the size of a Pony. Their skin is dark green and photosynthetic but is covered with what appears to be white fur. This "fur" is actually a coat of modified spines that serves to minimize moisture loss. The "undercoat" of a cactus cat is composed of numerous barbed spines that can easily detach and lodge in an attacker. The spines are mildly venomous and will cause pain redness even after they are removed. Their tail has several clusters of larger spines at the end that it uses for defense.

As they are plants, they do not have internal organs and are composed of a spongy tissue much like that found on non animated cacti. They do not feel pain but will react to touch and injury. A wound from them will bleed sap which will coagulate in a few hours.

Their sap is poisonous and will cause severe, debilitating nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and hallucinations for several hours if it is ingested. The sap and spines of a cactus cat are commonly used in potions and in Llama magical rituals, traditional medicine and as an entheogen.

The spines are mildly venomous and will cause pain and redness even after they are removed.

Sexuality and reproduction
Cactus cats have two sexes like ordinary animals. They are not sexually dimorphic and the only way to tell is during breeding season when they flower, producing a red, yellow, white, lime-green or light pink flower. These flowers are borne on short stalks that fall off after the breeding season. Males have the flower borne on the head looking like a hat. Females have it borne on the neck, looking like a brooch. A rare female cactus cat can have a "necklace" of smaller flowers; this is a natural variant.

Being plants, they do not give birth to live young but about a month after mating, females bury small cactus kittens in the sand with only their tails and backs exposed. These cactus kittens are not mobile and rely on photosynthesis for food. After about a month, they dig themselves out as and are now reliant on cactus sap like the adults. The parents do not care for their young. Mortality can be high as adult cactus cats have been known to slash and drain the sap from juvenile cactus cats.

Behavior
Cactus cats are asleep during the day and active at night. During the day, they can easily be mistaken for barrel cacti.

They feed on cactus sap, which they acquire by slashing open cacti with sharp blade-like spines on their forelegs. They also show a fondness for alcoholic liquids (especially mezcal). After drinking their fill, they will lick the slash which both kills pathogens and helps the cactus heal.

They are territorial and will attack intruders with their foreleg blades or their tail. Cactus cat fights are usually noisy affairs with screeching, hissing, angry meowing, growling, tail lashing and spine scraping. It is not uncommon for them to attack each other but it is rare for them to kill each other.