My New Savannah Kitten

[iamn8]

This is officially my new kitten. She'll be arriving next week from a breeder in Pittsburgh, PA. She's a six month old Savannah cat and already as large as a regular cat. She'll be around 25-30lbs when full grown and capable of jumping 8ft from a dead standstill. They are a mix of the African Serval and domestic cat. They're extremely confident cats and happy to walk on leash, play fetch, smoke a pipe, and other standard dog like activities.

There's an amazing documentary made by National Geographic a few years ago called Eye Of The Leopard which follows an individual female Leopard from cub through adulthood. They named her Legadema. It's Swahili for Lightening. I kinda borrowed from that and named my new kitten Lego. My other cat is Tivo. Tivo & Lego... sounds like a feline crime fighting team

 

[mayfair70]

Congrats! Lovely markings! That is a great cat. I want one !! :clap:

 

[iamn8]

Much thanks! Everything of read about the breed says they're truly unique cats. I've never seen one in person so this should be a unique experience. There are only around 5000 in the US.

 

[downinit]

walk on leash, play fetch, smoke a pipe, and other standard dog like activities

???

That's a new one. They do like to go for a swim though.
My Pudgy, over 15 lbs.

 

[pagan]

If you drop her from your roof she will land on her feet, try it :mrgreen:

 

[iamn8]

Yeah I read they love water and smoking tobacco.
Landing on their feet when dropped is cool...but what happens when you throw one?

 

[yohanan]

25-30lbs, that's going to be one heckuva Kitty!!!

 

[iamn8]

Here's an adult...

 

[theloniousmonkfish]

That looks like one of the pictures "When Animals Attack" would advertise with. Cool cat, known people who have had them and liked them so much they ended up with few. Scare the hell out of a burglar if they don't know what they are.

 

[Chasing Embers]

When I was younger, a friend of mine had one, and I had a serval. When we let them play together, they always managed to destroy the house. :mrgreen:

 

[conlejm]

Beautiful cat Nate. I can't believe how big they get. Gorgeous markings.

 

[blueeyedogre]

I'm a little worried now. The wife and I just bought a house and we get to get new pets. Well I'm a dog guy and she's a crazy cat lady. I'm hoping for a rescue pitt and God only knows what she'll want.

 

[kane]

Beautiful. You must be very stoked right now! We have always had cats, have three right now, all regular size rescues. Is your new kitten considered an exotic animal, any special hoops to jump through to own one? I would love to see her on the hunt!

Thanks for posting that cool cat.

 

[bigtex]

Nice pussy! I have contemplated the idea of getting one, but we are more the dog kinda people.

 

[cossackjack]

Not a cat person & 2 family members are very allergic, but she is gorgeous. This is the breed I would have, if I could.

She'll be big enough to drive your Porsche - though she'll have you chauffeuring her around in no time.

 

[ssjones]

What a regal looking cat! Love the names.

 

[wyfbane]

Nice choice. They are great pets. The adult pictured is likely an F1. What is yours?

 

[iamn8]

Yeah that's DEF an F1. Lego is an F4. For those who don't know, these cats are graded by the filial system. Mix a serval with a domestic and you get an F1. Mix the F1 with a domestic and get an F2... and onward. The more serval blood, the higher the cost. They don't breed easily because obviously nature never intended it. An F1-F2, depending on markings, easily sells for 5k++. Servals go for serious cash these days. Easily 20k+++.
Al, thank you! I love coming up with pet names. I figure you'll be using the word often for more than a decade so making it meaningful is worth the thought.
Jack, a Savannah is a good compromise between dog/cat. It's always said that a Savannah is a dog in a large cat body. Cats rarely process the confidence that dogs have, but Savannah's do.
Kane, they're still such a new breed, first bred in the late 80's. There are a few states, including Georgia, Texas, and Massachusetts which have made them illegal to own. They fear these cats escaping their homes and breeding in the wild and effecting the ecosystem. I suppose anything is possible, but these cats are seriously expensive and rare. I can't imagine anyone would allow theirs to roam free.
Monk, yeah I bet they do make good guard cats. These cats have held onto a serval characteristic, the very loud, threatening "snake hiss", very different from a house cats hiss. Seriously intimidating.
Here's a cool video from Animal Planet about the Savannah HERE

 

[Chasing Embers]

The more serval blood, the higher the cost.

No kidding. The money I paid for my serval back in the '90s could have bought me a car! 8O

 

[wyfbane]

Dude. Though already cool, owning a pure serval just upped your cool points by a factor of 3. Pure awesome!