Posts tagged "savannah cat"

"Is that the sound of an electric can opener?"

A rare house cat that went missing from its home last week in the small town of South Hill, Wash. was found back on its doorstep, and its owner, who had offered a reward for her return, thinks she was brought back by an anonymous angel.

On Friday, local KOMO News stated that seven-month-old Tabia had disappeared from the home of Anita Sitxrud, who had a few reasons to be especially concerned about the cat. For one, Tabia had never been let outside the house before. Secondly, Tabia is no ordinary house cat. She is a $10,000 Savannah, a rare hybrid domestic cat breed that is half serval, a species of African wildcat. Finally, Stixrud said that the cat was a very important part of her son's life, who has Asperger's Syndrome and a heart condition.

The story stated that the Stixrud family was offering a reward for Tabia's return, though it did not state how much.

However, a follow-up report by KOMO News that ran Sunday morning stated that Tabia was found unharmed on the family doorstep late Saturday night. Anita Sitxrud then told KOMO News that she believes the cat was brought there by somebody, rather than just showing up on its own, though no evidence of such appeared in the news report.

Recently, eccentric model Bai Ling made headlines by adopting what she claimed was a cheetah/domestic cat hybrid, although experts agree that this would be impossible in nature. Most likely, what she had was a Savannah Cat. Still, people want to know how they can get their hands on their own hybrid pets. Well, be careful what you wish for; hybrid house pets can be a handful. Here is a quick overview of two popular hybrid animals.

The Savannah Cat: A cross between a serval and a house-cat, the Savannah cat is much larger than the typical house-cat, and can reach up to 30 pounds for a healthy adult male. They often have leopard spots, but can vary in color wildly, a symptom of hybridization. Similar to dogs in temperament, Savannahs are extremely loyal and affectionate, can be walked on a leash, and can even be trained to do tricks. They are intelligent and extremely curious, so you will have to cat proof your home.

The Wolf-Dog: With a similar appearance to an Alaskan Malamute, a wolf-dog is a cross between -- what else? -- a wolf and a dog. The dog half of the hybrid usually is wolf-like in appearance, i.e. shepherds, Malamutes, huskies, etc., resulting in varied coat patterns. The wolf-dog's temperament is highly unpredictable, extremely curious, destructive and can often have aggressive traits.

If you want to adopt an animal like this, be sure you extensively research the requirements for adoption and care, as many owners give up on these animals when they become too much to handle.