by Anna Hofman

Created on: June 16, 2010

The Savannah cat is a stunning, one of a kind hybrid cat. If you have ever wanted a large wild cat, this is really as close as you can get without actually purchasing any wild animals. Being a cross between a domestic cat and a Serval (a large-eared, medium-sized African cat), it is much larger than domestic cats and much more powerful.

A breeder in Bengal, named Judee Frank, first cross-bred a Serval (owned by a lady called Suzi Woods), with a domestic Siamese cat, which then produced the first recorded Savannah kitten, named "Savannah" in 1986. This attracted the attention of a number of people, including Patrick Kelley, who was a particular enthusiast of the Savannah breed. Kelley bought one of Savannah's kittens and continued to develop the new breed, by contacting several Serval breeders and getting them to assist with the breeding programme. By the 20th Century the breed had become extremely popular, and by 2001 it was registered and accepted as a new breed by the ICA (International Cat Association).

Savannah's are able to be trained to "fetch" toys, walk on a leash and will learn other tricks, which is why they are thought of as "dogs in cats bodies". Incredibly intelligent, stunning and loyal, Savannah's are very sought after, desirable pets. They are considered to be one of the larger breeds of domestic cats, and being taller and slimmer than other breeds, they appear to be much heavier than they actually are. Early generation Savannah's can weigh up to 20 kilograms or more: the earlier the generation of Savannah, the larger and heavier he/she is, due to a stronger genetic influence and relation to the African Serval. Later generations of Savannah will generally reach around 10-15 kilograms. Males tend to be larger than females - which is like most cat breeds and species world-wide, although the tallest cat in the world (recorded in the Guinness World Book of Records), was a Serval female called "Scarlett's Magic", who stood at 17.1 inches at the shoulder. With this breed, size is never guaranteed and can vary greatly - even in the same litter.

As with size, the markings on a Savannah cat differ greatly as they will depend entirely on what breed of domestic cat the Serval was bred with. Generally, there should be dark or black markings (spots, flecks and small stripes), all over the cats body and face, with the coat colour being gold, tan or a warm brown). The ears should be much larger than those of a domestic cat, taller and deeply cupped and the body should be muscular, slender, tall and long with a long, slim tail.

Savannah's are reported by Savannah owners to be very loving cats, but also independent. They are very playful and may surprise their owner ocassionally by pouncing on them. They are excellent climbers and can jump very well and very high, which is not surprising as they are bred from Servels. They are happy to meet and greet new people and strangers, rather than hiding like some domestic cats. In general the Savannah is a confident, playful, loyal and very beautiful breed that deserves credit as possibly one of the best cat breeds in the world.

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