All About Servals

These beautiful, regal felines are found in the tall grasses and scrublands across the savannahs of Africa. Never straying too far from the riverbed, these highly evolved cats are specialized rodent hunters. With their huge ears, they can walk slowly through the grass, searching for the rustling of a rodent.

The name "Serval" comes from a Portuguese word meaning deer-wolf, apparently because of their unusual appearance. They are extremely unique from other members of the cat family. What appears to be long legs is in actuality, elongated feet. The Serval has elongated metatarsal bones in their feet adding an average of 25 centimeters to their height. In relative terms, the Serval has the longest legs of the entire feline family! When full grown, an adult serval can weigh anywhere from 10-20 kilograms.

Servals are long, lean and svelte. Their entire body appears elongated. They have a long, slender neck, dominated by a significantly smaller head with an over-sized set of bat-like ears. Their tails reach down to their hocks and when in a playful mood, it often curls, from side to side. The Serval coat is a combination of jet-black spots, dots and stripes. The background colour ranges from a bright golden tan, a pale fawn to a darker, almost grayish tinge. Their tail has black rings along it's length followed by a black tail tip. Their tummies are linen white, sprinkle with large black spots.

From our tenure of experience with many wildcats (Servals, Caracals, Asian and Amur Leopard cats, Jungle Cats and Fishing Cats), the Serval displays the most companion-like qualities of all. They are affectionate and somewhat dog-like in personality. This temperament combined with a domestic cat makes for a unique, beautiful and fun-loving companion pet in the wonderful Savannah breed.

The question we get a lot is....

Do Servals make good Pets? (click for the answer)