Savannah Serval
Savannah’s Story
Savannah was rescued from a roadside zoo in the fall of 2016. This roadside zoo was closed down after the owner fell ill. At the time of the closure there were about 110 animals on 4 acres of land at that facility. Savannah came to Carolina Tiger Rescue with 15 other animals as part of our largest rescue to date. Before being sent to the roadside zoo, Savannah was owned as a private pet. Savannah never let us forget she was a wild animal. She enjoyed hissing at her keepers and moving on her own time.
Savannah’s Passing
June 2, 2023
I sadly come with news about Savannah Serval. For the past few months, we had been treating Savannah for a lack of appetite, nausea, and dehydration. We began treating her with stomach meds and subcutaneous fluids. During that time, she also had issues with nasal discharge. After a second round of antibiotics to help clear a probable sinus infection didn’t work, we decided to get her under anesthesia to see if we could find a cause of the infection. While we had her under, we did run bloodwork. We had concerns about her kidney function since her previous bloodwork showed elevated kidney values. Sadly, her levels were even higher than in July and she was no longer concentrating her urine. Given her decline and her blood values, we had no other options to improve her quality of life and made the decision to let her go.
Savannah will hold a special place in my heart, as well as others. She was one of the first animals to come to Carolina Tiger from the rescue in Colorado in 2016. With Keeper Cara, we spent some time in Colorado helping our sister sanctuary and getting to know the animals. Then it was time to bring home Savannah and friends. It didn’t take any time to figure out that Savannah had a lot of spirit! This not-so-little cat knew what she wanted and wasn’t afraid to tell you.
While she would almost always come up to the fence, it was almost always with a hiss and a bit of attitude. She would see what you had to offer, and if it didn’t hold her attention, she would move along and find a sunny spot for a nap. She was a wild cat at heart and her sassiness was there to prove it. I appreciated her spunk. I think we could all benefit from showing a bit of sass once in a while. While I will miss her spirit, I will be thankful that we could offer her a place to be her authentic self. Where she could choose whether or not she was going to interact with people. Where she could sun herself on her platforms, burrow down in the cool grass, or enjoy a tasty treat. It’s the best that we could have hoped for Savannah.
Thank you for helping us provide that home to all of the animals in our care. Your support allows us to give these animals a place to spend the rest of their lives in peace. I’m forever thankful for all that you do for the animals.
With a heavy, but thankful heart,
Kathryn Bertok
Assistant Director
