Do you want a serval as a pet in your home? This is what it looks like. I won’t go on about the declawing of pet servals because they have bloody big claws and they hurt or the occasional (frequent?) spraying inside the home to mark territory because they are a medium-sized wild cat species who feel insecure in a captive human environment.
No, let’s just enjoy the athleticism of this gorgeous cat. They have the longest legs in proportion to their body size of all the wild cats. This makes them great jumpers. They have quite nice dispositions too which makes them acceptable to some people who are obsessed with the idea of keeping an exotic pet. I am on my high horse again. How many servals escape the prison of their homes and are killed outside because the community – the neighbors – is terrified? And how many serval pets end up in sanctuaries because the owner decided that it was not a good idea to have one as a pet after all?
People tend to want to be entertained by exotic pets but don’t want to think about the realities and the downsides. There are so many downsides. PETA are correct. They are not ours to use like this. All we have to do is to provide servals with enough space in the wild (Africa) and leave them alone. Is that so hard? Do we have to interfere and dominate wildlife so intrusively and destructively?
Our objective should be to live in harmony with all animals, wild and domestic. This means respect not abuse and use. Not exploitation on a grand scale. When are we going to understand that and become more humble?
