# Can you answer me this?



## x Sarah x (Nov 16, 2007)

I just got a message from my cousin, it reads:

[We just seen a serval cat on you tube & they r stunning. They are apparently domesticated animals & mum wants one, but it says u have to have a license to keep one as they r an exotic cat and apparently fall under the dangerous cats act. Is that right? Also how much would we expect to pay for one? Do u have any idea? Xx]

I was going to say, yes you do need a license, they are domesticated to a degree but can still be dangerous animals, best not kept as a house pet really and you'd prob be looking at a couple grand for one. I'd be more inclined to look into Bengal cats instead...

Would this be right, i don't really have a clue about exotic cats so helps appreciated to answer this.

They are cat people, but have no experience with exotics and wouldn't be able to cater for one...they also have a cat already, just a moggy as they lost their Main **** not long ago.

Chars!


----------



## Evilshiddenclaws (May 25, 2010)

I'm not sure but id have said the same as you. They would need to build an enclosure for it, they aren't house pets.


----------



## feorag (Jul 31, 2007)

A Serval is a wild cat and your mum would need a DWA licence to keep one and personally I don't think they should be kept indoors, they should have a large outdoor enclosure.

Is she not getting confused with Savannah cats, which are the result of breeding between a domestic cat and a Serval, the same way as a Bengal is produced from crossing domestic cats with Asian Leopard Cats?


----------



## minicb (Jun 28, 2010)

Yes a serval will need a dwa (dangerous wild animals licence) & the price will vary from council to council.


----------



## gmccurdie (Jun 1, 2012)

Pass this link onto your cousin, (there are others)
http://hotspotexotics.co.uk/page6.php
Last time I saw a Serval for sale was Viper and Vine; who were selling them in March for £8,999 each. Lots of people put Serval Cat when they mean Savannah Cat.


----------



## x Sarah x (Nov 16, 2007)

Yeah i've told her this, she just said she'd been watching videos on youtube of servals with her mum who expressed an interest in them, she's always had a love for big breeds and i think that's what jumped out at her. 
I've recommended looking into Bengals, they're still pretty sizey for a cat and very dog-like much like her **** was, but more domesticated than most the other wild cat crosses


----------



## mrcriss (Nov 2, 2010)

They're not domesticated *at all!* There may be footage of a friendly one having a particularly good day on youtube, but an angry serval is not a nice beast to be around.

Nor can they be kept as a house pet.:2thumb:


----------



## x Sarah x (Nov 16, 2007)

Think she realised that pretty quick when i explained the point of them being DWA, lol


----------



## chrispit (Apr 27, 2010)

Being on the DWA means you need a licence but you don't simply pay a fee you have to build an out side enclosure which meets the requirements and has to be vet checked prove you can't cater for animal needs etc, Which requires a lot of dosh.


----------



## feorag (Jul 31, 2007)

I'm sure I've read somewhere that the 'small cats' are wilder and harder to tame than the 'big cats', even if you get them as very young kittens. 

The only difference maybe being that if a tame big cat turns it can do more damage, but that doesn't mean a small cat doesn't do any damage - if that makes sense?? :crazy:


----------



## mrcriss (Nov 2, 2010)

I wouldn't say that servals are "small cats" though. They kind of walk that strange middle ground with caracals, lynx and bobcats.....all claws, teeth and attitude!


----------



## feorag (Jul 31, 2007)

Yes, I know what you mean, the "in-betweeners", i certainly remember reading that Asian Leopard Cats are one of the most aggressive of all the wild cats.


----------



## jaykickboxer (Feb 11, 2008)

I no loads of people have said it but surely a savannah cat would be better then a Bengal , most pet ones are f5 s but id imagine u can get a f4 or maybe even f3 without a license although I'm not defante would be worth checking , gotta say if they like that stealthy look a Egyptian mau probably worth looking into very nice cats


----------



## gmccurdie (Jun 1, 2012)

Don’t know if this will help; 

All members of the family Felidae require a DWAL except; the wild cat, _Felis silvestris_ the pallas cat _Otocolobus manul_, the little spotted cat, _Leopardus tigrinus _the Geoffroy’s cat, _Oncifelis geoffroyi _the kodkod, _Oncifelis guigna_ the bay cat, _Catopuma badia _the sand cat, _Felis margarita_ the black-footed cat, _Felis nigripes_ the rusty-spotted cat _Prionailurus rubiginosus _and the domestic cat _Felis silvestris catus_; 

Obviously, Offspring of the above list or any hybrid of the species listed would not require a licence.
The hybrid offspring of a domestic cat and any Felidae outside of the above list would require a licence.
The offspring of the above hybrid and a domestic cat do not require a licence, any subsequent breeding of this litter would not require a licence, even if one of the parents were a DWAA.

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2007/2465/schedule/made

_-For those who think F1, F2, F3 etc are the keys across the top of your keyboard- lol_


----------



## Kare (Mar 9, 2010)

I agree with Feorag and Jaykickboxer, you would be far better steering her towards looking at the Savannah which is a *large* cat breed and a cross between the serval and a cat than to steer them towards the Bengal which may not be quite as impressive for them considering what they were originally looking at.


----------

