Zimbabwe Seven

Hi Readers, many thanks once again for your comments re our projects. It is truly inspiring to see so many outside people who continue being interested in what is happening in Zimbabwe.

To try and answer some of the questions posed. We have to date released 16 serval, 7 females and 9 males. Tigger died from being kicked by a zebra. Tilly was killed by rural people. 3 serval are in an area which we have not been able to access, however there have been no reported serval deaths. Muffet is doing well and we are confident that she will soon be mated by a wild serval. Rafiki, Muffet’s son, was released but has returned to the release enclosure. We are currently assessing his situation.

Re surviving in the wild. Our servals go through a long process which is in a release (soft) enclosure in the area where they are to be released. Reason being is that during this time they are exposed to the sights and sounds within the new area. Also it is important for them to adapt to the new prey which occurs in the area. Birds and rodents are encouraged naturally into the enclosures so that the cats can start hunting for themselves. Even at the breeding center we encourage natural hunting instincts.
When the serval are hand raised, they do form a bond with their caretakers. However as they mature this bond is lessened. It must also be noted that even though they have a bond with one human it does not extend to others. The older they get the more independant they become (as they would become in the wild). Having worked with serval for 14 years, I have learnt to read their signs. So when it comes time for the serval to be released – it is 100% up to that individual cat. There is not an age limit as to when to release a serval. However I do feel that the older the cat the better the chances are.
The areas we have chosen have a minimal wild serval population if indeed any. Having said this however in some cases our releasing of a female has invited a wild male into that area – this is a positive step we believe.
I trust that the above has answered your questions. We have posted some brief histories on our serval in the serval category. We hope you enjoy getting to know part of our family.

Thanks Lisa