Photo: Courtesy of Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge
A cat commonly found on African savannas was recently discovered on a farm in the Ozark Mountains.
After six months of noticing a “crazy-looking cat” on his property, a farmer in Ava, Missouri, live-trapped the creature and found out it was a female, 30-Lb. African serval cat.
According tothe Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge, the farmer cared for the serval cat — feeding the animal and taking it to a local vet — before contacting the authorities and the Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge, located about two hours south in Arkansas, for help. Officials from the sanctuary made the trip to Missouri to take custody of the wild animal.
“They had taken it to the vet and tried to find if it had a microchip in it, and it didn’t,” the sanctuary’s president Tanya Smithtold Fox Weatherabout the Missouri farmer. “There was no identification for this little African serval.”
Upon her arrival in Arkansas, the serval cat received boneless chicken and her own mulch bed that “she seemed to really enjoy,” Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge officials said.
Courtesy of Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge
The Missouri serval was treated for frostbite on her tail and other health issues at Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge, the sanctuary’s marketing director Cheryl Kingtold UPI.
“She was severely anemic, largely due to an infestation of fleas,” King said. “Her front right paw had a badly infected toe. The toe had a puncture wound on the bottom, and infection had set in with swelling spreading to the toes alongside the injury.”
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge is looking forward to helping with the serval’s recovery and offering the feline a loving home.
source: people.com
