Quick List: What To Know

  • 4-5 bottles per day first 3 months by fox valley

    • Powder kitten milk by fox valley

  • Warm bottle by placing it in warm water

  • Food: split between Zuupreme canned exotic cat food / Ground beef low fat with vitatrax taurine supplement / Primal freeze dry nuggets

  • How to train

  • :Always be dominate Never ever let bite/ cage train + very high volume yelling in its ear while scruffing

  • Litter robot + Few litter boxes at beginning

  • The more space it has to roam growing up the more wild of a cat it will act/become.

  • Let her sleep with you

  • Handle ALOT, never leave its side first month

  • Lease training easier with laser pointer

  • Cut nails VERY often as kitten to get them used to it !!

  • Early Socialization is very important cats and dogs especially small dogs

  • Mine respond very well to yelling and tapping them on the nose.

  • Constantly rub her paw and retract her nails so when it comes to nail clipping she wont react badly/ Never leave her side first 6 months Always hold the kitten up in the air

  • Toys: cat exercise wheel + cat toys

When it comes to raising Savannah Kittens into adulthood the philosophy is to "Expect only what you put into your Savannah Cat". If you provide proper daily care of exercise, mental stimulation and positive reinforcement training while young, it will result into healthy well-adjusted adults. If you're considering adopting a Savannah Kitten you will need to preform kitten-proofing, obtain necessary care items and pick a quarantine room. As a cat owner you also need crucial details on how to provide proper exercise that is both physically adequate and mentally enriching.

Kitten-Proofing your home

Kitten-proofing your home helps ensure your kitten's safety as well as your own. Kittens are lively and curious, which can lead them into serious trouble unless you take preventative measures. A kitten has a lower vantage point than yours, like a crawling baby, and may be attracted to things you do not see when you are standing.

  1. Cover Electrical Cords

  2. Add Cabinet Latches

  3. Remove Pull Down Door Knobs

Quarantine

Quarantine is a time frame of 2-3 weeks of personal one-on-one time with new owner(s). Rushing the introduction process can result in a scared, skittish and unsure feline that can result in unruly behavior at your fault not the cat. Quarantine should be in a medium-sized room. This room should be ideal for the kitten to not be too confined, so the kitten does not feel threatened. You will then need to provide proper enrichment items to redirect the cat attention, provide exercise and to provide an activity to bond with your new kitten.

The most important aspect of quarantine is keeping all animals separate during introduction and eliminates typical routes of bacterial and viral infections. Remember your kitten requires visits to the veterinarian’s office for crucial vaccinations and exams, while a kitten it's immune system is less than adult making it easy to catch something. Most animals only visit a vet when sick, take care to disinfect any surface the kitten will touch at the vet.

Sales contracts between you and your breeder often mandate a veterinary visit within a specified brief time after arrival, this allows the vet to discover any issues that may have incurred due to stress of being re-homed or otherwise obtained. The quarantine is also the ideal time to reinforce litter box habits. In the eyes of your kitten you must realize that your home is much larger to them than it is to you. Therefore, being in a smaller area where they can easily locate the litter box is ideal.

  • Be calm and quiet when you bring your kitten into your home.

  • Place the carrier on the floor and let the kitten come out on its own.

  • To encourage the kitten to come out of the carrier for the first time coax him/her out with a teaser-toy.

  • Keep the kitten in a small room to start, slowly allowing him/her more run of the house.

  • Place the kitten in the litter box several times in the first couple of days.

  • Sit on the floor, on the kitten’s level, to play and socialize.

Vaccinations

Currently we are using Dr. W. Jean Dodd's vaccination protocol. This protocol is now being adopted by ALL 27 North American veterinary schools. Important to note that mom's antibodies are not completely gone till 16 weeks thus shots given earlier may have no effect. Shots are given 3-4 weeks apart, never give a booster shot when a cat shows signs of being sick.

  • 3-Way Vaccine (Purevax®)

    • First Shot

    • Second Booster Shot

    • Third Booster Shot

  • Bodettela Nasal Vaccine (Nobivac®)

  • Rabies Shot

FIV/FELV Blood Test

Test all your current felines prior to getting your new kitten. Upon receiving your kitten, you will need to test with the FIV/FELV Blood Test or if it is one of my kitten the parents are already tested negative, so negative by parents.

Parasite Prevention

Parasites are a common occurrence in cats as they are easily contracted through drinking water or simple touch of infected surfaces, some parasites can live weeks without a host with prevalence rates as high as 45 percent. The parasites can be worm-like (e.g., stomach worms, roundworms, hookworms, tapeworms) or one-celled (e.g., Isospora, Giardia, Toxoplasma) organisms. We recommend giving "revolution" which is a topical application given once a month to prevent, control, and treat parasite infections. The active ingredient is selamectin, which interferes with the parasite's nervous system. It is an effective heartworm preventive, killing the immature form of the heartworm. It kills adult fleas and prevents flea eggs from hatching for one month. It is also used for the treatment and control of ear mites and sarcoptic mange. Revolution also treats and controls roundworm and hookworm infections.

Vet Visits

  • Do not assume the exam or waiting room is clean.

  • Disinfect the cat's carrier and your shoes after visiting the vet.

  • Use a towel to cover the exam table, bleach towel afterwards.

  • Do not allow routine procedures to be done out of sight.

  • If a shot spills onto the cat have it wiped off with alcohol.

  • Savannah Cats should be treated like any other cat breed (No special shots).

  • Remember vets only take one small course in school about feline nutrition.

Microchips

We microchip all our Savannah Kittens with BuddyID™ Pro Chips. New owners will receive a BuddyID™ pamphlet with instructions on how to register these microchips. Should you lose your instructions you can follow the link below. All microchips are always attached to our main breeder account in case a microchip is not registered into the new owner’s name.  

BuddyID™ is an innovative leader in the world of animal identification and recovery with over 25 years’ experience. Veterinarian owned and operated. Highly trained staff. Located in the United States not overseas. Run by real people who talk to pet owners and shelters all day long. Official member of the “Pet Microchip Lookup System”.

Parent company Microchip ID Systems, Inc. has been in business since 1989. BuddyID™ takes the extra step of posting a free SearchALERT™ in the national network for any registered pet at any time.

  • NOT OVERSEAS - LOCATED IN THE USA

  • NO HIDDEN FEES

  • NO RENEWAL FEES.

  • LIFETIME MEMBERSHIP

Website Link: www.buddyid.com/register/

Exercise

Exercise is where a cat can expend its pent-up energy. There have been more and more tests showing that cats kept inside can become bored and develop cat serious psychological problems. These issues can present themselves in many ways such as destroying furniture or not using litter boxes. We suggest a combination of real interaction (playing sessions with a cat wand, clicker training, harness training) and interactive toys (cat wheels, wall of shelves, cat trees).

  • Play sessions with a cat wand are the best enriching activity with your cat. Get your cat out of breath with a vigorous session typically 10 – 30 minutes long. Try adding a session before bedtime to get optimal nighttime sleep results.

  • Cat wheels are the must-have enriching experience every cat needs to get that extra energy spent. Proven to not only enhance the physical well-being of our cats but altered their disposition to be more relaxed and calm. Please note that cats still need one-on-one exercise with cat wands and other enriching activities. Cat wheels should be used as a tool to spend energy in between true exercise/play sessions.

  • Cat shelves and trees can be used both in real interaction and by the cat alone. Savannah Cats typically require larger more robust options due to their weight.

  • Harness Training

    Harness training a Savannah Cat is like training a puppy. Patience and perseverance are key, this will not happen overnight. Walking on a leash requires extensive time, patience and positive reinforcement to achieve. Never allow a cat to walk out of a door even on a harness, you do not want to teach a cat that walking out of a door will result in outside access. As soon as you get your kitten and they have settled in you should start with the following steps;

    • Step 1

      • Start placing a fitted harness on you Savannah Kitten and allow the kitten to wear it for extended periods inside the home without associate with the leash. The cat may protest by laying down but eventually will learn to wear the harnesses without struggle. Try associating the harness with play time for positive enforcement.

    • Step 2

      • Start attaching a leash inside the home. Take a cat wand to entice the cat to walk. Give extra small treats sparingly for positive reinforcement. If the cat becomes scared, calmly pet the cat and redirect its attention back to the cat wand. Do not be forceful, don’t give up quickly. Patience and repetition is the key.

    • Step 3

      • Pick an outside area that is without fast moving objects or loud noises, preferably an enclosed smaller space such as a backyard. Play with a cat wand. Do not attempt to "walk". Your goal is to give positive enforcement to going outside only. From here you will extend your outside adventures.