Oct 23, 2007 7:36 pm US/Central
Escaped African Serval Cat Caught In Saginaw
by Joel Thomas
SAGINAW (CBS 11 News) ―
Animal control officers in Saginaw had a real life 'cat and mouse' chase on their hands. Things were a little bit different this time out – because the animal wasn't your regular house cat; it was an exotic cat from Africa that escaped from its North Texas home.
Animal control was on the lookout for an African Serval cat.
The cat, named Gizmo, has been the pet of a Saginaw family for the past five years, where he regularly lives with other domesticated pets and children. The family lives near the intersection of West McLeroy Boulevard and North Knowles Drive, and was required to maintain a 'wild animal certificate of registration' in order to keep the animal.
"He's a great pet and so we've raised him for the last five and a half years and this is a first for us. It's very disturbing," owner Christina Miller said.
The cat escaped through an open window Thursday night and was last seen Tuesday morning in a field near a school, rec. center, school and residential area. Gizmo weighs about 35 pounds, has been de-clawed, and is domesticated.
The city's Animal Control was made aware of the cat's disappearance on Friday morning.
According to officials with Saginaw Animal Control, Gizmo poses no threat to humans. "They're not dangerous. They eat things smaller than what will fit in our mouth 'cause they eat everything whole," animal control officer Kevin James told CBS 11 News. "So I don't think any domesticated pet will have anything to worry about, unless it's a hamster."
The largest animal a Serval can eat is about the size of a rabbit.
Animal control spotted Gizmo in a wooded area near the old Saginaw Airport, but in the end it was the owner, with a bottle of water, that caught the cat.
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