Kaito the 20-Year Old Savannah Cat

January 1, 2021 David Grieshaber

In 2000, my wife Sayuri and I were looking for a cat that would fit our lifestyle. I believe you can purchase just about anything over the Internet--even 20 years ago! Previously, I'd owned various exotic animals, one being an albino Burmese Python. We wanted an exotic cat as well. That's when we found Joyce Sroufe of ExoticCats.com (now A1Savannahs.com). She'd been instrumental in creating a new cat breed--a mix between an African Serval and a domestic cat.

Intrigued, we reached out to Joyce, and the adventure began. Joyce experimented with breeding a male Serval and an Egyptian Mau, creating a Savannah Cat with a unique color--in this case, a silver color. With that success, we purchased our Savannah and named him "Sora." However, after six months, Sora passed away due to a bizarre genetic respiratory disorder. Of course, we were devastated, but Joyce did all she could to make us whole in our loss, which included a kitten from her next attempt.

Intrigued, we reached out to Joyce, and the adventure began. We named him "Kaito," a Japanese term meaning "flying over the sea." We chose it because Kaito loved to sit on my stomach in the bathtub and play in the water or the shower. We also acquired an F1 Chausie named Misha, an African Jungle Cat/Main Coon mix Kaito's life companion.

As a juvenile, Kaito was a terror cat. His true wild cat nature came out randomly as he hunted his prey through the house and fought to be the Alpha male. He'd jump across the table, causing my wife Sayuri's homework to fly through the air. I'd run to find out what was happening, find papers floating to the ground, and Kaito meowing and looking innocent. I'd return downstairs, and he'd attach himself to my wife's behind with his full claws dug in. Back up the stairs, I'd go, Kiato looking all innocent-like again as if to say, "What? I didn't do anything."

His wild nature was a constant issue in his youth, the worst being random rough play--not understanding boundaries and when to stop! His wild nature was a constant issue in his youth, the worst being random rough play--not understanding boundaries and when to stop! Luckily, we met a vet who worked for the Los Angeles Zoo with big cats. He shared a super-secret: Tabasco Sauce. When Kaito started to get rough, I put the hot sauce on my arms or ankles and let him have a bite. He Hated it! It got to the point when we'd walk toward the refrigerator; we wouldn't see him the rest of the night. The benefit being for the rest of his life; he never bit or caused bloodshed on anyone ever again.

Savannah cats are a wonderful breed, but be forewarned; they can often take more care and attention than a typical domestic cat. Kaito acted more like a dog, and Misha was the epitome of the perfect scaredy-cat. He loved to go out for walks on a harness and leash in the park. Big dogs would run up thinking, "Cat Cat Cat," but as they drew closer, Kaito stood his position super alert. As they approached, it changed to "big cat," then "why isn't this cat running away"? By the time they reached Kaito, all of the big scary dogs were crawling up and whimpering about this big cat that refused to run away! Kaito's always curious about everyone who approaches, sniffing their shoes after leaving them at the door.

Savannah's are high energy and very intelligent. When Kaito was a young adult, he showed his Serval side and jumped over me to get food out of my hand. We also taught him to "high five," jump on command, and shake while determining the left vs. right shake command. I could never get him to roll over tough. These cats wore out every toy we gave them, but Kaito's favorite is playing fetch. Sometimes he plays for hours on end with verbal and physical demands to "throw the toy"--or else! My advice is not to bother buying standard cat toys; they last a few days at most. Weirdly enough, his favorite is golf balls tied up into a ball plastic bags and the plastic housing of Party Poppers.

Throughout his life, Kaito wanted to be a pack animal and Alpha male of the household; but that's my position. During the day, he ignores or acts disgruntled toward me. But at night, the boys come up and sleep with us as a family. Kaito mainly imprints on my wife. I'm not sure if it's because she's the food source--or his human toy?

Kaito's the perfect alarm clock too. At about 5:00 am, he'll walk around the bed meowing, demanding we get up and feed them. If we don't get up, he howls, followed by walking across our bodies. A few times, he became so frustrated we were sleeping in. He went and got the kitchen towel, soaked it in his water bowl, then dragged it to the bed, dropping it on our faces! This antic changed as he aged. Now, I put out my finger when I'm ready to wake up, and he touches my finger to get me out of bed. It's become our wake-up tradition since my wife didn't like the idea of me hitting the snooze button!

Over the years, we've made every effort to take exceptional care of our cats. They have sizeable dog tunnels integrated into modular cat towers. We feed them the healthiest whole foods we can buy with the least amount of by-products and filtered water. We add vitamins from Life Extension Foundation called "Cat Mix" into their morning food. We rarely feed the cats human food, but they do enjoy cooked salmon and chicken. And with cheese, they sit at the table and wait for scraps, with a paw in shake position, until we give them a small piece. Kaito will sometimes become more aggressive and take it and run.

In July 2020, Kaito turned 20 years old and got his favorite cooked chicken breast dish. Pleasantly surprised, both our cats have made it to this age. Kaito still acts like a seven-year-old, chases toys, gets excited with a poofy tail, and plays and meows a lot. We're happy Kaito and Misha have been part of our lives for so long and hope for more years of pleasure with our kidi-cats.

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