New Savannah daddy...F1 Portia (4 yrs) & F2B Kaya (8 weeks)

[John Hemmerly]

John...that is definitely good progress. Here's a bit of info that may contain some ideas you'll find useful to keep progressing forward.

Hey Deborah....

Thank you so much for the attached file full of great information....I really appreciate it....I will try everything and see how far we proceed in our relationship...I need to be patient....my worst attribute! I will keep you all posted on my progress and I want to thank everybody again for your support and great advice....it doesn't fall on deaf ears...

Btw, Kaya, the baby, is little demon that is into everything and needs to be the center of attention....we are in love with that little monster and I think she already owns us....I don't think it's supposed to work that way..ha! She provides us with endless laughter and has definitely bonded with both of us...I will forward pics of the little F2B when we can get her to hold still long enough....she looks away every time we point a camera at her....she doesn't like paparazzi....

John

 

[WitchyWoman]

we are in love with that little monster and I think she already owns us....I don't think it's supposed to work that way..ha!

Ha! Depends on the point of view. From Kaya's perspective, you all are exactly where you need to be -- enslaved. If you ever thought that you would be the owner rather than the owned, you didn't do enough research before getting a SV.

 

[Brigitte Cowell]

I think it is a great sign, John! I think you just worked out how to make friends with her...chicken! Yay!

 

[Brigitte Cowell]

The one thing I would mention about Deborah's article (which on the whole is GREAT) is that my F1's tail would say that every time I talk to her she is freaked out and angry if I went by that guide. Her tail gets erect and fluffy like those pictures with joy when her mommy talks to her, or when she sees me after I've been out all day... she will also run about with it down and fluffed out for the same reason. She just has fluffy tail because she is happy and this is an early generation trait that we have always termed "happy tail" on the email lists.

You can sometimes see it in the later generations such that we had to educate the cat judges that a fluffy tail and ridge of fur standing up on the back of a Savannah did NOT necessarily mean it was upset... that one has to interpret the eyes (pupils) and ear position and whisker position to determine the mood.

 

[John Hemmerly]

I think it is a great sign, John! I think you just worked out how to make friends with her...chicken! Yay!

Bribery is the best form of flattery....wait, I think that's wrong...lol! It is a positive step forward and I am excited. I am going to try the hand feeding of chicken tonight...I will let you all know tomorrow...

 

[John Hemmerly]

Wow Brigitte...you hit it on the head with that one...my baby F2B tail gets fluffy and erect when we play and talk lovingly to her...we crack up at her tail all of the time...I am going to watch Portia's (F1) tail tonight....on another note, Deborah's article is awesome and very informative....I can literally relate to everything I have read so far.....thanks again Deborah! Wish me luck on Portia tonight...

John

 

[Brigitte Cowell]

It's not all F1s that do that, it takes a lot more to get my other F1 Nina to have fluffy happy tail...and weirdly often it is only the bottom half of the tail and not the top! Missy's sister Aziza didn't fluff her tail so easily either. But in Savannahs it is definitely useful to know that a fluffy tail is not necessarily a sign of aggression or fright!

 

[John Hemmerly]

It's not all F1s that do that, it takes a lot more to get my other F1 Nina to have fluffy happy tail...and weirdly often it is only the bottom half of the tail and not the top! Missy's sister Aziza didn't fluff her tail so easily either. But in Savannahs it is definitely useful to know that a fluffy tail is not necessarily a sign of aggression or fright!

Good to know....I am going to watch Portia's tail tonight when she is eating and cruising around checking things out...thanks again to all of you lovely ladies for your support and great advice...I am one of the rare men who LOVE cats....I have been a cat freak my entire life and the Savannah is the most unbelievable breed I have ever seen...or even heard of.....and I mean ANY animal breed...more to come...

John

 

[Jacq]

Razi fluffs his tail at the base and along his back when he is happy.

 

[WitchyWoman]

I love happy fluffy tail & the raised ridge of fur down the back. All 3 of mine get fluffy & ridged when they're excited, happy, curious. Juba also goes up on his tippy toes -- imagine a ridged fluffy-tailed cat prancing around on tippy toes. And he wonders why we laugh at him.

When that fluffy tail is combined with other indicators of fear or aggression is when you have to take a time out.