Basically they are livestock breeders, while the breeders you would find on this forum are hobby breeders, the focus is quite different.
SE breeds to produce in quantity to make money (hence size and coloring to appeal to the mass market). Other smaller breeders are involved in developing a breed type that resembles the Serval and the choices made reflect that. So it depends on what you prefer, if you want bulk size and a more orangey golden coat... or you want the physical traits of a Serval that may be more subtle, a tall long lean body with tall ears and a lemon yellow coloring that is really really hard to replicate in a domestic cat.
I don't believe in the setup that SE has that they can know the kitten's personality anywhere near as well as a breeder that is raising the kittens in a room in their house. They simply cannot be spending the time with them that I do for example. And there's no way they can have the time to spend giving the "after sales service" a smaller breeder does, being able to hold hands and answer all the questions that arise when raising a Savannah from kitten to adult. The number of kittens they sell, they would not be able to attend to so many questions over time. So they will attend to serious issues that require taking back the cat or replacing due to death or defect, but they aren't going to be a source of support and advice. And I see why. While I can sit there a full evening messaging about a sick cat going through test results and explaining what might be going on (I did this two nights ago) and be on hand to support them through a specialist visit to hopefully get a diagnosis today. It's a very different service that you sign up for... but not everyone wants a more involved breeder and not everyone sees the benefit of that.
SE breeds to produce in quantity to make money (hence size and coloring to appeal to the mass market). Other smaller breeders are involved in developing a breed type that resembles the Serval and the choices made reflect that. So it depends on what you prefer, if you want bulk size and a more orangey golden coat... or you want the physical traits of a Serval that may be more subtle, a tall long lean body with tall ears and a lemon yellow coloring that is really really hard to replicate in a domestic cat.
I don't believe in the setup that SE has that they can know the kitten's personality anywhere near as well as a breeder that is raising the kittens in a room in their house. They simply cannot be spending the time with them that I do for example. And there's no way they can have the time to spend giving the "after sales service" a smaller breeder does, being able to hold hands and answer all the questions that arise when raising a Savannah from kitten to adult. The number of kittens they sell, they would not be able to attend to so many questions over time. So they will attend to serious issues that require taking back the cat or replacing due to death or defect, but they aren't going to be a source of support and advice. And I see why. While I can sit there a full evening messaging about a sick cat going through test results and explaining what might be going on (I did this two nights ago) and be on hand to support them through a specialist visit to hopefully get a diagnosis today. It's a very different service that you sign up for... but not everyone wants a more involved breeder and not everyone sees the benefit of that.
Not saying I would only purchase from SE, but it's nice to have a good experience with an expensive venture.
