Four rescued servals started their journey to their forever home at Panthera Africa on 13 March.
This relocation was made possible thanks to the tireless efforts of Etihad Airways who provided the flights for the servals and three organisations, Born Free Foundation, Natuurhulpcentrum (stet) and Panthera Africa.
The four servals were kept illegally as pets in Belgium before being rescued. As they did not have names the four animals were temporarily named after the city they were rescued in – Kinrooi, Mechelen, Roeselare and Diepenbeek. The Belgian authorities granted custody of the servals to Natuurhulpcentrum, a wildlife rescue in Belgium, where a dedicated team has been taking care of them until their relocation to their new home. As the centre is only a temporary centre for animals it searched for a lifetime sanctuary home, until Born Free Foundation offered to relocate them into the Born Free Rescue Section at Panthera Africa Big Cat Sanctuary near Stanford.
Born Free funded four new purpose-built enclosures, and the Panthera Africa team set to work to build them. Lizaene Cornwall-Nyquist, co-founder of Panthera Africa, said: “We have been waiting for the servals’ arrival for nearly two years and the global pandemic has kept us from relocating these beautiful cats to our sanctuary. We are very excited to welcome them – both for them to be back in Africa and have a peaceful natural home to live in, and also for us as these are the first servals that have joined our pride. We are very excited to learn their behaviour and get to know them as individuals. And once again we feel very honoured and privileged to work with Born Free and NCH, as well as Etihad who sponsored the flights for this relocation.”
Andrea Donaldson of Born Free said: “It is extraordinary to think that in 2022 we need to rescue and relocate servals, an African wild cat from the European pet trade back to their ancestral home.
“However, after a long and complex process, and one that was made more difficult by the outbreak of Covid-19, it is amazing to know these four servals will now wake up in their forever home, bathing in the warm African sunshine and surrounded by the sights and the sounds of the bushland. Everyone at Born Free is extremely grateful to Etihad Airways who, looked after our servals in flight on their journey to South Africa and we know they will live their best possible life, given their unhappy story so far, in the care of Panthera Africa.”