DEEP Seizes Serval from Middletown Home, Owner Charged

MIDDLETOWN, CT —State Environmental Conservation (EnCon) Police recently seized a male serval from a Middletown home and arrested the owner.

EnCon Police executed a search warrant at the residence on May 5 for the serval, a medium-sized feline that can weigh between 20 to 40 pounds and is a member of the felidae family, according to DEEP officials.

“The serval, born in captivity, will still have its natural instincts such as its prey drives,” DEEP officials said in a press release. “It can be compared to a bobcat, which also is a medium-sized member of the felidae family. Servals are taller, leaner, and faster than a bobcat and at times people have compared servals with a cheetah.”

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NBC Connecticut reports the owners have created an online petition to get the serval back.

The petition was launched at change.org to bring Noah, a domestic African serval, home and has garnered 1,114 supporters with a goal of 1,500 as of 7 p.m. on Monday.

“Noah's a domestic raised family member, not aggressive, and been with us since 8 weeks old we are what he knows,” the owners wrote on the page. “He is provided for and loved by our family in a large home with outside access to a secure enclosure. Noah's never gotten loose or bothered anyone.”

The DEEP press release states that any member of the felidae family that is not a recognized breed of The International Cat Association, the Cat Fanciers Association or the American Cat Fanciers Association is illegal to possess in Connecticut and the serval is not recognized by any of these associations.

Servals have the potential to cause serious injury, according to the DEEP.

The owner was arrested and charged with violating Connecticut General Statutes, Sec. 26-40a(1), according to the DEEP.

DEEP officials say the investigation is ongoing.

Read more about the family’s petition at change.org here.

Photo of Noah via change.org