How It All Got Started
For months my husband wanted a cat and was trying to talk me into getting one. I kept telling him no because I had cats before and didn’t want to deal with litter boxes, shedding, etc. Then my stepdaughter started asking for one. I kept telling them “no”. On one rainy Saturday afternoon I was watching TV. Scrolling through the guide I noticed a show called “My Cat from Hell”. It was on all day and I thought I would check it out. After about the fifth episode there was an F2 Savannah cat on it and that is where it all started. I didn’t know there was such a breed. I was hooked. I could not get that cat out of my head. I told my husband the only way we could have a cat is if it was a Savannah. Right away he sent pictures of an adult Savannah to his daughter. She didn’t like it. She said the ears were too big. I spent the next two weeks researching the Savannah cat, what they were like, their personality, etc. My husband told me I could get one even though his daughter didn’t like it. I started looking. The first couple of breeders I found the kitten had to be flown in. I didn’t like that idea. I ran across A1Savannah in Ponca City, Oklahoma, which was within driving distance for us. I started looking at the kittens that were available. There was a litter born on February 6, 2017. My birthday is February 2. The first kitten I saw was named Sadie. She looked so adorable. I had to show her picture to my husband as soon as I could. The more I thought about it, I thought I wanted a male instead of a female. It was on a Friday night in May when I decided on the male kitten named Syrus. My husband called A1 Savannah that night and reached Martin. Martin was busy that night and said he would call us in the morning. To my dismay, when I got up Saturday morning Syrus was sold. Now what? We got in touch with Martin that morning and talked for about 30 minutes. Martin was so nice taking time to answer a lot of questions we had. I was having a hard time deciding between the female Sadie and the other male kitten. One thing I remember Martin saying is, the first kitten we saw and was excited about is probably the one that is meant for us. That was it, Sadie it was. We put a deposit on her that day. I was so excited! Now it was time to come up with a name. I wanted an unusual one because she was an unusual cat. After several suggestions between my husband and I he suggested Zelda. That made me think of the town where he proposed to me, I said Zenda? Zenda it was! A co-worker asked what Zenda meant. I told him I didn’t know, I would have to look it up. I found that it is a Greek name meaning born of Zeus and to my surprise it is an alternate name for Zenobia, which is my first name. I knew right then and there this kitten was meant for me. I got to thinking about my stepdaughter and her wanting a cat. She wanted a kitten of her own and it wasn’t fair for me to get what I wanted, and she couldn’t. I suggested to my husband that we let her get one. She was so excited when I told her. She started looking right away. That’s all she talked about for two weeks. She finally adopted a stray that had appeared at a veterinarian’s office and named her Emmy. We did not tell her about Zenda because we wanted her to enjoy her kitten for a while. After a couple weeks went by we told her that Emmy was going to have a friend. My husband still tells everyone that he was the first one that wanted a cat and now he’s the one that doesn’t have one. Ha Ha! I tell him he has two. Amanda was great, staying in contact with how Zenda was doing after vet visits and working with our schedule of being able to pick her up. Finally, the day came. Zenda was coming home. She was almost 18 weeks old. She was cool from the beginning. She did great going home looking out the car window then curling up in her crate falling asleep on the blanket Amanda sent home with her. I spent the next week home with Zenda and Emmy watching them while they got adjusted to each other. That was the best thing I could’ve done. Emmy was aggressive towards Zenda but now they get along great. Zenda is not your typical cat. She has such a great personality. She is independent and takes ownership when she walks into a room. She’s very curious and wants to be in the middle of everything. She loves going for car rides looking out the window and going for walks on her harness and leash. I read that the Savannah is more like a dog than a cat and they are. At Christmas we had four dogs in the living room and she was right in the middle of them playing with their tails, etc. I’ve had people make comments that they are not a “cat person” but they really like that cat. We love Zenda so much that we have talked about getting another Savannah but decided not to because we don’t want to take the chance of disrupting the relationship that Zenda and Emmy have. I would highly suggest owning a Savannah and getting it from A1Savannah. Thanks Amanda for raising such a wonderful kitten! This last year has been a true blessing with Zenda!
- Danita
