Serval relocated after making itself at home in a KZN curio shop
A rare and elusive African serval cat made itself at home on a shelf after wandering into a curio shop in the middle of St Lucia in northern KZN.
Shocked tourists and shop staff got the surprise of their lives when the spotted feline darted into the store on Sunday and – like most cats – sought refuge in a box.
“The young male – estimated at younger than a year in age – was unharmed other than a scratch on one paw. It appeared that he had been scavenging on the waste at the rear of a nearby fish restaurant.”
“Cooper was as surprised as anyone that the animal had appeared in the bustling tourist hub‚ but on ascertaining that he was in good health‚ decided to move him to a remote part of the iSimangaliso Wetland Park where other serval have been released and are occasionally spotted.”
Cooper said that the sighting of the serval would add to a long list of outlandish wildlife encounters from St Lucia.
“St Lucia is no stranger to wildlife wandering the streets. I have encountered and sometimes treated at least 20 animal species in my years here‚ including hippo‚ crocodiles‚ kudu‚ hyena and even a young leopard cub that was found eating dog food on somebody’s front stoep.”