I want one of these; any precautions?

He's a Safari.

First of all I live in GA and I think there is a restriction on some exotics in our state. I assume I will need to find that out first. I've always wanted a big cat but not sure if I have the enviornment suitable for him. We live in the country but I was planning on him being inside all of the time. We have a pretty large house but I want to make sure it's adequate for a healthy life. Any suggestions?

I would find out if Georgia allows exotics pets first. Do you think you are ready?

Although I am not an expert, I would ask these questions before you even find out about the legality of owning one in GA:
1. Are you willing to completely change YOUR enviornment for this cat?
It will probably have quite different environment needs than a domestic feline...
2. Are you able to provide a non-standard diet?
Even bengal cats sometimes require a different diet...either raw or carb-free to do well.
3. Are you willing to deal with behavior issues from the wild cross?
i.e. what if the cat becomes un-tame and un-handlable when adult? can you provide an enclosure and handle it properly? What if this wild cross has un-standard toilet habits? Are you ready to accept a cat that goes on your clothes, beding, in water, etc?
4. Are you prepared to deal with a high energy cat 24/7?
Just imagine what items and furniture a cat that size can knock over when playing.

As I said, I am not an expert and have never owned a wild-cross before, but I have read enough stories of issues with them to make me leery of ever purchasing one.

If your answer is "no" to any of my above questions...you might want to look into a bengal, which is still a wild-cross, but they are smaller and more generations have been bred, so more stable temperment.

Art

IMO they are too new and more unpredictable unless you really know what you are doing. I'd think long and hard in owing one. You might need high-risk insurance (like for some breeds of dogs).

And you'd really have to research the breeders. Like the Bengals, too many people just jump on the band wagon for "exotic" looking cats, breed them and really don't know what they are getting into. I'm against the continued breeding of wild cats into the domestic. Far too much of it going on. While I'm more comfortable with the Bengals now, I still don't like the basics of them. We have enough cats out there now, that we really don't need to keep breeding "exotic" animals just cause someone wants something different.

Thanks and good points all. I'm not about to buy one; just would really like to have one; or so I think. From everything I've researched so far they're fairly docile but I def. need to research more. Thanks again for the info. It's what I need to hear.

Safari cats are very expensive and rare since it's tough getting the hybrid breeding to happen. So you'll definitely have to be prepared to wait and spend a lot of money. Those two things are the least of it though.

I'd really look at your own motivations and figure out exactly why you want that cat and if you're prepared for a life changing commitment.

I have 'only' an SBT female Bengal and she's really quite a handful. I enjoy taking care of her and we're great roommates but even her level of energy and need for stimulation is too much for a lot of people. I've also heard that the Safari's are relatively docile compared to the rest of the early generation hybrid breeds with high wild blood. However that's probably like saying a particular F1 racing car is a bit easier to handle than another F1 racing car. You're still in a completely different game than driving a normal sport car.

I'm going to keep this short since I've written long essays on this topic before but basically do *a lot* of research and be 100% commited to the cat if you decide to go for it. Also make sure that every human you're living with is ok to have your house basically be a Zoo enclosure for a very energetic and active and large feline.

One of the reason why it usually works just fine having pet cats is that they're as small as they are. As soon as they get significantly bigger they become a lot more dangerous and can be more destructive simply because of the size. I don't mean that they're mean or aggressive, more that the danger of them accidentally hurting you is a lot higher when the cat is bigger.

These cats also usually bond to only one family and have a very hard time changing environments so you need to be absolutely sure that you're in it for the long haul, even if the cat changes upon maturity and doesn't want to be touched and starts spraying everything etc.

It's a huge commitment and responsibility to care for one of these cats. If you have any doubt I would not get one of those. It's probably not a bad idea to get a well bred SBT bengal or savannah cat (NB: Well bred, there are some not too great breeders working with those breeds now) to be better able to understand what caring for an early generation cat would be like. Also odds are that your then bengal or savannah would cope better with having the Safari as a playmate than more laidback kitties.

I strongly suggest you read some of John's threads/posts. AmberTheBobcat's threads