'I'm just devastated': Owner of African cat must give up pet after escape

The search for an exotic cat spotted near a Buckhead country club has come to an end, but the owner said she will be forced to give up her pet.

The Georgia Department of Natural Resources said Thursday that a serval, a large cat native to Africa, had been located and taken to a temporary holding facility until it can be taken to a wildlife sanctuary. The cat was first reported on the loose June 30 near the Capital City Country Club after a woman said it came inside her house and jumped on her bed while she was sleeping.

The owner, Anna Fyfe, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution via text that she’s from South Carolina, where it is legal to own servals as pets. Now living in Georgia to attend college, she said her pet — named Nala after the character from Disney’s “The Lion King” — usually stayed with her parents. Fyfe had brought the serval to her Georgia home when it escaped.

“The DNR did an amazing job at helping catch Nala and making sure everyone is safe, even though she is just a kitty and is harmless,” Fyfe said. “They are not letting me keep her. They are taking her away to a sanctuary — I completely understand, they’re only doing their job. I’m just devastated because Nala is my baby.”

Read more: https://www.ajc.com/neighborhoods/dekalb/african-cat-captured-near-buckhead-country-club-prompting-investigation/CMTJZJB5Z5CMHGTEZK6VF3Q4NA/