If you’re a cat lover and haven’t heard about the designer Ashera (sometimes misspelled “Ashira”) cat with the minimum price tag of $22,000, then you must be living under a rock!  The UK’s Mail Online reported on the luxury cat, as did the Pet News Examiner and msnbc.com, informing readers of the facts as they found them:

• Bred by a company called Life Style Pets in California
• Bred from the African serval and Asian leopard cat, crossed with an undisclosed domestic breed
• Stands 4ft tall on its hind legs
• 9-month waiting list to get a kitten
• Hand-deliver to client
• Spayed, neutered, micro-chipped on delivery
• Lives for 25 years
• Weighs up to 30lb.
• Starting price is $22,000 (£12,000)
• A “Hypoallergenic” version of the Ashera costs $37,000.
• The “Snow” Ashera costs $65,000 (background color is white)
• The “Royal” Ashera costs $125,000. (spots and stripes are “tiger orange” instead of plain black)

So I started digging around just because I found the topic fascinating and the photos and videos of the cats captivating.  They’re so regal looking!

But then the other day I found some alarming information on various web sites.  It seems that there are a good number of cat experts who are claiming that the Ashera is completely a hoax.  They say that the new Ashira strain is really just a Savannah cat, which has been a recognized breed since the year 2000 and ranges in price from $2,000 to $12,000.

There’s an interesting and revealing online conversation on the blogspot Ashera vs. Savannah Cat, with blog entries by a Chris Shirk of “Cutting Edge Savannahs”.  Apparently, Shirk found that three first-generation Savannah cats that he had bred himself were being held at Schiphol Airport in the Netherlands after an attempt to illegally import them as Ashera cats.

Here’s an excerpt from the online conversation:

DNA evidence proves that the Ashera is a Savannah cat

Finally, the news we were waiting for. We knew the result, we just wanted it officially confirmed. The three Ashera kittens confiscated at Schiphol Airport months ago are F1 Savannahs bred by Chris Shirk of Cutting Edge Savannahs. His post today to the Savannah cat community:

I have received official word today that it has been confirmed all three Savannah kittens confiscated in the Netherlands are from my cattery!!!
The court is still proceeding and the decision has not yet been made as to where the kittens will go. I have requested their return but it’s up to the judge. However, their forensic labs have all confirmed they are from parent cats owned by me, Christopher Shirk of Cutting Edge Cats. They are Savannahs produced by my cats, not Ashera cats from Simon Brodie’s scamming Life Style Pets business.

I guess Simon Brodie, if you’re reading this, you’ll do what you do best….disappear. …But you will face the consequences of what you did to my kittens. CHRIS

Read entire conversation here.

The “maker” of these Ashera cats, or perhaps I should say the “con artist” is the California company called Life Style Pets, with Simon Brodie at the helm.

Kessie Carroll gives us more interesting facts on the cats, while clearly and strongly clarifying that they are indeed Savannah’s and not a separate, new breed.

Savannah cats and Ashera cats both come housebroken, at 8-12 months old. Only males are sold as pets, because they are sterile. However, savannahcatbreed.com also sells breeders. They are about the same price as the cats offered as pets, again, prices varying depending on generation.

According to the websites, Savannah cats have almost dog-like personalities. They like going for walks on leashes, like car rides, playing fetch, and swimming. What a great pet: a cat that acts like a dog! In fact, they make friends with dogs easier than they do other household pets.

These exotic cats can be cared for like any domesticated cat. They eat cat food and use a litter box. But every breeder website has a warning that sometimes purebred Serval cats are sold under the guise of Savannah cats. Servals aren’t quite as good pets, and among other things have to have a pricey diet of raw meat. It seems that Savannah cats are so hard to breed and in such demand that unscrupulous breeders will take advantage of their customers.

Read the original article here.

But then msnbc.com (whom we tend to trust) reports that Brodie is aware of the genetic similarity between his Ashera and the already-established Savannah.

While Lifestyle Pets admits this type hybrid breeding has been done before, “the Ashera is unique in that genetic monitoring is used to standardize breeding and ensure that the defining features and size of the [animal] remain exceptionally consistent.” And like most other super-luxury items, the company says it will sell only 100 Asheras per year worldwide, with only 50 being sold to U.S. customers

Read the original article here.

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