What does F stand for? What determines the F number?
F stands for filial generations. The number next to it is how many generations away from their African serval ancestor they are.
F1 = 1 generation away (1 parent is an African serval)
F2 = 2 generations away (grandparent is an African serval)
So then what is SBT? SBT means stud book tradition (aka pure bred), this is when there are at least 3 generations of Savannah cats in their pedigree. The soonest a Savannah cat can be an SBT and eligible for TICA cat shows is the F4 generation.
NOTE: a Savannah cat male is commonly infertile (can not have babies) until the F5 generation. The generation is one number below the parent with the highest generation (1 being the highest.) Filial generations does not determine size, it is only an indication of how many generation away from the serval a Savannah kitten is. If you'd like to learn more about Savannah cat size, please click HERE.
So lets practice...
F1 female plus an F8 male = F#? generation of kittens?
a. F1
b. F2
c. F8
d. F9
First we take a look at which parent is the highest generation. This would be the F1 female, so then we add a generation, which makes F2. If you chose B. F2, you are correct.
F8 female plus an F5 male = F#? generation of kittens?
a. F4
b. F6
c. F7
d. F5
So here we see that the F5 male is the highest (highest meaning closest to their serval ancestor, the lower the number the closer to their serval ancestor). So we add a generation away from the serval and the answer is F6. If you answered B, you are correct.
F1 male plus an F3 female = F#? generation of kittens?
a. F2
b. F3
c. SBT
d. None of the above
Lets think back to the fact that males are commonly infertile until the F5 generation, there is no known fertile F1 males, if you chose D, none of the above, you are correct.
If you have any other questions regarding Savannah Cat Filial Generations or anything that you feel should be added to this post. Please contact me, I welcome questions and recommendations.