“FROM USDA CITATION TO LIVE TELEVISION”
Just weeks after the U.S. Department of Agriculture documented concerns involving the exhibition of restricted wild felids at Chase Animal Rescue and Sanctuary in Webster, Florida, the facility appeared on live morning television showcasing close-contact encounters with juvenile African servals.
In its June 2026 inspection, USDA issued a repeat citation after documenting that the facility continued exhibiting wild and exotic felids—including a juvenile serval—without obtaining the required license authorization for those species.
The inspection specifically referenced:
• donor interactions with a juvenile serval during an Earth Day event
• “Keeper for the Day” experiences involving the serval
• the addition of caracals to the facility
USDA explained why those licensing requirements exist:
“Not acquiring the correct license designations… can result in animals being held by unauthorized or untrained personnel for the species.”
Weeks later, FOX 35 Orlando aired a live segment from the facility featuring juvenile servals climbing onto reporters during the broadcast. One reporter later joked on social media:
“The baby serval has some really sharp claws!”
Fortunately, no serious injury appears to have occurred.
But perhaps that’s not the most important question.
The larger question is whether close-contact interactions with wild felids should be promoted as entertainment—particularly after federal inspectors had already documented concerns involving the exhibition of those same animals.
Wild animals don’t become domesticated because they’re young.
A juvenile serval still possesses sharp claws, sharp teeth, powerful instincts, and behaviors that can change in an instant.
Responsible wildlife conservation should inspire respect for wild animals—not normalize close physical contact for publicity, social media, or entertainment.
Sometimes the most compelling evidence isn’t an opinion.
Sometimes it’s simply placing an official inspection report beside the publicly promoted images and allowing people to draw their own conclusions.
