Jacquian Williams Took a Founder Tour with Carole Baskin

Celebrity Jacquian Williams Visits Big Cat Rescue

Jacquian Williams and his son visited for a quite private tour on April 1, 2012.  Says, Carole Baskin, “It was a very serene experience to walk amongst the cats and watch this gentle giant in his peaceful relationship with his son.  He seemed to be astounded at the suffering these cats have experienced in their “former lives” and I believe he will carry their message to others.”

TAMPA – It’s the NFC championship game angle everyone’s talking about on Fowler Avenue.

On one side, there are two former University of South Florida players filling prominent roles for the New York Giants — Pro Bowl defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul and high-energy linebacker Jacquian Williams. What’s more, they played for the same junior college.

On the other side, Jim Leavitt, founding father of the Bulls’ program, is linebackers coach for the San Francisco 49ers.

Regardless of who wins Sunday’s game at Candlestick Park, USF football will be a story at Super Bowl XLVI.

Williams relates well to life in the shadows.

He was the 202nd overall player selected in last season’s draft. While Giants coach Tom Coughlin and staff did their due diligence on Pierre-Paul a year earlier, they also noticed Williams, known for his tenacity, open-field running ability and sincerity.

“We’d be working into the late night as coaches, talking about things, and Jacquian would be right there with us, listening, taking notes, asking questions,” Patrick said. “I think the Giants saw that. They did their homework and now they are rewarded.”

Earlier this season, Giants safety Deon Grant said Williams was playing like a first-rounder. Fellow linebacker Michael Boley described Williams as a “different cat.”

“Jacquian was never a guy in the newspaper or on ESPN,” Barrington said. “But his work ethic is through the roof. The way he plays football, that’s the way he lives his life.

“I just think the whole thing reflects well on USF football. We’re all going to see the benefits of this. This is the biggest stage there is in football, and our program will get put on the map. Those guys walked in our shoes.”

Patrick chuckled when he recalled part of his recruiting pitch to Pierre-Paul and Williams.

“I told them, ‘You guys both come with us and you’ll do great together. Who knows? Maybe you’ll play together in the NFL, too,’ ” Patrick said. “I guess some things are just meant to happen.”

SNU Scholar Says Tigers Caught on Remote Jindo Islet

Local Korean hunters pose in front of a tiger hunted by them and an English sportsman Ford G. Barclay on the island of Jindo in South Korea’s South Jeolla Province in 1903.

“Even on the southern remote islands of the Korean Peninsula were filled with lots of Siberian tigers a century or so ago”, argued Prof. Lee Hang of the Seoul National University in a press release on Feb. 19, 2012.

Prof. Lee heads the Fund for Korean Tigers Conservation.

He showed to the local Korean press two photos of Korean tigers (Siberian or Amur tigers) caught by the hunters as evidences.

The tiger photos were from the article “The Manchurian Tiger” authored by Ford G. Barclay, which were written in a book ”The Big Game of Asia and North America: The Gun at Home and Abroad”.

The book was co-authored by Ford G. Barclay and was published in London in 1915.

“The Manchurian Tiger” shows the details on how the Siberian tigers were populated on the Korean Peninsula and on how they were hunted in early 20th century.

Prof. Lee said that the book showed that there were four tigers on Jindo Island some 500 meters off the south western tip of the Korean Peninsula.

Now, the island is connected to the mainland by the Jindo Bridge.

An English sportsman Ford G. Barclay poses with his local Korean hunters in front of a tiger hunted by them in Mokpo in South Korea’s South Jeolla Province.This undated fild photo was taken in 1903.

“This means that Korean tigers were populated in the peninsula and even on the corners of the isolated islands only a century ago”, Prof. Lee said. “Also this proves that tigers are good swimmers”

According to the book, an adult male and female tigers were hunted by the local hunters on Jindo Island.

Mr. Barclay and the local hunters chased the other two tigers on the island for about 10 days but failed to find them.

On the beach they only found the footsteps of the tigers which were printed toward the mainland.

They thought the tigers fled to the land by crossing the sea, but three weeks later they found the tigers’ footsteps again.

Mr. Barclay’s records also say that legends also depict the popular existence of the tigers on the island and other islands south of the Korean Peninsula some 100 years ago.

Another Seoul National University professor, Kim Dong-Jin, who is a member of the fund, said that tigers were common even in the coastal areas and many islands of Korea.

“History books records a number of cases in which people were attacked by the tigers in the past”, Prof. Kim said.

He said that many national farms had to be moved from the mainland to the island to avoid the danger of tiger attack, but even on the islands tigers appeared frequently.

He argued that the national troops were mobilized
for the tiger hunts on the islands.

In South Korea tigers are extinct. Heavily fortified walls of barbed wires in 4-km-wide demilitarized zone (DMZ) block all wild animals from travelling between South and North Korea.

It was 1922 that the last tiger was seen and hunted on Mt. Daedeuk in Gyeongju, South Korea’s North Gyeongsang Province.

Currently, there remain about 400 Siberian tigers (Koreans call them Korean tigers) mainly in Far Eastern parts of Russia. The Siberian tigers are also called Amur tigers.

Recently, a research team of the Seoul National University released a report saying that Korean tigers have the same DNA with the Siberian tigers.

The Fund for Korean Tigers Conservation (http://koreatiger.org/), established by civilians in 2004, supports Russia’s Phoenix Fund (http://www.phoenix.vl.ru/)

The following story is part of “The Manchurian Tiger” authored by Ford G. Barclay.

My own most successful hunts have been inthe island of Chindo, some thirty miles as the crow flies south-east of the open port of Mokpo, situated at the south-west corner of Korea. It is separated from the mainland by a channel between two and three miles wide, through which the current rushes at such a rate that it is only possible to cross in a large boat for thirty minutes or so at each turn of the tide, and yet tiger most readily face this fierce tide pretty frequently.

The island is about the size of The Isle of Wight, and there being very little cover on it when snow is on the villager that authentic news of fresh tiger tracks will be liberally rewarded. On one visit I was greeted with the intelligence that four tigers were there, a male and female of fair size, and two three-year-old females.

The first two I secured a day or two later, the other two broke back through the beaters in a drive some twelve miles from the nearest part of the channel. The next morning their tracks were reported in the tidal mud, heading across the straits for the mainland, but being still skeptical as to tiger facing such a swim in the depth of winter I continued my hunt for ten days, during which no freshtracks were seen.

Three weeks later news of another pair in the island led me back, but though we jumped one I never actually saw more than the footprints. A week later these two were also tracked over the mud towards the straits and mainland. Early this year (1914) the body of a tiger was washed up on.

http://www.hancinema.net/korea-full-of-tigers-a-century-ago-39193.html#zFUVVIHJ43GPqAir.01

Sir Philip Green stands out on his leopard-print boat

By ANDREA MAGRATH

His Topshop stores are awash with leopard print designs season in and season out.

So it is little surprise that Sir Philip Green favours the decidedly eye-catching motif for his boat.

The retail mogul was pictured boarding his speedboat ‘Lion Cub’ in Monaco yesterday en route to his super yacht ‘Lionheart’.

Animal instinct: Sir Philip Green is pictured on a leopard print boat in Monaco

The spotty design is a little strange given the vessel’s name, but nevertheless the 60-year-old had no trouble standing out as he zoomed through the water.

Green boarded his runabout alone yesterday with three immaculately-dressed crewmembers on hand to carry his belongings and drive the boat.

On the prowl: The Topshop mogul’s runabout boat ‘Lion Cub’, which ferries him to his super yacht ‘Lion Heart’, is covered in leopard print and features a leopard on the side

Looking relaxed, the Topshop owner reclined in a seat and chatted on his phone.

Sir Philip was not joined by daughter Chloe, who is busily preparing for her shoe collection, CJG, launch this week.

Chloe is unlikely to have been that impressed by her father’s decidedly flashy boat anyway, given her tendency to travel by private jet.

Entourage: Sir Philip was accompanied to the boat by the crew

The former Made In Chelsea star said in an interview last week that although she enjoys her A-list flights, she is also happy to travel on down to earth commercial airlines. 

Speaking to Elle magazine, Chloe said: ‘At no point in my life have I ever taken anything for granted.

‘I’m not saying to my dad, “Because we have a jet can I borrow it and fly down to France?”. If my dad says, “Would you like the plane?” then I’ll say, “Sure, if you don’t mind.” But if not, BA is fine.’

Flying solo: Green was not joined by any friends or family for the trip out to the yacht

A-list transport: the boat was used to ferry Leonardo DiCaprio and Blake Lively to Green’s yacht during their short-lived romance last summer

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2143869/Sir-Philip-Grrrreen-stands-Med-leopard-print-boat.html#ixzz1unFgloW0

UPDATE: Cougar shot and killed this morning in Kennewick

By Kristi Pihl, Tri-City Herald

Bob Brawdy -Tri-City Herald – Law enforcement officers shot and killed a cougar at 3207 W. Third Ave. in Kennewick this morning. It’s not known how long it had been in the neighborhood. Officials said the big cat had to be killed because it could not be trapped safely after it climbed a tree.

Kennewick A state Department of Fish and Wildlife officer shot and killed a cougar at a home in downtown Kennewick this morning after the cougar had spent about nine hours in the area.

The cougar was about 25 feet up in a tree in the backyard of the home at 3207 W. Third Place in Kennewick.

Casey Leach’s two shepherd mixes were keeping the cougar up in the tree. As soon as she called the dogs into her home at about 10 a.m., the cougar was killed, said Sgt. Mike Jewell of the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.

The Kennewick Police Department had received three different calls reporting a cougar in a half-mile radius near where it was eventually found. The first call came in at about 1 a.m. today.

Jewell said he arrived at the home at about 9 a.m. The decision to shoot the cougar was made after discussing options with his supervisor, the area wildlife biologist and Kennewick Police officers.

There were no other options based on the situation, Jewell said. A tranquilizer would take 15 to 20 minutes to immobilize the animal in ideal circumstances, he said.

And there was no escape route for the cougar because it was in a neighborhood surrounded by other homes and people, Jewell said.

“We had no other option, and we want to make sure we keep the public safe,” he said.

Washington State Patrol also assisted in the response.

Read more here: http://www.tri-cityherald.com/2012/05/02/1925175/kennewick-cougar-shot-and-killed.html#storylink=cpy

New Delhi: Advancing efforts to conserve the growing population of tigers, the Centre today asked the states to expedite steps towards raising, arming and deploying the Special Tiger Protection Force (STPF) in and around big cat habitats.

“We persuade all the states to raise, arm and deploy the Special Tiger Protection Force (STPF). I would like to request all of you to ensure that this be expedited by all the states,” Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan told All India Meeting of Field Directors of Tiger Reserves.

Stating that field protection is something which continues to remain extremely high on tiger agenda of India, which holds over half the world’s tiger population, the Minister said the Centre supported the states in a “very big way” to deploy the local workforce for protection of big cats.

“Despite a 100 percent central assistance to four states– Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan and Orissa– the deployment of STPF has not taken place,” she said.

Karnataka has emerged as the first state to deploy STPF.

“I am happy to announce and also to congratulate Karnataka, which has emerged as the first state to implement the STPF,” she said after distributing awards for best performance to various tiger reserves in the country.

“Tiger conservation is a collective responsibility between government of India, state governments and civil society. Today tigers need support from one and all,” Natarajan said.

According to the latest tiger census report, the current tiger population is estimated at 1,706. The results include figures from 17 states with tiger reserves.

The Minster also released a book ‘Fundamentals of the Wildlife Management’ written by Rajesh Gopal, Member Secretary, National Tiger Conservation Authority.

Natarajan said that since last year, the Ministry has sharpened its focus on the tiger.

“The centrally sponsored scheme of Project Tiger was revised in August 2011. Its allotment was stepped up to Rs 1216.86 crores, especially to support the states for securing inviolate space for tigers,” she said.

Spelling out the steps being taken by the Ministry, she said several additional components include change in the funding pattern in respect of north eastern states (90:10), raising compensation for man-animal conflict to Rs 2 lakh and acquisition of private land for making the core/critical tiger habitat inviolate.

The Minister also said the Centre has given a nod for establishment of tiger safaris, interpretation/awareness centres under the existing component of ‘co-existence agenda in buffer/fringe areas’ and management of such centres through the respective Panchayati Raj institutions, and re- introduction of cheetah.

http://zeenews.india.com/news/eco-news/tiger-conservation-centre-asks-states-to-raise-deploy-stpf_772920.html

HuffPo did a pretty good article about the BigCatsAct.com but the last line was weak. It really should have concluded, “If the McKeon-Sanchez bill HR 4122 does not succeed, it is sure to result in the number of unwanted big cats continuing to rise, along with killings, maulings and escapes. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20120501/us-pets-big-cats/

LOS ANGELES — Of all the beasts set free by the suicidal owner of an exotic animal farm in Ohio last year, few were as scary or as lethal as the big cats.

Tigers, leopards and lions – more than two dozen – were loose before being hunted by sheriff’s deputies.

While the slaughter was chilling, it was truly panic-inducing that an unstable owner had accumulated such a collection of dangerous animals.

Yet, by some estimates, there are thousands of tigers in captivity in American backyards – more than there are in the wild on the planet.

No one knows the number for certain because there’s only scattered regulation for such pets. In fact, it’s easier in some states to buy a tiger or lion from a breeder than it is to adopt a kitten from a shelter.

That’s likely to change after the Zanesville stampede drew the attention of lawmakers around the country.

Legislation has been proposed in Congress that would ban private ownership of exotic cats. Ohio and other states are also looking to outlaw the animals or to keep them more tightly controlled.

One leader of the cat fight is actress and animal activist Tippi Hedren, best known for being terrorized by crows in Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Birds.”

Hedren has devoted much of her life to rescuing big cats at her Shambala Preserve north of Los Angeles, home to 53 seized or abandoned exotic cats, and she doesn’t think they make good pets.

“It is the job of the predator to take out any old, sick or lame animal. What quality there makes for a good pet?” she asked. “If you get near its food, it will kill you.”

The Zanesville animals may have forced the issue into the open, but it certainly isn’t the first tragedy involving private cats.

Since 1990, 21 people, including five children, have been killed and 246 mauled, according to Big Cat Rescue in Tampa, Fla. Over that period, 254 cats have escaped and 143 have been killed.

There have been other federal laws proposed over the years, but most have failed.

Deputies shot nearly 50 wild animals freed on Oct. 18 at Muskingum County Animal Farm near Zanesville. Owner Terry Thompson opened their cages before committing suicide. Some believe it was one last act of retaliation against neighbors and authorities.

Reps. Howard “Buck” McKeon, R-Calif., and Loretta Sanchez, D-Calif., introduced the Big Cats and Public Safety Protection Act in February to require owners of tigers, lions, leopards, jaguars, cheetahs, panthers and other cats to register with the Department of Agriculture. Breeding would be banned except at accredited zoos and research and educational institutions. Penalties would include seizures, fines and jail.

“When accidents happen and these wild cats are released into our neighborhoods, it causes panic, puts a strain on our local public safety responders and is extremely dangerous,” McKeon said. He believes his bill will protect the public and the cats.

In Ohio, the state Senate recently passed a bill that would ban new ownership of lions, monkeys and other exotic animals, but allows current owners to keep their animals by obtaining a new state-issued permit by 2014 and meeting other strict conditions. It now goes to the House for consideration. Meanwhile, the Ohio Department of Agriculture announced Monday that it will return five surviving exotic animals, including two leopards, to Terry Thompson’s widow, Marian Thompson.

Virginia, Arizona, Missouri, West Virginia, Tennessee, Indiana and Oklahoma are also considering exotic animal bans, according to Uappeal, an exotic animal lobbying group.

Currently, no single agency oversees how big cats are kept or treated. The Association of Zoos and Aquariums and USDA have some regulations. Some states, counties and cities have laws but many don’t.

The federal bill has the backing of the International Fund for Animal Welfare, Born Free USA and other groups. But fans of the majestic beasts are in an uproar.

“All a ban law will do is force all these people to go underground and it will not help the animals at all,” said Joseph Schreibvogel, president of the United States Zoological Association, which advocates on behalf of wild animal owners.

Lynn Culver, executive director of the Feline Conservation Federation, thinks the number of people who keep exotic cats as pets has been hugely inflated by proponents of the House bill. She says the bill will interfere with captive conservation and bring an end to circus and stage acts and cats in movies and on television.

“Independent zoos will be allowed to keep their existing animals but when the cats die, there will be zoos without big cats and that’s tragic,” Culver said. “Big cats are charismatic species, key to the success of any zoo or wildlife exhibit.”

There are as many as 20,000 privately owned cats in the U.S. and about half are tigers, according to groups like the World Wildlife Fund and the AZA. The WWF says there are only 3,200 tigers left in the wild in Asia.

How the backyard population swelled while dwindling in nature is partly attributed to an unregulated industry, where a tiger cub can be bought for as little as $300 without any permit or registration.

Yet someone trying to adopt a kitten from a shelter might have to undergo a home inspection and have the pet sterilized, vaccinated, microchipped and licensed, said WWF senior policy adviser Leigh Henry.

In just months, a cub can weigh 400 pounds, cost $5,500 a year to feed and need room to roam. Defanging and declawing them doesn’t make them safe, said AZA spokesman Steve Feldman.

Backyard breeders sell the big cats for pets, parts, game ranches, canned hunts, sideshows, photo booths and roadside attractions.

Overwhelmed pet owners often turn to sanctuaries to rescue them from mounting bills and potential danger.

Bobbi Brink, owner of Lions Tigers and Bears outside San Diego, started her sanctuary in 2002 after rescuing tigers Raja and Natasha from a Texas man who was ordered to upgrade their 6-foot-by-12-foot cages or find new homes for them.

She spent $250,000 on a tiger habitat with a pool and plenty of running room on 94 acres.

Brink recently said no to three 8-year-old Texas tigers seized from a man with dementia. She doesn’t have room.

Accredited and established sanctuaries across the country are reaching capacity and some have been forced to close because donations dwindled during the recession. Accredited zoos will no longer take privately owned tigers. Their goal is species preservation and privately owned or “generic” tigers can’t be traced to their wildly caught ancestors.

If the McKeon-Sanchez bill succeeds, some worry there will be a glut of displaced tigers and too many will be euthanized.

Carole’s note on facebook:   It really should have concluded, “If the McKeon-Sanchez bill HR 4122 does not succeed, it is sure to result in the number of unwanted big cats continuing to rise, along with killings, maulings and escapes.