Big Cat Updates
Arthur Tiger is doing quite well.
Interesting Info & Projects
Big Cat Rescue’s leadership has been attending training by Mark McCatty. It’s been very helpful in raising our awareness about how people have different styles and if we want to work well together we need to be cognizant of the fact that we don’t all see things the same way. We need to be aware of the communication style of the person we are addressing and communicate in ways that work for them.
Yesterday we were looking at Dr. Stephen Covey’s excellent chart (attached) that helps us manage our time. So often, in the rescue world, everything seems to operate at Crisis level (Urgent and Important), but if we spend more time in the Not Urgent and Important quadrant we might avoid a lot of the crises. That’s what we did today.
Gale and I (Carole) donned the water suits and waded out into Tiger Lake. Thank you explore.org viewers for the screen shots. Our lake has never been this low, in the 25 years of the sanctuary, so it was a good time to assess the depth and plan for replacing the fencing.
We haven’t been able to get a fence company to do the work, because it’s such a tricky situation, with the water usually being up to 30 feet deep in places. When the former owner dug out the dirt and sold it he hit a spring (maybe more), so the water is always fresh, cold and it’s deep by the spring(s). We are right in the middle of renovating our gift shop, so it’s not a good time to pull our own maintenance crew for this project, but we may have no other choice.
It is starting to rain (thank you!!!) but that means the water levels will begin to rise so we need to get this base work done now. Gale and I were able to walk all the way across the lake at the fence that divides the two tiger cages. The water was only up to our chests and the poles and fencing there are in good shape. We would like to replace it with a finer mesh, but that isn’t as important as some of the other work we’d like to do first.
On the side under the Cat Walk the water is about 6 feet deep at the deepest point, for a stretch of about 12-15 feet. That will be the toughest part but we will call on Rich, a certified diving coach, to gear up and help. Ever try to swing a hammer under water? That will call for some ingenuity, if not brute strength.
The rest of the water fence, at both the north and south end of the Cat Walk will be pretty easy to replace. We just have to make some decisions on materials and who to call on to do it. Meanwhile, we are moving TJ tiger to Hoover’s cage (between Keisha and Gabrielle) while Hoover is on vacation.
Seth nearly turned over the tiger transport last time, so we aren’t putting him in one awake. He is on the schedule to be neutered and checked for dental issues mid next month, so we can move him to TJ’s side for now and then after his surgery, take him (asleep) to where ever he’s going to live next on the property.
That’s the plan for now, but Big Cat Rescue is a sanctuary and every day our world can get tipped on end with some new crisis. Meanwhile, we hope to deal with some preventative measures that will prevent a future crisis.
Facebook Live Video Replays
Divinity & Max Bobcats Go Back Outside
Divinity’s dental went well yesterday. She had some bad teeth removed. Keepers had noticed her chewing funny. It was not very noticeable but thankfully our keepers are well trained at spotting even the slightest differences in the cats’ behavior. She has always been very healthy and has not had any medical issues at all. Hopefully, having the bad teeth removed will get has back to eating normally. Divinity hated being in the hospital.
Max a quite a bit younger and only had a few bad teeth. Mas was pretty calm in the hospital but he was sure glad to get back outside to MaryAnn.
CatRescue.biz
Divinity Bobcat now has her own line of “Divinity Paw Print Gear at CatRescue.biz She has Shirts of various styles, mugs, water bottles, necklaces, baby layettes, and more.
Facebook Live Contest
When you purr-ticipate in Carole’s Facebook Live contest you need to put your answers in the special form at BigCatRescue.org/win
4/22/2017
Question: What state was Cheetaro Leopard rescued from?
Answer: New Hampshire
Winner: Debbi Clark
Keeper Corner
Keeper Brittany Mira: Wow exactly two years ago we visited BCR for the first time??and this boy changed our lives.
Mark Mira and I met our favorite new buddy Bengali Tiger today (photo by Brittany Davis Photography) during an incredible experience at the Big Cat Rescue in Tampa, Fl. Read his story and please pledge to NEVER pay to play, swim or get pictures taken with circus, zoo, or backyard breeder animals. Help put a stop to the suffering of these beautiful animals. http://bigcatrescue.org/bengali/
Jamie: 7 year old Max and elderly Divinity were both sedated yesterday for dental exams. Both required extractions and did very well during surgery. They should be feeling much better in a day or two.
Meredith and Candy observe Dr. Justin extract bad molars from Divinity.
Divinity was declawed as a kitten and has arthritis in her toes. She offsets her gait resulting in permanently collapsed wrists.
Max had a small mass on his abdomen. Samples were collected and sent to the lab for testing.
Max has the cutest paws.
Note To Viewers: See the Facebook Live Video Replay from this morning to see these two going back outside.
Viewer Pix
Viewer Robin Frye: This guy is just so cute! (Seth)
THANK YOU!!!!!!!
We want to THANK Jennie Green for sending the following items from our Amazon Wish List.
Six OXO Good Grips Grilling Tongs, 16-Inch, Silver These are used for cleaning cats’ enclosures.
They also sent the gift of two of the Patio Paradise 5′ x 20′ Fence Privacy Screen
Note to Viewers: When we get an item off of the Amazon Wish List we have no idea who sent it. So, when you send something, PLEASE email us an let us know what to watch the mail for.
BCR Site Updates & People Often Ask
People Often Ask: What is ZAA?
Why should ZAA Roadside Zoos not be exempt from laws banning private ownership of big cats?
AZA vs. ZAA. The large zoos with high standards of care in the United States are accredited by a well established and respected professionally run organization called the Association of Zoos & Aquariums, commonly known by the acronym AZA.
While AZA zoos are not “perfect” and as a sanctuary we differ in philosophy in certain ways from zoos, the important things to understand about AZA in our opinion are that they have generally established high standards of animal care, they have a strong history of providing veterinary care, they do not do cub petting or photo ops with tiger cubs or other big cat species, they breed under a science based Species Survival Plan where they track the genetic history of the animals to maintain pure bred subspecies so the animals can have some conservation value, they do not breed freak hybrids like ligers, they do not breed the genetically defective and heavily inbred white tigers.
Also important is that AZA does very intense multiday inspections by a team of independent experts before accrediting or renewing the accreditation of a zoo, and will decline to renew an accreditation if the standards are not met. One example is discussed below.
In contrast, ZAA (Zoological Association of America) is primary a collection of road side zoos who have chosen a name that has an acronym deceptively close to AZA.
ZAA typically claims that it is the “little guy’s AZA,” that it maintains high standards, that it does thorough independent inspections before “accrediting” member zoos, that it somehow supports or enhances conservation and education, in particular that holding baby tigers supports conservation, that there is some value to breeding freak hybrids like ligers and tigons that do not appear in nature, and that a USDA exhibitor license means the animals are treated humanely.
Upon closer examination we believe you will find that NONE of these statements are true and that ZAA is simply a clever, well marketed sham intended to give a legitimate façade to roadside zoos that regularly violate the Animal Welfare Act, support abusive practices like cub petting, breed freaks that do not occur in nature, mistreat animals and mislead the public for profit.
And, importantly, this mistreatment is totally UNNECESSARY from a business standpoint. There are many financially successful sanctuaries and zoos that treat animals well and that provide a truly educational experience for visitors. The claim by ZAA zoos that they need engage in activities that inherently mistreat animals like cub petting and performances in order to survive financially is contradicted by the many good operators who succeed because they do NOT engage in these abusive practices.
Note to Viewers: The above text is an excerpt from http://bigcatrescue.org/zaa/ so if you go directly to http://bigcatrescue.org/zaa/ we address each of what we believe are the misrepresentations typically made by ZAA. Standards, Inspections, Dual accreditation, Conservation, Zaa Exemptions, Licencing, & Conclusion.
Also, going directly to http://bigcatrescue.org/zaa/ you can learn more about ZAA’s History of Animal Welfare Act Violations.
ZAA (The Zoological Association of America), whose acronym is deceptively similar to the well respected AZA (Association of Zoos & Aquariums), misleading presents itself as the “little guy’s AZA.”
In actual fact ZAA is for the most part a collection of roadside zoos that as a group have a history of serious violations of the Animal Welfare Act like failure to provide adequate medical care.
Big Cat Challenge
As you are out there educating people about big cat issues, this is quite likely an issue that will come up from time to time. Therefore, having read this info, given it some purr-sonal thought, and having already formed your own opinion on it just might come in handy.
- Go to http://bigcatrescue.org/zaa/
- Read the entire page.
- Give the matter some thought
- In the comments of that page tell us what YOU think
We really do want to know what YOU think about this subject.
Also, feel free to post your questions in the comments area or to private message us with your questions, either way is fine.
Global News
ONE: Cheetah Cubs Rescued from Illegal Wildlife Trade in Somaliland
Viewer Videos From Explore.org/bigcatrescue
Here is a list of YouTube channels that feature videos of the cats here:
- Jamie Veronica: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsY6X3rUv8UlIUbrxNeu-Aw
- Susann https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUFOZiTvzKRvj-oVbzdByvg
- Ruxandra https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvCsjKptd1gM9BhfDkGQGNg
- Donna P: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcFbhMc8Sqr-8MreWuYr4Bg
- Shawna https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfl9S-vDPJIgjl8QpM6Aypw
- Cathy S https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6ynHBFLKj0BVnK5jo2gTnw
- Janie M https://www.youtube.com/user/donutgirl100
WANTED – Graphic Artists
Carole is looking for a graphic artist who really gets what we are all about and would would like to help us with some graphics for shirts. If that is you or if you know someone like that, please have them email Carole at cat@bigcatrescue.org
Quick Links
As per viewer suggestions, Quick Links now has it’s very own page http://bigcatrescue.org/quick-links/
Bookmarking it will help you find things quickly. That will come in handy for:
- Helping us answer questions on social media
- Finding answers to some of Carole’s Facebook Live questions
