March 16 2017

Big Cat Updates

Nirvana Ocelot has gone back outside,  See the FB Live Video Reply below.  She is very pleased to be back outside.

The Picky Boys

Zeus – Keeper Marie got him to eat almost 7 pounds with his eye drops this morning.  YAY!!!! His day is off to great start.  As usual, keepers will take him more food throughout the day.  Yesterday, Keepers Devin, Marie, & Kathryn got him to eat a combined total of close to 12 pounds by taking him multiple small meals during the day & evening.

Hoover – he wasn’t very hungry this morning but Keeper Marie managed to coax him into eating about two and a half pounds.  Of course, food will be taken to him throughout the day.  Yesterday, keepers Devin & Kathryn managed to get him to eat a combined total of 12 pounds throughout the day/evening.

Cameron – This picky fellow is going to have the keepers on the run today because he is being extra picky.

Joseph – He, too, will have the keepers hopping today because he is being extra picky today as well.

TJ – Refused pork this morning but did eat a little bit of red meat for Keeper Sarah B.  He refused four meals yesterday.  However, he had eaten well the day before.  In the wild, cats do not eat every day but here at the sanctuary we want these old cats to eat every day, as much as they will.  Keepers will offer this sweet old boy everything possible multiple times today, the same as they do every day.  We’ll keep you posted.

PURR-sonal Thought: The dedication of these volunteer keepers never ceases to amaze me.  They take getting these picky cats to eat so to heart and make it their personal mission to keep these picky fellows eating.  Some days, it literally brings tears to my eyes to see their total love and complete commitment to these precious cats.

Note To Viewers:  Updates are releasing early today because of the Smile.Amazon.com Special Event.  If you see any typos, have suggestions for future updates, or questions about the cats or the sanctuary, please feel welcome to email me anytime at lawanna.mitchell@bigcatrescue.org  If I cannot answer your question, I’ll forward it to someone here who can.  Stopping big cat abuse and exploitation starts with two way communication & education.  TOGETHER, we can all make a difference for not only the cats here at the sanctuary but for all big cats.

Coordinator Notes 3/15/2017

Nirvana‘s cage was raked and picked up around her cage. Nirvana is back out in her enclosure. She is locked on the side with the heated den.

The fussy cats did ok with the exception of TJ and Cameron.  TJ came over 4 times but would not eat anything.  He looks like his stomach is upset, noted in his observations.  Hoover did well with morning meds and pm. He is really liking chicken right; now drums and thighs seem to be his favorite.  Zeus also did well with thighs and red.

Sassy ate well in the hospital, she had a couple actually nuggets of poop in addition to the dry crumbles.  Her poop is still really hard.  She is drinking a lot; I filled her bowl a few times.

We had just enough people to get tours and cleaning done.  Sarah and Devin stayed to help me get Nirvana‘s cage ready.

Sorry this is late, it was a busy day.

Thanks Kathryn

 HEADS UP – 1 Day Event

ONE DAY ONLY – The cats will get 5% instead of 1/2%

Many of you already login to you Amazon.com account through Smile.Amazon.com and have chosen Big Cat Rescue. Corp. as you chosen charity so that Amazon donates .5% of your purchase price back to the cats at no extra cost to you.   This has been a great fund raising project for the cats.

Amazon has announced a One Day Only opportunity for non-profits.  On Thursday, March 16th, instead of donating .5% of purchases they will up the donation amount by 10 times to 5%.  That means every purchase you make at Smile.Amazon.com on Thursday, March 16th Amazon will donate at no extra cost to you 5% of the purr-chase price to the cats.

PURR-sonally, I am going to use my lunch break today to login to my Amazon account through Smile.Amazon.com and do my normal household shopping for dog food, cat food, horse treats, dish soap, shampoo, vitamins, etc today so that the cats get 5% of the purr-chase donated to them by Amazon.   What an easy way to give back to the cats at no extra cost on my invoice.   THANK YOU, Amazon Smile!

What IS Smile.Amazon.com?

A wonderful way to support the cats at no cost to you is to go to your Amazon.com account and sign up for Smile.Amazon.com to have .5% of your purchases donated to Big Cat Rescue.

NOTE:  TODAY ONLY Amazon give 5% instead of .5%

It is easy to set up.  Once you do, instead of going to Amazon.com to shop, in the future you go to Smile.Amazon.com. Everything at Smile is exactly the same as you are used to at Amazon, same products, same prices.  If you have a Prime account, it will still be there in Smile. The ONLY difference is that .5% of your purchases are donated by Amazon to Big Cat Rescue – ZERO cost to you, but it sure adds up for the cats.

To sign up for Smile just go to https://smile.amazon.com/ch/59-3330495 and log in with your usual Amazon ID and password.

Once you have signed up, you should go to Smile.Amazon.com to make your Amazon purchases.

 Facebook Live Video Replays

VIDEO:  3/15/2017 Nirvana Ocelot Goes Back Outside

Nirvana‘s outside enclosure has multiple sections and multiple dens.  They are shutting her into the section that has the heated bed.  Nirvana hates being inside the hospital; she much prefers being outside.  She will be 23 years old this coming June.

 Projects

Note To Viewers:  You asked for more project updates so here are a couple for you.  THANK YOU for your questions and input about this page.  This page is FOR YOU so we want to THANK YOU for the two-way communication and for letting us know what you to see here.

Bobcat Rehab

Victor building den box/release crates for the rehab bobcats. Each box will run about $150 for materials and labor.  If you would like to help with that go to bigcatrescue.org/donate

Platforms For Cats

Ariel loves her new platforms built by the dynamic Holley duo.

Keeper Cafe

Many of you have been asking about Gale’s project, the new Keeper Cafe, how it is progressing and if there is anything you can do to help.

Gale has finally had time to sit at her computer and update the Amazon Wish List with some Keeper Cafe items. https://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/wishlist/3EI355RSZ6JEX

A few of you have sent kind gifts to the volunteers keepers such as coffee, snacks, & tea.  The volunteer keepers and interns have been quite surprised and deeply touched by your gifts.  With over 80 volunteers and interns this new Keeper Cafe is a true blessing.

We will have some photos for you in the near future.

 Big Cat Gift Shop – Note from Carole

You Are Saving Cats!

Thank YOU for a Grrreat first month at CatRescue.biz

Forgive me for the indulgence in the family scrapbook, but when the BBC asked me for a photo of me with my first cat, my mother searched through 31 volumes and found this: It was my first cat and much to my amazement, the name of the cat, scrawled on the back of the circa 1961 photo, was Tiger!

Well that explains a lot and, as they say, “The rest was history…”

So now, 55 years later, Big Cat Rescue, the sanctuary I co founded in 1992, is celebrating its 25th anniversary and our federal bill to end the abuse of big cats is due to be re introduced this week!

Today marks the one month celebration of this online store where your purr-chases are used to fund political action to protect all cats, from Tabbies, like Tiger, to tigers, like Hoover, TJ, Zeus and all of their cousins. I just wanted to reach out to all of you who have made it possible to net over $3,000.00 toward that goal this month and remind you that these great deals take a long time to ship. Up to 60 days, so several of you are still waiting to see your beautiful, cat themed items, but many have reported much shorter shipping times.

Mother’s Day is May 14, so if she loves cats, you need to shop NOW in order for your gift to arrive in time. Thank you again for all you are doing, with your voice and your wallet to protect cats!

Your Mom Called, she said “I’d love this silk scarf!” This purr-fect gift is sure to please and you won’t have to worry about sizes.

Flash Sale – Today Only! 75% Off!

Check out our Flash Sales when you visit the site. They only run for a single day, but are amazing deals!

Why are we promoting this new store so much?

Because the profit from the store CatRescue.biz is being donated to support legislative efforts to get The Big Cat & Public Safety Act passed into law which will end so much big cat suffering.

  Featured Big Cat

March 7, 2017 – Wyeth is such a pretty bobcat, but she is fierce and ready to go home. ~Jamie Veronica

Wyeth Update:  A release site has been found, details are being worked out, and Wyeth should return to the wild in a couple of weeks so stay tuned.

 Keeper Corner – Jamie & Justin

Many of you have expressed wanting to get to know more about the people behind the cats and have asked about Dr. Justin and Jamie several times.  Here is a glimpse into a private moment with these two amazing dedicated people behind the cats. They have devoted their lives to caring for the cats and ending abuse so it is refreshing to occasionally catch a glimpse of them outside of the sanctuary.

A much needed break in the garden with Justin Boorstein  ~Jamie Veronica

Picking peppers. Bell, dragon cayenne, and Serrano.

Justin Boorstein fertilizing our massive orchid collection.

Strawberry towers 🙂

Lemon balm and grapefruit mint infused waters, cherry tomatoes, and lemon cilantro cream cheese as well as garlic dill made from fresh herbs.

Seth is king of the mountain at BCR ~Jamie Veronica

March 10, 2017 – Servie is doing better and is happy to be back outside. She is still being a picky eater so we have sent a fecal sample to the lab to check for parasites. ~Jamie Veronica

VIDEO:  3/11/2017 Rollie Mrs. Claws and Nabisco purrs, these are a few of my favorite things 🙂

March 9, 2017 – Thursday’s are for moving tigers. Keisha going on vacation.

 NOTE:  YOU CAN watch Keisha’s vacation on the live streaming webcam at explore.org/bigcatrescue

 Viewer Videos From Explore.org/bigcatrescue

There are some GREAT videos recorded by viewers at explore.org/bigcatrescue that you will really enjoy watching.

VIDEO:  Joseph Roaring

VIDEO:  Keisha Being Silly

She has 2.5 acres of open topped enclosure, plus her roofed sections, tunnel, pond, platforms, toys etc, and LOL chose instead to roll around instead in the feeding lockout.

VIDEO:  Roll & Run is my motto – Keisha

VIDEO:  Last Morning in Kitten Cabana

Here is a list of YouTube channels that feature videos of the cats here:

• 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
• A Heart For Nikita https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSxAXUTh29XWQw35acpU1Ag

 Cole & Marmalade‘s Corner

A belated birthday present for Cole … with an unexpected move to a new house, we celebrated later than usual, but CAM were none the wiser 🙂 They had lots of fun in their new tent, video coming soon… follow me on Cat Man Chris for behind the scenes posts and regular day to day stuff, cheers. Cole’s Birthday present… video on the way! (He’s inside sleeping on the black base:)

VIDEO:  10 Signs You’re a Crazy Cat PURR-son!!

 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