Where YOU fit into the Big Cat Picture

You didn’t come here because you have nothing better to do.  You probably didn’t come here because you love pulling weeds, sniffing out cat poo, or because you thrill at parking cars and herding tour guests.  You came here because you want to make a difference.  You gave up your social life in exchange for doing something worthwhile that would give you an inner peace; a feeling that your effort made the world better.

You came here for all the right reasons, but some of you won’t stay.

Some of you won’t be able to see how your involvement is critical to the success of our mission, which is to change the way people think about animals so that they treat them with love and respect.  If you can’t see the good you are doing, then why would you continue to give of your time and energy?

It is my hope that we will all reap the fruits of our labors and that will feed our burning desire to become even better people than we are today.  The more creative and efficient we become the more good we can do and the better our lives become.  We find what we are all looking for:  Happiness.

When you are scrubbing a feeding area, or cleaning a cage, you are doing something nice for that cat, but you are doing something SO much more important.  Thirty thousand visitors a year come by and comment on how clean our place is and how healthy our cats are.  When you paint a cage or do a Casper project thirty thousand visitors per DAY who visit our website see the conditions and are inspired to insist that other places provide as nice of an environment for their animals.  When you give or back up a tour, you are inspiring each of those guests to go back to their four corners of the globe and demand that animals be treated with the kind of love and respect that they witnessed here.  When you send out thank you notes to our donors, they feel appreciated and want to do more.  Our supporters fall in love with you and return again and again, because you make them feel like they are part of something noble.  As more of you feel comfortable in front of the camera, we can generate that feeling to millions of people each year through our videos.

The difference you are making is astounding!

After a 6 year battle, Animal Fighting is now a Federal offense because people learned respect for animals from YOU.  Because people who love animals are using their voice to change laws and elect animal friendly politicians, we are seeing gains for the animals at a rate never seen before in the history of man.  Haley’s Act, which will end the unnecessary breeding of baby tigers and lions that are used and then discarded, by banning contact with them, is being embraced by the masses.  Even though the act was first promoted by IFAW, everywhere I go, people are attributing its success to Big Cat Rescue.  Where 10-20 people a day were signing up on our website each day, now more than 100 a day are signing up and sending letters to their legislators asking them to support Haley’s Act.  If you haven’t done so yet, visit www.CatLaws.com and send your letter.  We can stop the abandonment and abuse because we are reaching so many people and inspiring them to action.

Once you send a letter, you will be in our database for our AdvoCat E-zine.  This month’s issue will have a new way to be seen and heard.  We will have a link in the AdvoCat where you can go to our website and post your photo, your testimonial, and even call in a message that says why you are a volunteer at Big Cat Rescue.  The best of these will be posted on our website for all to see and hear.

The biggest thing YOU can do for the animals is to remember why you came here in the first place.  When other pressures are luring you away, or when you feel that you won’t be missed, take a moment to remember that we are only as strong as our weakest link.  If you see someone else feeling like they aren’t important, remind them that it takes all of us, doing the most we can do and being the best we can be to make a difference for the animals.

Thank you!  Carole, the “cats” and the Volunteer Committee