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Working With Big Cats |
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For
about 10 years I worked with exotic cats at a nonprofit facility called
Exotic Feline Breeding Compound/Feline Conservation Center in Rosamond,
CA. EFBC/FCC works closely with many zoos worldwide to help preserve
pure bloodlines of some of the rarest cats, as well as educate the public
about their plight in the wild. There are
guided tours where you can see the cats up close and personal. |
| While there I gave guided tours, slide presentations, prepared food, cleaned cages, raised cubs, trained other volunteers, and assisted with medical care. Spending time upclose and personal with many of the cats, gave me a true appreciation of their intelligence, beauty, and power. It is grueling work you do rain or shine and it can be emotionally charged because of how much people care for what they are doing. There are many wonderful moments but also many sad ones. Nothing lives forever and the cats that are gone are missed terribly. When I look at the many pictures I took over the years I am grateful for all the people I had the privilage of working with and the cats I knew up close and personal. | |
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As
with others involved in this endeavour we sometimes have to move on
in our lives to other persuits. It is very easy when you are so involved
in something like this to forget about the rest of the world. Finding
a proper balance can be very hard to do. Deciding to end my career with
the big cats was not easy but necessary for my own personal growth and
well being. I have not been back to see the cats for many reasons. Most
of the cats I knew so well have passed on. It is very difficult to even
think about coming as a "visitor" when I spent so much time
being a part of what's on the other side of the guard rails. |
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There are many facilities who raise exotics cats with the only goal in
mind being to sell them to anyone who has the money to buy them. They
may claim to be helping preserve endangered species but most cats they
sell are crossbred generic animals who can contribute nothing to the pure
gene pools necessary to save them. If the new owners can't handle caring
for their cats properly they can die from malnutrition and lack of proper
vet care. No zoo has the room to take them in and true rescue facilities
are already overloaded. Many of these poor cats can suffer from behavior
problems from lack of proper rearing, and can be more dangerous then a
wild cat who has a natural fear of human beings. All too often you hear
stories about someone being severely maimed or killed by these walkiing
time bombs. You can't blame the cat for this. Their human caretakers should
be held accountable. Even the most well trained animals can become confused
and aggressive in an uncontrolled situation. Some rescue facilities who mean well can allow themselves to become so over loaded and overwhelmed that they turn into the very problem they were trying to help. The closing of Tiger Rescue in California was a very good example. Animals that were sent there supposedly to spend the rest of their lives in comfort ended up in a living Hell worse then where they had come from. These cats were allowed to breed and create more poor souls who ended up dead without having a chance to even have a life. They had improper caging, bad food, and could not even get the most basic of care. Tiger Rescue is but one example in many. The rescue facilities are greatly needed but must be responsible and realistic about what they can actually do. |
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I have become a big fan of Animal Planets shows Animal
Cops and Wild Rescues. What they show be very graphic and hard to look
at. It is the reality of what some people can do to animals. Every victory
over the abuse is priceless and hopefully the viewing public has learned
from the shows to be more caring and more alert to situations that need
to be resolved. For the caring public who wish to donate to any group
claiming to help animals I ask that they become as educated as possible
on the subject and to scrutinize completely what the group or individuals
are really doing. I would encourage anyone who still feels they want to own an exotic cat to first volunteer at a conservation facility like EFBC-FCC or a reputable rescue organization. The experience will teach you alot about the realities as well as the joy. These places do need the help of a caring public wether it be your time and/or donations. Below are links to EFBC/FCC and two other similar facilities working to help save endangered big cats. |
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And here is Citrino also lovingly known as the BOC (Big Orange Cat) who adopted us recently and who I am sure is one of my past leopard cub friends reincarnated. This beautiful, energetic, special being has brought new life to our household with all his antics. His story is told in more detail on our Pets Page web page |
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