2007 Annual Report

 

Big Cat Rescue is more than just a place that provides permanent care for big cats.  It is a movement;  a change in the tide of human perceptions and is the combined effort of more than 74,000 supporters.  If you are one of them, you are a Big Cat Rescuer and the following is the great work YOU did!  If you haven’t helped yet, you can do so now at the top right of the screen or here:  http://bigcatrescue.org/donate.htm

 

Big Cat Rescue’s Mission Statement:  To provide the best home we can for the animals in our care and to reduce the number of cats that suffer the fate of abuse, abandonment or extinction by teaching people about the plight of the cats, both in the wild and in captivity, and how they can help through their behavior and support of better laws to protect the cats.

 

Advances:  Combined Federal Campaign Best of the CFCIn late November we conquered the web site issues that have made our site inaccessible to all browsers other than Internet Explorer resulting in a 33% increase in the number of pages viewed by the 2,510,255 visitors to our bigcatrescue.org site in 2007 and 1,147,174 visitors to our www.CatLaws.com site for a total of 3,657,429 online visitors in 2007.  Big Cat Rescue is increasingly listed in world wide publications as a “must see” in Tampa.  Began the permitting process for the wall we have been raising money to build for the past 4 years.

 

Big Cat Rescue has been accepted into the federal version of the Combined Federal Campaign. Where we could only be in the local books in years past, we will be in every book that goes out to government employees as a choice for their auto deduction giving. Not only were we accepted, but we were also awarded with the Best of the CFC seal. In the local market we receive upwards of $7,500.00 in donations, so we are hopeful that we will do even better by going national. We are extremely grateful for this opportunity and thank those of you who are participating

 

For the first time in our history, Big Cat Rescue offered a reward for information. When a tiger was found shot to death along side an apartment complex and busy highway in Dallas, TX on Christmas day, we announced a $5,000.00 reward for information resulting in the arrest and conviction of the people involved. The police and animal control authorities told us that they cannot offer such bounties and that our doing so greatly enhanced their ability to pursue the case. See the video plea http://bigcatrescue.org/video/b42008/5000reward.htm

 

Animal Care:  Rescued four tigers left to die at the now defunct Savage Kingdom.  (TJ, Bella, Modnic & Trucha) Watch this dramatic rescue here:  http://bigcatrescue.org/video/b42008/savagekingdom.htm  Built & remodeled cat-a-tats for them.

 

Rescued two lions (Joseph & Sasha) and two tigers (Nikita & Simba) from the now defunct Siberian Tiger Foundation which was nothing more than a thin guise for Pay to Play with tigers.  Read about that rescue and see the video here:  http://bigcatrescue.org/rescuelionsandtigers.htm  Built & remodeled cat-a-tats for them.

 

Rescued four native bobcats in four weeks.  (Ace, Chance, Kennedy & Will)  Read about their rescue and what is being done to send them back to the wild here:  http://bigcatrescue.org/rehabbobcats2007.htm  Built & remodeled cat-a-tats for them.

 

Rescued a Savannah cat (Diablo) who was abandoned and living in an animal shelter that was not designed for long term care of exotic cats.  Assisted in the rescue of another Serval and Bobcat and another two Tigers, finding them permanent homes in facilities that meet the guidelines set out at  http://www.sanctuarystandards.com/

 

Vernon Stairs finished all of the new safety entrances to cages.  He built tunnels on the lions cages, Precious Bobcat and The Great Pretender Bobcat, and others to enable easy shifting and introductions.  Vern doubled the size of Jumanji the leopard’s cage and added a cave and mountain.  He joined a number of cages t