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2015-12-31 Carole Baskin‘s Diary
2015 Annual Report
This is a playlist of our most recent videos and an easy way to see what we have been doing at Big Cat Rescue. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QKQ3naQyag&list=PLsmHBgbkKIERsX0faHHQWq9UdQskxJnVJ
With your help we are winning in the battle for compassion! Up until 2003 the number of requests for rescues we had to turn down due to lack of space or funds had roughly doubled each year, to 312 that year. We feared it would double again to over 500 in 2004. Instead, it has steadily declined since then thanks to the passage of a federal bill and several state bills that restrict the ownership of exotic cats. This year there were “only” 19 big cats who came to our attention as being abandoned. We were able to take in 4 tigers, 1 leopard and 7 rehab bobcats.
We offered to take 3 more of the cats if their owners would contract to never own another exotic cat. The cats we did not take were those whose owners refused or another sanctuary offered space first. There is no point to our taking in cats just so an owner can go buy another cute cub to use and discard.
Another great result of more bans on private ownership is that the number of killings, maulings and escapes are on the decline in the U.S. as well. In 2015 there was one mauling in NE, 6 escapes (CA, IN, MI, NC, OK & WA) and 13 confiscations (OH). These events involved 14 tigers, 1 lion, 1 liger, 1 leopard, 1 cougar, 1 cheetah, & 1 serval.
Animal Care
Abandoned Big Cats 2015
2015 was the second best year for big cats. “Only” 19 calls for rescues came to our attention and the only year with fewer was 2011. As more states pass bans and partial bans, fewer and fewer big cats end up in peril.
Rescues
Rescued 12 exotic cats, including Tigers: Emily, Jessica, Lily and Teisha, a Leopard named Shadow and Rehab Bobcats: Journey, Phoenix, Captiva, Rain, Dancer, and Mr and Mrs. Claws. Emily, Jessica, Lily and Shadow (NKA Sapphire, Duchess, Jasmine and Jinx)are still part of a lawsuit, so they are just boarded here until it is resolved. We were called out on a total of 12 bobcat calls this year, which is three times higher than any previous year.
Newborn kittens who are brought to Animal Control are routinely killed because with their immature immune systems they do not survive in the shelter environment. So we began a foster kitten program with our interns as the fosters in 2013 We have saved 275 kittens from being killed. We raise them until they are 2 pounds and healthy, then bring them to the Humane Society of Tampa Bay to be fixed and adopted out. You can watch our foster kittens in their play room live every day at http://explore.org/live-cams/player/big-cat-rescue-kitten-cabana
By the end of this year, we have 88 exotic cats and 66 of them are over the age of 12. 56 of those are over the age of 15; and 20 of those are over the age of 20. This is well beyond how long they are designed to live in the wild and much older than most zoo cats. This is a testament to the excellent animal care we provide, but we are dealing with many more age related illnesses and are losing more of our big cat friends every year.
Windsong Memorial Hospital
Thanks to the generous donation of an X-ray machine, followed by many donors chipping in to fund a proper building for it, the Windsong Memorial Hospital broke ground in 2014 and had its first big patient by January 2015. We have had over 90 veterinary procedures since then, further validating the need for this wonderful hospital. Thank you to everyone who helped build and outfit it so that our cats don’t have the stress and danger of travel to an off site clinic. We still need a sonogram machine to be fully self contained, but that requires specialists to operate them, so it was last on our list.
Award Winning Sanctuary
Top Rated Non Profit at Great Non Profits
We have received this award every year since they started awarding it in 2010 due to the many great reviews we get from
View all episodes
By Carole Baskin2015 Annual Report
This is a playlist of our most recent videos and an easy way to see what we have been doing at Big Cat Rescue. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QKQ3naQyag&list=PLsmHBgbkKIERsX0faHHQWq9UdQskxJnVJ
With your help we are winning in the battle for compassion! Up until 2003 the number of requests for rescues we had to turn down due to lack of space or funds had roughly doubled each year, to 312 that year. We feared it would double again to over 500 in 2004. Instead, it has steadily declined since then thanks to the passage of a federal bill and several state bills that restrict the ownership of exotic cats. This year there were “only” 19 big cats who came to our attention as being abandoned. We were able to take in 4 tigers, 1 leopard and 7 rehab bobcats.
We offered to take 3 more of the cats if their owners would contract to never own another exotic cat. The cats we did not take were those whose owners refused or another sanctuary offered space first. There is no point to our taking in cats just so an owner can go buy another cute cub to use and discard.
Another great result of more bans on private ownership is that the number of killings, maulings and escapes are on the decline in the U.S. as well. In 2015 there was one mauling in NE, 6 escapes (CA, IN, MI, NC, OK & WA) and 13 confiscations (OH). These events involved 14 tigers, 1 lion, 1 liger, 1 leopard, 1 cougar, 1 cheetah, & 1 serval.
Animal Care
Abandoned Big Cats 2015
2015 was the second best year for big cats. “Only” 19 calls for rescues came to our attention and the only year with fewer was 2011. As more states pass bans and partial bans, fewer and fewer big cats end up in peril.
Rescues
Rescued 12 exotic cats, including Tigers: Emily, Jessica, Lily and Teisha, a Leopard named Shadow and Rehab Bobcats: Journey, Phoenix, Captiva, Rain, Dancer, and Mr and Mrs. Claws. Emily, Jessica, Lily and Shadow (NKA Sapphire, Duchess, Jasmine and Jinx)are still part of a lawsuit, so they are just boarded here until it is resolved. We were called out on a total of 12 bobcat calls this year, which is three times higher than any previous year.
Newborn kittens who are brought to Animal Control are routinely killed because with their immature immune systems they do not survive in the shelter environment. So we began a foster kitten program with our interns as the fosters in 2013 We have saved 275 kittens from being killed. We raise them until they are 2 pounds and healthy, then bring them to the Humane Society of Tampa Bay to be fixed and adopted out. You can watch our foster kittens in their play room live every day at http://explore.org/live-cams/player/big-cat-rescue-kitten-cabana
By the end of this year, we have 88 exotic cats and 66 of them are over the age of 12. 56 of those are over the age of 15; and 20 of those are over the age of 20. This is well beyond how long they are designed to live in the wild and much older than most zoo cats. This is a testament to the excellent animal care we provide, but we are dealing with many more age related illnesses and are losing more of our big cat friends every year.
Windsong Memorial Hospital
Thanks to the generous donation of an X-ray machine, followed by many donors chipping in to fund a proper building for it, the Windsong Memorial Hospital broke ground in 2014 and had its first big patient by January 2015. We have had over 90 veterinary procedures since then, further validating the need for this wonderful hospital. Thank you to everyone who helped build and outfit it so that our cats don’t have the stress and danger of travel to an off site clinic. We still need a sonogram machine to be fully self contained, but that requires specialists to operate them, so it was last on our list.
Award Winning Sanctuary
Top Rated Non Profit at Great Non Profits
We have received this award every year since they started awarding it in 2010 due to the many great reviews we get from