Virtual Cats

Our vision is a world where all wild cats live free.  If you read the recent article by Howard Baskin it details the amazing strides we are seeing toward that end.  Most notably circuses are ending their wild animal shows all around the world and are banned in many other countries.  Mainstream travel agencies and tourism industries are banning the practice of pimping out cubs for pay to play schemes.  There are so many fashion designers who now oppose the use of fur that you can barely name them all.  Third world countries are closing their zoos because people are realizing that it is cruel to collect or breed wild animals for life in cages.  The gains for protecting big cats are growing exponentially and I take great relief in seeing the light shining so brightly at the end of the tunnel...

 

With one major exception.  U.S. zoos.  Our federal bill to ban the cruel act of ripping days old cubs from their mothers, just to pimp them out as pay to play props, has stalled in Congress because of zoos and those affiliated with them.  Even the big accredited zoos want huge loopholes in the bill because they use cub petting to lure donors.  They all hide behind the excuse of education for conservation because to call it what it is would get them no support.

 

I was at a dinner party recently with people who I’ve know for more than a decade.  I thought they understood our mission.  When one of them said she wanted to take her grand children to the zoo the look on my face must have been obvious because she followed quickly by saying, “I know it’s probably not right, but how else am I going to teach my grandkids to appreciate animals?”  Now I was completely dumbstruck.  Howie did a good job of answering with all of the ways that we have at our disposal now, like great documentaries, camera trap photos and scientific insights made by people working in the field who study wild animals.  I just sat there speechless.

 

I was reeling in the admission, that even though people who go to zoos usually come away feeling like there was something very wrong with wild animals being held captive for their amusement, they still do it because they don’t believe their is a viable way to engage their children and teach them about nature.  I thought about the way I’ve seen inner city children on our tours, who were just as amazed at the ducks, and birds and squirrels who flock to our patch of Eden as they were the cats.  

 

When people come to Big Cat Rescue they are immersed in the beauty of nature but we can only handle about 30,000 visitors a year.  How can we provide that total immersion into the life of exotic cats in such a way that it can be made available for free everywhere?  We have made efforts to create a 360 degree experience since 2015 but the tech has only recently caught up to our vision.  Thanks to recent break throughs in the devices, like Oculus Go, that are now cheap enough for wide adoption by consumers, and platforms like Pixvana, VeeR TV, YouTube and Facebook we are able to immerse millions of people in experiences just like our keepers have.

 

Until you strap on a head mounted display and watch one of our 50+ videos of our cats up close and purr-sonal, you really can’t explain what it feels like to be right next to them,  It’s better than seeing them in person because you are closer.  You are acting out the part of their caregiver.  You are totally engaged in their world and perspective.  We are gamifying this experience so that you can choose your own path through the sanctuary and visit the cats you choose when you choose.  Instead of taking your kids to a zoo, to see the big cats trying to pretend you aren’t there, you can give your children the chance to really get to know the lions, tigers, leopards, cougars, bobcats and other wild cats at the sanctuary.

 

I believe that adopting this tech and demanding more such virtual experiences is how zoos will legitimize themselves again.  As they stop the breedin