Carole Baskins Diary

Today is yet another historical milestone for FL wildlife!

The Animal Legal Defense Fund just emailed this to me:

 

Florida’s 2018 legislative session begins January 9, and the Animal Legal Defense Fund is gearing up to make history for orcas. On Friday, January 5, Representative Jared Moskowitz introduced HB 1305, the Florida Orca Protection Act, which aims to ban breeding captive orcas and end the cycle of captivity for these intelligent creatures.

 

This law will codify SeaWorld’s recent policy and promises — and hold other facilities to the same standards. We must ensure that SeaWorld doesn’t go back on their word, especially with regular rumors of changes in park ownership.

 

What is so amazing is that Florida’s legislature has long cowered before the FWC’s assertion that they are the top of the food chain when it comes to deciding any matter that involves wild or exotic animals.  I plan to send a considerable donation to Representative Jared Moskowitz for taking the time to consider the fact that the FWC is wrong and that it is up to the citizens of Florida to decide how wild animals should be treated in our state.

 

Hi, I’m Carole Baskin and I’ve been writing my story since I was able to write, but when the media goes to share it, they only choose the parts that fit their idea of what will generate views.  These are my views and opinions. If I'm going to share my story, it should be the whole story.  The titles are the dates things happened. If you have any interest in who I really am please start at the beginning of this playlist: http://savethecats.org/

 

I know there will be people who take things out of context and try to use them to validate their own misconception, but you have access to the whole story.  My hope is that others will recognize themselves in my words and have the strength to do what is right for themselves and our shared planet.  

 

You can help feed the cats at no cost to you using Amazon Smile!

Visit BigCatRescue.org/Amazon-smile

 

You can see photos, videos and more, updated daily at BigCatRescue.org

 

Check out our main channel at YouTube.com/BigCatRescue

 

Music (if any) from Epidemic Sound (http://www.epidemicsound.com) This video is for entertainment purposes only and is my opinion.  Closing graphic with permission from https://youtu.be/F_AtgWMfwrk

Today we witnessed history being made as NJ banned the use of all wild animals in traveling acts

I broadcast the Senate vote live on Facebook to 17,000 viewers.  Here was the text of the post:

 

No more traveling wild animal acts in NJ; the first state to pass such a ban. 66-2 in the House and 30-0 in the Senate. Here is the language which includes all wild animals who are transported from one location to another for any kind of display.

 

SYNOPSIS

 

“Nosey’s Law”; prohibits use of elephants and other wild or exotic animals in traveling animal acts

 

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

 

As reported by the Assembly Appropriations Committee on December 18, 2017, with amendments.

 

An Act concerning the use of elephants and other wild or exotic animals in traveling animal acts, designated as Nosey’s Law, and supplementing Title 23 of the Revised Statutes.

 

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

 

1. a. Notwithstanding any other law, or any rule or regulation adopted pursuant thereto, to the contrary, no person shall use an elephant or other wild or exotic animal in a traveling animal act.

 

b. Any person who violates this section shall be subject to the penalties provided in section 10 of P.L.1973, c.309 (C.23:2A-10), except that the criminal penalties provided in subsection f. of that section shall not apply.

 

c. As used in this section:

 

“Mobile or traveling housing facility” means a vehicle, including a truck, trailer, or railway car, used to transport or house an animal used for performance.

 

“Performance” means any animal act, carnival, circus, display, exhibition, exposition, fair, parade, petting zoo, presentation, public showing, race, ride, trade show, or similar undertaking in which animals perform tricks, give rides, or participate as accompaniments for the entertainment, amusement, or benefit of a live audience.

 

“Traveling animal act” means any performance which requires an animal to be transported to or from the location of the performance in a mobile or traveling housing facility.

 

 

2. This act shall take effect immediately.

Charles Rutenberg Realty hosts Casino Night to benefit Big Cat Rescue

They have 8000 agents now and this event usually raises about 8,000 for us each year.

 

I hate games so this is painful for me. I’ve taken every excuse to leave the party. I’ve been to the bathrooms; both of them. I read the entire hallway exhibit about the history of the Vinoy. I’ve checked out all of the books and crannies and bars and lounging spots but now a very tall, handsome guy is following me and unsuccessfully trying to chat me up, so I’m trapped in this overpacked room of gamers. Deep sigh.

 

Howie is doing well at poker so I’m stuck here for a while. This thing goes on till 10 pm and it’s only 9 now. The older I get the more reclusive I become.

 

I was selected as a judge for the 2018 International Big Cats Film Festival

 

Hello Judges,

 

You have been chosen to judge Panel B of the People and Big Cats Category of the International Big Cats Film Festival media competition.

 

Hi, I’m Carole Baskin and I’ve been writing my story since I was able to write, but when the media goes to share it, they only choose the parts that fit their idea of what will generate views.  These are my views and opinions. If I'm going to share my story, it should be the whole story.  The titles are the dates things happened. If you have any interest in who I really am please start at the beginning of this playlist: http://savethecats.org/

 

I know there will be people who take things out of context and try to use them to validate their own misconception, but you have access to the whole story.  My hope is that others will recognize themselves in my words and have the strength to do what is right for themselves and our shared planet.  

 

You can help feed the cats at no cost to you using Amazon Smile!

Visit BigCatRescue.org/Amazon-smile

 

You can see photos, videos and more, updated daily at BigCatRescue.org

 

Check out our main channel at YouTube.com/BigCatRescue

 

Music (if any) from Epidemic Sound (http://www.epidemicsound.com) This video is for entertainment purposes only and is my opinion.  Closing graphic with permission from https://youtu.be/F_AtgWMfwrk

“Are you asleep?”

Those are words I only hear from Howie when he’s feeling frisky.  I’ve told him he can wake me up for that any time.  He’s also one who gets annoyed if I talk in bed.  I can go full steam all day and right up to bedtime, and then drop dead asleep, but Howie needs time to not think so he can sleep.  Imagine my surprise when instead of him saying something silly like, “I think we have an emergency here,” he says, “What do you think about telling Brittany that we won’t negotiate until they have a signed deal with both Joe and Jeff?”  Of course I was fine with that.

 

It was the obvious thing to do when, on our conference call, Brittany Peet admitted that they haven’t even spoken to Jeff yet. Today Howie sent this to Brittany and Heather Hintz:

 

Brittany we have had some time to reflect and feel we need to take a different path to the effort to make an agreement, a path that was mentioned in passing in our conversation. We would like you to remove us from the current agreement except to the extent that you make the agreement contingent on a subsequent agreement between Big Cat Rescue Corp. and the Zoo Parties.  You pretty much know all of our thoughts from the call Monday. If you want to include the second option of PETA removing the animals, that is up to you.  But, Carole is not going to agree to a deal where any of the Zoo Parties retain any interest in the zoo land.   If Joe wants to keep his home, he can have it moved to the Lake Property.

 

Please understand we absolutely think the world of you personally and of PETA, tremendously value the relationship, are just thrilled with what you have accomplished in the related matter, and support this effort.  But I also need to ask you to understand this.  I flew out to Oklahoma, spent a full 12 hours negotiating a settlement agreement, made concession after concession while repeatedly having Joe fly off the handle and calming him down, spent THOUSANDS in legal fees not just that day but in the week following drafting that agreement while being misled into believe we had a deal.  In the follow up call, Jeff Lowe, who at the time was not a party and not supposed to be on the call, announced they were reneging on the deal.  When he was told the call had to end if he stayed on, his parting comment was “Howard fuck you and your cunt wife.”

 

This falls squarely in the “fool me once…” proverb.  I have been working literally 10-12 hour days with only a half day off in the last two weeks and am now rolling into our financial audit preparation which in our small organization falls entirely on me with continued long hours for the next month.  While we work as a team, Carole is our CEO and she feels strongly that it does not make sense to add more stress to me and spend what inevitably will be thousands of dollars in legal fees to present a draft to Joe and Jeff only to have them, particularly Jeff, take positions that result in this being a waste of time and money.

 

I think the outcome you seek could be a very good solution and we are supportive.  We will do what we can to help make it an arrangement we can accept.  But there are two compelling reasons for going this route.  One is what I have described above. We are simply not going to risk being jerked around a second time at considerable cost of time and money.  Second, this is far more efficient.  Instead of having to get our input repeatedly and then run it through the process that I totally understand you have to engage in, you can just make your deal without another chef in the kitchen, and once you have sorted out what you can with the zoo parties, we’ll work with you on any negotiations that are necessary from there, both any changes we feel are necessary to that agreement, hopefully none, and us negotiating directly with the Zoo Parties what we do with the lawsuits.  This will make your agreement much simpler and let you much sooner find out if there really is a serious deal.

 

I really don’t even ne

Year end reporting

 

I spent the entire day gathering facts, figures and screen shots for the 2017 Annual Report.  It’s usually spring before it’s done because of the finance section, but I think I’ve gotten my part closer to done, earlier in the year than ever before.   Deep sigh...

 

Some of the things I learned about last year are really distressing.  This email to Howie was hard to send, because I am embarrassed at how poorly I did with the Facebook and Amazon ads:

 

I spent most of the day going over ad spend in both Amazon and Facebook and comparing that to online sales in Shopify.

 

Amazon only lets me go back 60 days, so I made a note to check every month and save it.  The figures below don't include anything I spent on Amazon ads before Nov. 1, but I don't think it was much, as I was just starting to dabble in it.

 

The Facebook one isn't exactly on point because a lot of the ad spend was for things like voting contests, or to promote a message, but I didn't try to sort it because sometimes those ads actually resulted in sales too.

 

Over all in both FB and Amazon I lost money running ads ($81,891.65 spent)  vs profit.  Gross sales were $113,566.49  According to Shopify there was only a 2% increase in online sales this year despite all the ads.

 

For now, I've cut the ad spend in both locations in half, but will reduce it further once I have time to drill down further into those campaigns, to see if there are any worth keeping.

 

Then there was my letter to Ysabel, asking how it could possibly be that our web site is dropping in visitors and ranking:

 

It looks like our website visits are VERY low, but I can't tell which of these sites is really BigCatRescue.org

 

We have always had more than 3.5 million visitors a year and this does not reflect that:

 

Can you tell me how many visitors we had in 2017 and separately how many in 2016?

 

Ysabel’s answer was even more unsettling:

 

Hi Carole,

 

It took me a while to retrieve the data, but after summarizing analytics reports, we had 2.12 million users in 2016 and 220,000 total users recorded for 2017. In 2017, we had numerous problems with SSL and a lot of user activity were most likely not tracked properly. I only started refining user tracking via secured version of our site last October, and from October to December we got 180,000 users.

 

In every other aspect the sanctuary has improved on last year.  More social engagement, more overall sales (both in the store and online), more media attention, more wins for cats around the world and for the first time since I began tracking such things in the 90s, there were no people mauled or killed by big cats in the U.S. last year.  All of the U.S. escapes were servals, one bobcat and one jaguar from a zoo.  Overall a great year; I’m just not accustomed to my own failures.

 

Later I looked into Flywheel’s backend (our host) to discover our website has had over 4 million visitors, so I told Ysabel there just has to be an issue with Google Analytic’s connection to the site.  This is what she reported:

 

Hi Carole,

 

Further digging and cross checking with our log files at Flywheel and I noted the following are the major reasons our google analytics figures were inconsistent with the raw data:

 

1- Sometime April when we were working on adding Tags to our calls to action (you hired a media company to promote the Public Safety Act), our theme files were slightly changed, specifically the analytics tracking code was removed from the header files. I had this flagged in my notes that time, with the comment that it must have been done because of redundancy with the Google Tag Manager. I forgot about this since. After having gone through my Analytics course, I know now that the Tag Manager only tracks the particular events it is attached to (such as whether people sign up or click the Call to Action button, or watch a video). When I was double checking our files and saw this inconsistency, I added the tracking code to the he

New Year’s Resolution 2018

1. Pass the Big Cat Public Safety Act 

2. No Sugar 190.4 lbs

3. Express more gratitude

 

Yesterday 7 volumes of this journal arrived in printed form.  I spent last night, starting at my birth in 1961, going forward to proofread for typos, missed events and formatting.  There have been so many iterations of my diary over the years and some were imported from varying sources, stripping out all of the paragraph breaks.  There are currently 1039 entries and 247 photos, but already I am finding a lot of interesting stories from my youth that were not included, unless I mention them later and just not in chronological order.

 

Today we are going to have a conference call with the PETA lawyers about the proposal we are making jointly to Joe Exotic to stop the breeding and exploitation of cubs.  It’s not a deal killer, but I am going to ask that he return my diary.  That could fill in a lot of the gaps.

 

Last night my sweetheart, Howie, brought in a glass of wine (we are saving the champagne for when Joe either gets arrested, or signs this agreement) and a platter of cheese and crackers for us to enjoy while watching the Netflix series about Queen Elizabeth called The Crown.  He is so thoughtful and loving.  I truly am the luckiest woman in the world.

 

Hi, I’m Carole Baskin and I’ve been writing my story since I was able to write, but when the media goes to share it, they only choose the parts that fit their idea of what will generate views.  These are my views and opinions. If I'm going to share my story, it should be the whole story.  The titles are the dates things happened. If you have any interest in who I really am please start at the beginning of this playlist: http://savethecats.org/

 

I know there will be people who take things out of context and try to use them to validate their own misconception, but you have access to the whole story.  My hope is that others will recognize themselves in my words and have the strength to do what is right for themselves and our shared planet.  

 

You can help feed the cats at no cost to you using Amazon Smile!

Visit BigCatRescue.org/Amazon-smile

 

You can see photos, videos and more, updated daily at BigCatRescue.org

 

Check out our main channel at YouTube.com/BigCatRescue

 

Music (if any) from Epidemic Sound (http://www.epidemicsound.com) This video is for entertainment purposes only and is my opinion.  Closing graphic with permission from https://youtu.be/F_AtgWMfwrk

2022 07 14 Big Cat Briefing

We invited Aleesa in to make sure she was good with the pay of roughly 35k in cash and housing and she was.  I broke into tears (unexpectedly) when I told her that the reason I chose her for this job was because she had come to me early on saying that her goal was to run a place like this and I am putting my faith in her ability to actually run this place one day.

 

After all the meetings I had to race to my computer to send out this tax donation appeal that Susan had written:

 

We have 70 precious reasons to ask you to please consider making a year-end, tax-deductible donation to Big Cat Rescue. Their names circle the alphabet several times over: from Apollo (lynx) to Zeus (tiger). From Armani (leopard) to Zabu (white tiger). From Ariel (bobcat) to Zimba (serval). And from Ares (cougar) to Zucari (serval).

 

If you have already donated, please accept our heartfelt thanks and appreciation for your kindness!

 

As 2017 comes to a close, we are so grateful for everyone who has visited our sanctuary, followed our cats on social media, taken action to help us pass the Big Cat Public Safety Act and generously donated to our sanctuary. It is only because of your financial support that we can continue to rescue abused, neglected and abandoned exotic cats around the country and provide them with the best possible nutrition and medical care at our sanctuary.

 

This year we have rescued nine exotic cats, including 5 in December! Maya, an 18-year-old cougar from Ohio (pictured here), was rescued earlier this month after her owner surrendered her to the Department of Agriculture in Ohio. She is certainly enjoying her large enclosure!

 

And Manny the jaguar and Natalia the Amur leopard have just arrived from a zoo in Omaha. It’s been many years since Big Cat Rescue has been home to a jaguar and Manny has already stolen our hearts with his playful antics of storing all of his new toys inside his den at night. We’ve never had an Amur leopard at the sanctuary before and are enjoying getting to know Natalie’s purr-sonality. So far she is quite shy.

 

You also helped us provide a forever home to a discarded Savannah Cat and you're helping Noel Bobcat, who was hit by a car and left for dead on Christmas day, get the rehab she needs for release back to the wild.

 

Thank YOU so much for your amazing support of our sanctuary and cats! We hope the cats can count on you one more time in 2017 as you consider making your year-end, tax-deductible charitable donations.

 

Bigcatrescue.org/tax

 

Best wishes from your Big Cat Rescue family for a purrfectly healthy and happy New Year!

 

If you prefer, you can mail a check by December 31st to Howard Baskin at Big Cat Rescue at 12802 Easy Street, Tampa, Florida 33625.

 

Hi, I’m Carole Baskin and I’ve been writing my story since I was able to write, but when the media goes to share it, they only choose the parts that fit their idea of what will generate views.  These are my views and opinions. If I'm going to share my story, it should be the whole story.  The titles are the dates things happened. If you have any interest in who I really am please start at the beginning of this playlist: http://savethecats.org/

 

I know there will be people who take things out of context and try to use them to validate their own misconception, but you have access to the whole story.  My hope is that others will recognize themselves in my words and have the strength to do what is right for themselves and our shared planet.  

 

You can help feed the cats at no cost to you using Amazon Smile!

Visit BigCatRescue.org/Amazon-smile

 

You can see photos, videos and more, updated daily at BigCatRescue.org

 

Check out our main channel at YouTube.com/BigCatRescue

 

Music (if any) from Epidemic Sound (http://www.epidemicsound.com) This video is for entertainment purposes only and is my opinion.  Closing graphic with permission from https://youtu.be/F_AtgWMfwrk

Mom Fred Fish and Jamie Feeling Abandoned

I enjoyed your JibJab and have played it for Fred who was quite amazed.  The cat picture and hat that Katie gave you yesterday are from Tim.  I know you have all the hats and pictures you want but he seems to get great satisfaction in finding them for you.

 

Hope your holidays have been happy.  According to FaceBook things are going very well at BCR for which I am very pleased.  Jamie looks happy with Victor and I am sure it is Victor's dream come true to be with her so much of the time.

 

Things are going along pleasantly with me.  Today Fred and I are going fishing for the third time.  Needless to say, he loves to fish and I enjoy eating them so that works.  I love you!  Mom

 

I responded:

 

You will have to send me a good face shot of Fred so he can be one of the JibJabbers.

 

Jamie and I got to talk for the first time in a long time yesterday while driving Noel to the Humane Society of Tampa Bay for the bone repairs that Justin can't do in our hospital.  She was sad that she's not heard from you since July.  I told her you've been busy.

 

The two trailers I loaned Marty money on arrived yesterday.  They were 15 ‘5” inches wide and our gate is 15.9 so there was only 2 inches on each side, but they got them in.  Jamie and Victor had to trim trees all the way down Meadowview and had to cut part of the gate off to make way.  I feel safer with them here than abandoned on her lot.  I'm trying to get a permit to put the modular on Racetrack Road.

 

I'm so glad you and Fred have each other.  It was heart warming to see you and Jen giggling like school girls over the thrill of new love.  I love you too.  Carole

 

Hi, I’m Carole Baskin and I’ve been writing my story since I was able to write, but when the media goes to share it, they only choose the parts that fit their idea of what will generate views.  These are my views and opinions. If I'm going to share my story, it should be the whole story.  The titles are the dates things happened. If you have any interest in who I really am please start at the beginning of this playlist: http://savethecats.org/

 

I know there will be people who take things out of context and try to use them to validate their own misconception, but you have access to the whole story.  My hope is that others will recognize themselves in my words and have the strength to do what is right for themselves and our shared planet.  

 

You can help feed the cats at no cost to you using Amazon Smile!

Visit BigCatRescue.org/Amazon-smile

 

You can see photos, videos and more, updated daily at BigCatRescue.org

 

Check out our main channel at YouTube.com/BigCatRescue

 

Music (if any) from Epidemic Sound (http://www.epidemicsound.com) This video is for entertainment purposes only and is my opinion.  Closing graphic with permission from https://youtu.be/F_AtgWMfwrk

Thank goodness my enemies are such weirdos!

 

Photo is unrelated, other than it was at the ABC studio where Jamie and I talked about the upcoming Fur Ball gala for Big Cat Rescue.

 

https://www.thedailybeast.com/gun-toting-zoo-owners-in-showdown-with-peta-and-the-feds-over-baby-tigers

 

Gun-Toting Zoo Owners in Showdown With PETA and the Feds Over Baby Tigers

 

A Florida zoo featured on ‘Good Morning America’ for its tiger-cub ‘swims’ is facing lawsuits from PETA and state and federal agencies over its charity and treatment of the cats.

 

Kate Briquelet

12.26.17 12:00 AM ET

 

One day in October, Randy Stearns walked out to a Florida campfire, dressed in a fringed leather top like a modern-day Davy Crockett. “Hello, friends, Randy the Tiger Man,” the animal trainer greeted the camera, which was set between a teepee and totem pole out in the woods near his family’s Dade City zoo.

 

“You can’t believe a damn thing you see on the news,” the 34-year-old declared in the filmed fireside chat posted on Facebook. “Just look at me. I’m the newest Charlie Sheen. Every time you go on, there’s something on about us, the park…”

 

Then Stearns took aim at People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)—a constant topic in The Tiger Man’s online videos. “Kind of like Rambo, they drew first blood,” Stearns said. “We had to go out there, defend ourselves.”

 

Just two months before, the wannabe Jack Hanna stood guard at the zoo’s gates with a holstered weapon, joining supporters flaunting neon “PETA Kills” T-shirts. They were protesting, and allegedly delaying, a court-ordered inspection of the private, unaccredited zoo’s collection of adult and baby tigers.

 

Stearns and his parents run Dade City’s Wild Things (DCWT), a 22-acre zoo about 44 miles northeast of Tampa. The attraction has more than 300 animals: jaguars, lions, bears, lemurs, macaques, porcupines, bearded dragons, and other reptiles.

 

But it’s known for baby tigers, deployed for photo-ops and swim sessions in the zoo’s chlorinated pool. In years past, the cubs appeared on Good Morning America and Fox & Friends for the seemingly adorable gimmick.

 

Yet behind the footage, there’s allegedly a darker side to the tiger business, according to animal-welfare advocates—one that prematurely rips cubs away from their mothers and forces them into stressful encounters with humans for profit.

 

According to PETA, Dade City’s Wild Things is contributing to a captive tiger overpopulation crisis by continually breeding them for photo-ops and ticket sales. Once cubs grow too large for customer interactions, they’re left to languish for the rest of their days in cages, or sold off to other roadside attractions and collectors of exotic animals, PETA says.

 

The big cats are at the center of separate lawsuits brought by PETA and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which respectively allege the zoo violated the Endangered Species Act and the Animal Welfare Act over its handling of the tigers.

 

The zoo also faces a state lawsuit for allegedly accepting donations while not registered as a nonprofit. Florida’s Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services claims the zoo used hundreds of thousands in charity funds to foot the bills for Randy Stearns’ nuptials and the bankruptcy payments of his mother, Kathy.

 

Hi, I’m Carole Baskin and I’ve been writing my story since I was able to write, but when the media goes to share it, they only choose the parts that fit their idea of what will generate views.  These are my views and opinions. If I'm going to share my story, it should be the whole story.  The titles are the dates things happened. If you have any interest in who I really am please start at the beginning of this playlist: http://savethecats.org/

 

I know there will be people who take things out of context and try to use them to validate their own misconception, but you have access to the whole story.  My hope is that others will recognize themselves in my words and have the strength