Carole Baskins Diary

I’m grateful for Salsa as it has proven time and again to be a great way to get our emails out to our fans and to keep track of donors and advocacy.

 

I’m thankful that our family meets so regularly for family dinner.  Tonight we meet at 5PM.  Jamie and Justin won’t be with us though, as they head off to NJ for a wedding of one of Justin’s friends.

 

I LOVE the new Wirecast software.  It was $495.00 but worth every penny as I can stream the explore.org cams live to Facebook and answer questions in real time too.

 

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.  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

I’m so glad that no one in my family, especially me, is running for office.  Two nights ago we attended the fundraiser for Dana Young and last night the fundraiser for Pat Kemp.  I can’t even imagine how awful it must be to beg for money and make so many promises to get it.

 

I’m glad that Afton Tasler and Jen Leon are so happy to be dealing with the film crew from the Netflix hit, Trailer Park Boys.  I imagine that I’d have snatched them all bald by the end of the day.  I just can’t deal with people behaving like morons.

 

I just offered to bring Tanja Pirttila here from Finland for the Wildcat Walkabout on Oct. 1.  She volunteers her time to keep the trolls off our Facebook site while I’m sleeping and does a great job answering questions.  I am thankful that we can afford to reward our people this way, as it will run about a grand to do it.

 

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.  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

Dear Curt

 

Thanks again for taking the time to speak to me by phone a couple weeks ago.  You gave me a lot of insight as to how the system works and that was very helpful.  I am still perplexed about whether or not the state has constitutional authority over exotic animals vs. native wild animals but maybe we can talk that one through some time when you have a few minutes to chat.

 

When I told Roy Harrell that you suggested I meet with Commissioner Meehan, he set it up and we met last week.  Remembering your advice about him being a hunter I tried to keep focused on the exotic pet problem and that was effective.  He seems genuinely concerned and took the initiative to get Col. Julie Jones from FWC on a conference call to discuss my potential service on the Captive Wildlife Committee.

 

I had written Captain Linda Harrison and Ken Haddad and had been told that the people from 1994 had all agreed to reconvene the group and I would not be needed.  After speaking with Commissioner Meehan, Col. Jones said she would be mailing me an invitation this upcoming week but that she was inviting a lot of people who would then be screened by a facilitator for final selection.  I sent the attached letter at the suggestion of Commissioner Meehan that I fully detail why I should be selected.  It is long and self serving, but given the credentials of the people on the committee in 1994 (9 out of 10 made their living off exotic animal use) I should have a chance at serving if it truly is the purpose of the committee to look at the rules objectively.

 

Thought you might want to know that David referred to you as “the voice of reason”.  He asked Gloria Johnson to call me and we are playing phone tag, but I hope to speak with her soon.  Thanks again for pointing me in the right direction.

 

For the cats,

Carole Baskin, Founder  (813) 493-4564 best way to reach me

 

S. Curtis Kiser practices in the governmental, environmental and administrative law areas.

Formerly the Republican senator for District 19 in Florida, Mr. Kiser served in the Florida House of Representatives from 1972-82 and was the Republican minority leader from 1978-82. From 1984-94 he served as a member of the Florida Senate. In 1970, he served as assistant general counsel for Governor Claude Kirk. He was often voted “Most Effective Legislator” during his tenure in the House and Senate, and he received the top ranking in the Senate for 1994 by The Miami Herald.

In July 1994, Senator Kiser joined Tom Gallagher’s gubernatorial ticket as lieutenant governor. In October 1994, Mr. Kiser was named chairman of the Commission on Long-Term Care created by the 1994 Legislative Session for a two-year study examining Florida’s nursing homes, ACLFs and other services for the elderly. In September 1994, Mr. Kiser was named chairman of the 1995 Sesquicentennial Commission celebrating Florida’s 150 years of statehood. In 1995, he was named by Comptroller Robert Milligan as a commissioner of the Task Force on Banking Decoupling to study how to remove bank regulation from the state comptroller’s office. Mr. Kiser served for 17 years as a member of the Public Service Commission Nominating Council and has served as chairman on a number of occasions.

 

Mr. Kiser is a noted champion of environmental concerns. The development of the Preservation 2000 Program earned him the Florida Conservation Award on five occasions. In 1995, Mr. Kiser was awarded the Legislative Excellence Award by the Florida Audubon Society for his work on improving the Everglades legislation and his continued support of the Preservation 2000 Program. He was also awarded the 1993 Florida Wildlife Award. Mr. Kiser chaired the drive to create the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. In 1999, he was elected chairman of the board of directors for The Theodore Roosevelt Society in Florida, succeeding former Governor Bob Martinez. The TRS is a relatively new policy think tank focused exclusively on state environmen

I’m grateful that Jumanji Leopard survived his mass removal yesterday.

I’m thankful that we have such a loving and supporting fan base.  Lori Duska has provided some great content around the latest odd couple here, Spirit Feather bobcat and the rat, Monty she won’t kill.

 

I am appreciative of the tech that makes is possible to stay connected with our audience.  I’m currently using an iPhone 6 plus, on either the Osmo Mobile stable mount, or the Manfrotto tripod, and trying to do at least one Facebook LIVE cast that is then later added to YouTube.  I wish it wasn’t a square format, so I could use it on other social channels.

 

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.  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

I am thankful that Jamie has always been here for me and the cats.  

Minor Childers said I was living the dream to be working with my child, and he was right.  I’ve been preparing a 10 minute talk on Social Entrepreneurism for a class of MBAs and as I’ve put together the history of the success of Big Cat Rescue, Jamie is there at every turn.

 

I’m glad Justin is so skilled as a vet.  The day after setting Nala Serval’s bones she’s walking on it like nothing ever happened.

 

Jacuzzi Time is when Howie and I catch up every evening.  He said he played the best tennis of his life against Michael Schilling, who is probably 30 years younger.  Howie has always been fantastic at tennis, so that’s really saying something.  He’s not one to exaggerate either, so it tells me that he’s really been working at it to take on this kid.  He can’t beat Michael yet, but says he runs him all over the court. Michael was a state champion as a kid and only got better since then.

 

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.  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

I’m thankful that Nala Serval’s broken leg was successfully repaired 

by Justin this morning and that she’s alert, eating and on the road to recovery.

 

I am grateful for all of the volunteers who will make sure her 8 weeks of recovery is as comfortable as possible.

 

I love the new bobcat rehab expansion project and am very happy that an outside company is building it so that Chuck can work on many of the other projects around here.  Today he came in and fixed the well at the Lion’s Lair Party Pavilion that just stopped for no reason.

 

I’m taking the advice of Minor Childers and looking for influential YouTubers to get our message out there about why cub petting is killing tigers in the wild. It’s crazy how much influence some of these kids have.  Looks like I’ll be watching a lot of YouTube to see why they have such a following.

 

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.  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

I am thankful Mom is dealing with the loss of Dad so well. On our daily walk today she talked about having lunch with some women from church. Several are widows. Some have been for a very long time. She was telling me about her advice to them to stay busy and travel and interact with people in order to be happy. Good for her! A volunteer emailed the Coordinators saying she didn’t think she’d be safe to clean the cats because she just gets too lost in her own head, and starts crying uncontrollably. I gave her a copy of The Happiness Advantage today. She was happy about that. I hope it works for her. Being grateful for what you have is the key to being happy. I was very happy this morning that I didn’t have to be here at 7am to meet the team from Sumo Reality. They were great, but that’s way too early for me. Tom Pollack and Charlie Annenberg apparently went to school with these guys and wanted to throw some business their way in an attempt to create a virtual reality experience involving our cats. They had worked together on Star Wars and other shows, so they have the talent. Explore.org gave us $100,000 donation, but “wanted” $50k of it to go to this project, so we did. I think that is a LOT of money, but am excited about the prospects. They hired a local company called FilmMotionUS.com to fly drones and carry the Go Pro 7 camera mount. Two days of filming which ended up being about 18 hours of work probably only netted us 2 hours of film, but it will probably be very good film. It’s in 8K, which is twice what I even knew existed. 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. 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

I’m thankful that it’s Monday and that people will be back at work so we can get some stuff done. We were supposed to break ground on the new bobcat rehab area last Monday, so I hope to light a fire under them today to get it started. I’m grateful that Dr Wynn came in yesterday and put Rusty Caracal out of his misery. Rusty Caracal was born in 1997. He was neutered in 1999 and hasn’t had to go to the vet for any health issue since. He gets the routine vaccines and dewormings, and had a stick removed from the roof of his mouth in 2001, but he’s never been sick. Keepers noted that he’s walking stiffly, may have some trouble urinating and while he’s eating every day, he’s not eaten a full meal for about 6 days. Rusty Caracal’s kidneys were so bad that the machine couldn’t even read it, and there is no way he can recover from this, so the only kind option is euthanasia. Rusty was much loved and will never be forgotten. 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. 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

I’m glad our cats don’t have to suffer the way people do.

Kalahari Serval would have been 20 in a couple of weeks, but during Hurricane Hermine she was found to be down in her cage, with labored breathing, and refusing to eat or stand. Kalahari has been on heart medications all of her adult life and no one ever expected her to even live half as long as she has.

 

Dr Justin Boorstein came and did diagnostics and the X-ray showed a lot of fluid in her chest cavity around her heart and lungs, making it hard for her to breathe. He administered drugs to help dispel some of the fluids and we watched her through the night and most of the following day, but it was clear that she is not going to recover and we made the sad decision to euthanize her yesterday evening.  Dr Justin found 200 cc of fluids around her heart so it was building up faster than the meds could dispel it.

 

Congestive Heart Failure is the same thing that killed my father, but he had to suffer till the very end, because we can’t provide humane relief to humans in this country.

 

I’m grateful that it’s not raining and think I’ll ride my bike to work.  I’ve gotten so little exercise the past few weeks.

 

I am appreciative of all the people who sent loving thoughts and prayers during Hurricane Hermine.  I’m especially thankful that we didn’t take a direct hit.

 

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.  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

I am so thankful it’s not raining. Tropical Storm Hermine has rained down on us for days and the sanctuary is flooded. I fully expected to walk outside this morning and see Rocky Creek at my door step, but she’s in her banks. Thank Goodness! I appreciate my father looking after Jamie even after he died. Mom gave all of the grandchildren “a new car from Papa” and Jamie, who is already driving her dream car, bought a new RV last night. It was their dream RV, so I’m glad they will have that home on the road. I love all the volunteers who come out in the pouring rain to make sure the cats are fed and have high, dry spots to ride out the storms. Hurricane Hermine slammed into Florida this morning as a Cat 1 (74-95 MPH), but I’m thankful that we were not directly in her path. We are getting a lot of rain and wind, in the trailing bands, but I’m hoping the worst has passed as she’s losing speed now to a Tropical Storm. I’m grateful that we have power this morning. I was happy and surprised to see that Kalahari Serval survived the night. She was the 100th exotic cat that my son in law, Justin, has sedated. He’s turned out to be an amazing vet with Jamie by his side to keep him focused and moving forward when he’s in doubt.

 

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.  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