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| Cameron |
Big Cat rescue is an organization in Tampa that rescues big cats; lions, tigers, cougars, bobcats and many others, from abusive situations, from when they were taken in as pets and became too much for the owners to handle, as well as the occasional cat that can’t be released into the wild. They are a non-profit organization that is also dedicated to educating the public about the cats and trying to encourage people not to participate in pay-to-play photo-op, circuses and other similar ventures. They give tours as part of a way to support the cats.
I’m not a fan of zoos, though there are some good organizations out there. Big Cat Rescue tends to not act as much like a zoo, limiting the time that they are open to visitors to two times daily, most days of the week.
We visited the cats on May 26th. They have several acres and try to engage the cats with larger and varied enclosures, cardboard animals they can stalk, toys, bags of catnip and other spices and, for the larger cats, a 2.5 acre “vacation” enclosure they can roam for 2 weeks at a time, on rotation, during the year.
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| Sassyfrass |
These are some beautiful animals. Their stories are often heartbreaking. Many are shy of people and you won’t see them on your tour. The staff won’t parade them out, or wake them from their dens during the tour. This is their home, the staff says. Good for them (and much to the chagrin of one of our fellow visitors). To do that would make them no better them the organizations they are trying to shut down.
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| Sundari |
I will go back to Big Cat Rescue, probably for their photo tour next time. I would be able to spend more time at any one cat and not have to listen to ignorant tourists grumble about sleeping or hidden cats, or ask the guide a question they had only moments before answered had that person been listening. And I would go in cooler weather both for me and for the cats, when they will be a little more active and the sun isn’t near the peak of summer.
You can visit
Big Cat Rescue's webpage
here. And see the rest of my photos on my flickr page,
Big Cat Rescue Album.
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| Kali |
