Education

11
Mar
2023

Nala – The heartbreaking story of a pet serval

Nala

The heartbreaking story of a 'pet' serval

Nala Serval Instagram In early February of 2023, the owner of a serval in Canada passed away. A friend of the owner contacted us to see if we could give the cat a home. We said yes and excitedly prepared for her arrival while all the import paperwork was being done. We learned that this little serval was even an
Instagram star with her own account and followers! The videos were supposed to show what a great “pet” she was. When we watched the videos, we saw something very different – and very heartbreaking.

We’re sharing Nala’s story so we can show everyone the hard truth about keeping servals – or any wildcats – as “pets.” We are adamant that all breeding and selling of wildcats as “pets” must stop now.

The following is the email we received from the woman caring for Nala in Canada in preparation for her coming to WCR. This is what she said:

"Dear Cheryl,

Good morning

Nala went for her vet appointment this morning and while her general health is good, she is the poster child for Metabolic Bone Disease. Her weight is 8.5kg, so smaller than we all thought and she has a very small ulcer on her left eye but other than that, generally, she's okay.  My vet has some students, so for educational purposes and because the physical exam raised a lot of questions, he did some x-rays at no cost to me.  To say I'm angry is an understatement and I feel sick to my stomach at what this cat has endured since the day she was born. As you can see in the x-rays, this poor cat has suffered hugely. Her scapulae have folded, there is a kink/break of some kind in her spine, I think one leg doesn't have a bend in it, and her pelvis, while it doesn't appear to have been broken the femur heads have obviously had to compensate or the pelvis compensate for the mess the bones have become. I'm not a vet, nor do I have any expertise in reviewing x-rays but it is so obvious anyone can see it.  I'll try and get some video of her moving so you can see how bad she is.

I had a discussion with my vet about quality of life and I think that's something that needs to be seriously considered.  - While she's been with us, she has been active, she has 'run' after a ball, plays in the water, and will crawl/half jump onto a chair or window ledge but she definitely cannot act like a normal Serval, nor will she ever be able to. - She eats well, poops and pees, and seems to be doing well and appears happy.  But, we all know how well animals can mask pain, and given Nala has lived like this her entire life, whatever she's feeling is normal for her. I want to give her a chance but I also don't want her to suffer.  She's only two years old and that could potentially be a long life of living on pain meds. 

Cheryl, I know you are ready to take her on but I'm asking you to consider if moving her to the sanctuary is the right decision for Nala.  You and Dr. Connolly know better than I do if this is something we should be doing. Just to note - we gave her 300mg of Gabapentin and it barely made any difference in her behaviour - she was just as spicy and mobile.  I do know that animals in pain react differently to meds so I'm wondering if that may have happened in this case.

I'm sorry the news isn't better and I just want to make the right decision for Nala, she deserves it after everything she's been through."

Carla

When I sent the radiographs to Dr. Connolly for her opinion, this was her response:

‘Hi, Cheryl,

That poor cat!

She’ll never be comfortable unless she’s heavily medicated. She has severe metabolic bone disease. We don’t know how her organs are, but she may not be able to handle the stress of a move. All of her long bones are weak and bowed. Her scapulae are folded. Her spine has at least two major defects.

I cannot tell how healthy her jawbones are from these views. I am concerned about her heart, based on obvious nutritional disease. I am sorry, but my recommendation is humane euthanasia.’

Dr. Cheri Connolly

All of this information came to us the same day that Rajah, another serval in our care, passed away due to health issues stemming from his previous care.

It was overwhelming to deal with another tragic story of a serval we were trying to save and can’t.  - When is this going to end? What we see on Instagram does not convey what is truly happening to these animals. They are NOT pets and more often than not, they’re being sold to people who have NO idea how to care for them but LOVE to post images of how cool they are with their wildcat. Seeing the videos of Nala on her page, you could clearly see how damaged she was. But not her owner. She just saw a wildcat she could pose with and get more “likes” and followers.

Nala was euthanized in Canada. We knew it was the only humane option left to her, but it broke our
hearts to know that she never had a chance to live a happy, pain-free life.

It’s frustrating, tragic and we are simply sick of it. It’s too late for Nala and for Rajah, but how many more small cats will we and our fellow sanctuaries try to save before this ends? The Big Cat Public Safety Act has been passed; - it’s time to come together and stop the breeding and selling of ALL wildcats.

Posted by Cheryl Tuller in Blog
11
Feb
2023

A Visit to West Coast Game Park Safari

Visiting West Coast Game Park

An Investigative Report by Tiffany Lopez, WCR Operations manager

This past weekend me and Chris had the opportunity to drive down to Bandon, OR and go to West Coast Game Park Safari. Not to enjoy a good time or vacation but to get some important information and footage of the parks now illegal activities of exploiting big cats. Now that the Big Cat Public Safety act has passed, it is now illegal for exhibitors to allow direct contact with cubs. West Coast Game Park has continued to allow the public to interact and ‘pet and play‘ with big cat cubs along with other species at the park, so we decided to see for ourselves. 

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Posted by Tiffany Lopez in Blog
04
Jun
2022

Estate Planning and Charitable Giving

Estate Planning and Charitable Giving

Nearly 70% of Americans do not have an up to date will or living trust, with procrastination being one of the main reasons. Without an estate plan, any assets you owned without a beneficiary designation will be distributed according to your state’s intestacy laws, typically through a court-supervised probate proceeding and the distributions may not be the ones you would have chosen. Further, no state distribution law provides for gifts to friends or charities or makes provisions for your pets. How an Estate Is Settled If There's No Will: Intestate Succession 

You may have numerous charities that you believe in strongly and you may have supported these organizations throughout your lifetime. Making a gift provision to one or more charitable organizations in your estate can be a natural extension of that support and can have a lasting impact on the causes you care most about.

Elements of an Estate Plan

Estate plans take several forms. The key essentials are described below:

Will. A will is a set of instructions to be followed by the estate’s executor, the person responsible for administering your estate. A will sets out your wishes for distributing your property after you die and who will care for your minor children. The individuals or organizations who will receive your assets under the terms of the will are your “beneficiaries." A valid will is generally typed, dated, and signed by you as well as two legally competent witnesses.

Under a will, the assets must still go through your state’s probate court before they can be distributed to your intended beneficiaries. The process varies greatly from state to state, but it can take anywhere from a few months to two years or longer.

Revocable Living Trust. This legal document can be used instead of a will as the main vehicle to distribute your assets. The primary advantage of a trust is that it avoids probate. The trust is created while you are living, most often people serve as their own trustee, and the power to change and even revoke it can be retained. The living trust becomes irrevocable upon your death.

A living trust requires that you actually transfer your property into it for it to be effective. As with a will, you can make gifts to favorite charities in your revocable living trust. These gifts will in most cases be distributed to the charities you name after your passing.

If you decide upon a revocable living trust, you should still have what is called a “pour-over” will. It catches any property that was, intentionally or inadvertently, left out of the trust during your life and is not transferred in another way. While this property will still need to go through probate, it will eventually be distributed according to your trust instructions instead of being distributed under state law provisions.

Beneficiary Designations. These are the forms you fill out when you do things like open a bank or stock brokerage account, establish an IRA or other type of retirement plan, purchase a commercial annuity or life insurance policy, that designate who will receive whatever remains upon your passing (or the death benefit in the case of life insurance). You can name charities in beneficiary designations to receive all or a portion of the account upon your passing.

Which type of estate plan is right will be different for each person. The following guide may make it easier to decide which type of estate plan is right for you  What is the Difference Between a Will and a Trust

Leaving a Legacy for WildCat Ridge Sanctuary

A bequest, also called a “legacy gift”, is a gift made through your will or living trust. You can leave a specified amount of money, a particular piece of property, or all or a portion of the ‘residual’ of your estate (what remains after your final expenses, debts, and specific gifts are paid). Making a legacy gift to WildCat Ridge Sanctuary is a wonderful way to leave a legacy and continue a lifetime of support for an institution that has meant so much to you.

You can provide a future gift to WildCat Ridge Sanctuary by including a bequest provision in your will or revocable trust. WildCat Ridge Sanctuary will receive your gift upon your passing based on the specifications included in the provision.

If you wish to leave a bequest to WildCat Ridge Sanctuary, the process is relatively simple. Be sure that our correct legal name appears in all final documents as:

“I give to WildCat Ridge Sanctuary, having a principal place of business at PO Box 280 Scotts Mills, OR 97375 USA, Federal tax identification 93-1320051, ____ percent of my residuary estate (or $_____, or other property) to be used or disposed of in its sole discretion as it deems appropriate.”

Types of Bequests

Specific Bequest: WildCat Ridge Sanctuary receives a specific dollar amount, a specific piece of property or a stated percentage of the estate. This is one of the most popular forms of bequests.

Residuary Bequest: WildCat Ridge Sanctuary receives all or a stated percentage of an estate after distribution of specific bequests and payment of debts, taxes and expenses.

Contingent Bequest: WildCat Ridge Sanctuary receives all or part of the estate under certain specified circumstances, such as the death of another beneficiary.

Beneficiary Designation Gift

Just as you designate individuals to receive certain assets directly as your named beneficiary, you can name WildCat Ridge to receive part of the asset. This is most commonly used with IRAs and other retirement plan assets and life insurance policies, but it can also work with assets such as checking and savings accounts, brokerage accounts, and commercial annuities.

Beneficiary designations have the advantage of being flexible (give as little or as much as you like), revocable (generally they can be changed at any time), and perhaps most importantly, they leave the assets under your control should you need them during your lifetime.

Bequests and beneficiary designation gifts are fully deductible from your estate and there is no limit as to how much can be deducted.

Summary

Regardless of the size of your estate, you want to ensure that what you own will go to those people and organizations you care for and love. Your estate documents become a last expression of what you have valued in your life, expressed through a personal statement and by what you leave to whom. By being thoughtful and organized about your affairs, you will have left a final, loving gift to your family and organizations you care about.

Posted by Brent Welling in Blog