Did you know that four of our cats here at WildCat Ridge came from Joe Exotic’s place? Joe was cited for more than 200 violations of the federal Animal Welfare Act while he was exhibiting animals. He treated them horribly, declawed them so that he could make more money, and they were housed in tiny cages. He sold tiger cubs to other exploiters, and shot five of his own tigers to make room for more.
When he ran out of money to care for his animals, reputable sanctuaries had to step in and clean up the mess. We were able to give a home to Calvin, Hobbes, Chobe, and Kariba.
Meet Calvin and Hobbes.
The two boys that are cuddling in the grass are Calvin and Hobbes. They spent the first 12 months of their life as photo props at Joe Exotics’ breeding facility in Oklahoma. Shortly after birth, the two tiger cubs were taken from their mother and were forced to pose with tourists.
In the wild, tigers stay with their mom for two to three years. They learn how to hunt, they get important nutrients from breast milk, and most importantly develop a healthy immune system. Because of an improper diet and being handled as a cub, Calvin has Metabolic Disease, which causes him to limp.
Once the two boys reached one year of age, they no longer were of any use to Joe. Their strength made it harder to control them, and selfies with tourists were too risky. At that point, Joe sold them to a roadside zoo.
Imagine living your whole life in a room the size of a small kitchen? This is where you eat, sleep and go to the bathroom. In addition, the floor is cold cement, there are now windows and you have nothing to entertain yourself. Some might argue that this is worse than prison. For the next two years, this was all Calvin and Hobbes knew.
Sanctuaries had to come to the rescue.
In 2016, the roadside zoo ran out of business. At the time, 120 animals needed to find homes quickly.
With 75 tigers alone at the facility, Tigers in America worked with Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge in a huge rescue effort making sure all the animals were placed in true sanctuaries.
It took 40 trips across the US and over 66,000 miles but in the end, all 115 animals including tigers, lions, leopards, cougars, caracals, a serval, bobcats, bears, coatimundis, a wolf hybrid, lemurs, alligators and 3 feral kittens were placed in sanctuaries to begin a new life free from exploitation.
These are some of the traits of a true sanctuary:
- No breeding, selling, buying or trading of the animals in their care
- Animals are not taken out for events
- No physical contact of the public with the animals
- Follows the highest standards of excellence with regards to nutrition, veterinary care, safety and facilities
WildCat Ridge is a true sanctuary. We are part of the Big Cat Sanctuary Alliance and fully support the Big Cat Public Safety Act.
Help tigers like Calvin and Hobbes by speaking up for the cats and educating others!
The silver lining of this TV show is that people have become aware of the horrific treatment of tigers, lions, and other big cats and seen how they suffer as backyard pets or tourist attractions.
What if we lived in a world, maybe five years from now, where breeding facilities and roadside zoos don’t exist? Reputable sanctuaries are a retirement home for the animals in their care. We won’t have to scramble and find homes for new rescues every year. Tigers like Calvin won’t have to take daily medications to control their pain due to malnourishment as a cub. Most importantly, no tiger cub will have to suffer just so that a breeder can make money.
We are very, very close to such a world. You can help making it happen by educating others, and by calling your congressperson in support of the Big Cat Public Safety Act.
