Carole Baskin

WTSP Tampa Bay

Wildside: A Thanksgiving treat for some big cats

You can make this Thanksgiving special for one of the cats at the sanctuary by donating at BigCatRescue.org and choose Turkey, Chicken or Hen. To protect our cat's health we do not allow the public to bring their own food. We have so much to be thankful for this year and want to thank all of you who have been so kind and generous to the cats. We couldn't do it without you!  (Nov 19, 2007 | post #1)

WTSP Tampa Bay

6 big cats rescued from home in Inverness

Situations like this are exactly why we need a bill to ban the private possession of big cats. The fact that these cats had to starve for two years before the state intervened is ample evidence that our laws are not strict enough to prevent horrific suffering. Even when the state does finally take action, there are no suitable alternatives for the animals and, like these six cats, they often end up being warehoused in circus wagons or in tiny concrete and steel cages. Tigers were designed to roam hundreds of square miles, to feel the grass beneath their feet, and to be the top predator in their realm. It is cruel beyond words to allow these animals to be bred for backyard cages, roadside zoos, circus acts and all of the other barbaric practices still common in Florida today. Help stop the breeding and discarding by asking your legislator to support Haley's Act HR 1947 here: CatLaws.com For the cats, Carole Baskin, Founder 12802 Easy Street Tampa, FL 33625 BigCatRescue.org  (Nov 10, 2007 | post #2)

South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Got a tiger living next-door? State says you don't need to know

As someone with twenty years experience with big cats I can tell you the Dr. Hobgood speaks the truth. While those who have posted here claim to love their animals, the fact is that they love the ego trip having an unusual pet gives them and not the animal for who he or she is. As a society, we all know a little about love and know that if you have to cage someone to have them near you, then it isn't really love. On a common sense level, no one in Florida ever died in a plane bombing either, but it is still against the law to carry explosives on board. The following is a partial listing (653) of incidents in the U.S. involving captive exotic cats since 1990. The U.S. incidents have resulted in the deaths of 19 humans, 15 adults and 4 children, the additional mauling of 171 more adults and children, 134 escapes, the killing of 79 big cats, and 105 confiscations. There have also been 147 big cat incidents outsite the U.S. that have resulted in the deaths of 56 humans and the mauling of 84 humans by captive big cats. These figures only represent the headlines that Big Cat Rescue has been able to track. Because there is no reporting agency that keeps such records the actual numbers are certainly much higher. http://www.bigcatr escue.org/big_cat_ news.htm To see a video of the mauling of a zoo keeper in 2006 go to http://www.bigcatr escue.org/animal_c ontact.htm The Journal of Internal Medicine in 2006 estimated that 50 million people worldwide have been infected with zoonotic diseases since 2000 and as many as 78,000 have died. Read more about zoonotic diseases here: http://www.bigcatr escue.org/zoonosis .htm To see the number of exotic cats abandoned each year go to http://www.bigcatr escue.org/animal_a buse.htm To view a trend chart that shows the alarming escalation of big cat incidents here: http://www.bigcatr escue.org/Flash/Bi gCatBans/BigCatBan Charts.htm The U.S. represents less than 5% of the entire global population, but up through 2006 79% of ALL captive cat incidents occurred in the U.S. (Now that the US is clamping down on the exotic pet trade, the reports in 2007 show a decline in U.S. incidents compared to the rest of the world) Likewise, Florida represents less than 6% of the U.S. population while 11% of all U.S. incidents occur in Florida. Florida boasts the most comprehensive sets of regulations allowing private ownership of exotic cats while ranking #1 in the highest numbers of big cat killings, maulings and escapes. To view photos of fatal injuries from cases reported in the American Journal of Forensic Medicine click http://www.bigcatr escue.org/laws/AMJ ForensicFeline.pdf This video shows facilities that are currently licensed and approved by the USDA and the Florida Wildlife Conservation Commission that have been operating at this level or worse for more than 10 years and yet are still open to the public. These images are typical of those who allow cameras in but there are many worse ones who do not. This shows precisely why we need to ban private possession of exotic cats. http://www.veoh.co m/videos/v2570412P GPYhmr Carole Baskin, Founder Big Cat Rescue 12802 Easy Street Tampa, FL 33625  (Oct 18, 2007 | post #4)

Pahrump, NV

Nye County woman attacked, killed by wolf hybrids

Anyone who is licensed by USDA knows that they cannot possibly insure that the animal welfare standards, minimal as they are, will be adhered to. They are understaffed and over whelmed and the worst cases of animal abuse almost always happen at USDA/State inspected facilities. I would like for the woman who was injured to contact me at MakeADifference at BigCatRescue dot org The following is a partial listing (653) of incidents in the U.S. involving captive exotic cats since 1990. The U.S. incidents have resulted in the deaths of 19 humans, 15 adults and 4 children, the additional mauling of 171 more adults and children, 134 escapes, the killing of 79 big cats, and 105 confiscations. There have also been 147 big cat incidents outsite the U.S. that have resulted in the deaths of 56 humans and the mauling of 84 humans by captive big cats. These figures only represent the headlines that Big Cat Rescue has been able to track. Because there is no reporting agency that keeps such records the actual numbers are certainly much higher. http://www.bigcatr escue.org/big_cat_ news.htm To see a video of the mauling of a zoo keeper in 2006 go to http://www.bigcatr escue.org/animal_c ontact.htm The Journal of Internal Medicine in 2006 estimated that 50 million people worldwide have been infected with zoonotic diseases since 2000 and as many as 78,000 have died. Read more about zoonotic diseases here: http://www.bigcatr escue.org/zoonosis .htm To see the number of exotic cats abandoned each year go to http://www.bigcatr escue.org/animal_a buse.htm To view a trend chart that shows the alarming escalation of big cat incidents here: http://www.bigcatr escue.org/Flash/Bi gCatBans/BigCatBan Charts.htm The U.S. represents less than 5% of the entire global population, but up through 2006 79% of ALL captive cat incidents occurred in the U.S. (Now that the US is clamping down on the exotic pet trade, the reports in 2007 show a decline in U.S. incidents compared to the rest of the world) Likewise, Florida represents less than 6% of the U.S. population while 11% of all U.S. incidents occur in Florida. Florida boasts the most comprehensive sets of regulations allowing private ownership of exotic cats while ranking #1 in the highest numbers of big cat killings, maulings and escapes. To view photos of fatal injuries from cases reported in the American Journal of Forensic Medicine click http://www.bigcatr escue.org/laws/AMJ ForensicFeline.pdf This video shows facilities that are currently licensed and approved by the USDA and the Florida Wildlife Conservation Commission that have been operating at this level or worse for more than 10 years and yet are still open to the public. These images are typical of those who allow cameras in but there are many worse ones who do not. This shows precisely why we need to ban private possession of exotic cats. http://www.veoh.co m/videos/v2570412P GPYhmr  (Oct 8, 2007 | post #7)

Orlando Sentinel

'Oh, My!' Exotic pet owners needn't disclose

The following is a partial listing (653) of incidents in the U.S. involving captive exotic cats since 1990. The U.S. incidents have resulted in the deaths of 19 humans, 15 adults and 4 children, the additional mauling of 171 more adults and children, 134 escapes, the killing of 79 big cats, and 105 confiscations. There have also been 147 big cat incidents outsite the U.S. that have resulted in the deaths of 56 humans and the mauling of 84 humans by captive big cats. These figures only represent the headlines that Big Cat Rescue has been able to track. Because there is no reporting agency that keeps such records the actual numbers are certainly much higher. http://www.bigcatr escue.org/big_cat_ news.htm To see a video of the mauling of a zoo keeper in 2006 go to http://www.bigcatr escue.org/animal_c ontact.htm The Journal of Internal Medicine in 2006 estimated that 50 million people worldwide have been infected with zoonotic diseases since 2000 and as many as 78,000 have died. Read more about zoonotic diseases here: http://www.bigcatr escue.org/zoonosis .htm To see the number of exotic cats abandoned each year go to http://www.bigcatr escue.org/animal_a buse.htm To view a trend chart that shows the alarming escalation of big cat incidents here: http://www.bigcatr escue.org/Flash/Bi gCatBans/BigCatBan Charts.htm The U.S. represents less than 5% of the entire global population, but up through 2006 79% of ALL captive cat incidents occurred in the U.S. (Now that the US is clamping down on the exotic pet trade, the reports in 2007 show a decline in U.S. incidents compared to the rest of the world) Likewise, Florida represents less than 6% of the U.S. population while 11% of all U.S. incidents occur in Florida. Florida boasts the most comprehensive sets of regulations allowing private ownership of exotic cats while ranking #1 in the highest numbers of big cat killings, maulings and escapes. To view photos of fatal injuries from cases reported in the American Journal of Forensic Medicine click http://www.bigcatr escue.org/laws/AMJ ForensicFeline.pdf This video shows facilities that are currently licensed and approved by the USDA and the Florida Wildlife Conservation Commission that have been operating at this level or worse for more than 10 years and yet are still open to the public. These images are typical of those who allow cameras in but there are many worse ones who do not. This shows precisely why we need to ban private possession of exotic cats. http://www.veoh.co m/videos/v2570412P GPYhmr  (Sep 25, 2007 | post #4)