Every so often, I get an update on ‘my’ big cats. This came today and it brings both good news and bad news.
Good news first – let’s look at Roque (pronounced Rocky) the beautiful tiger.
Roque was rescued from a Spanish pet shop where, as a cub, he was living in a just a glass fish tank ! He is now seven years old and he lives in a special forest kraal in Bannerghatta Tiger Sanctuary in India. He is said to be very friendly with people he knows and trusts and loves attention from them. He loves his special territory where he prowls around, scent marking his special trees (very like my own cats!) , basking in the sun or sleeping out the heat of the day in the shade or soaking in his pool, set high in the rocks. He’s a happy, healthy creature.
Sadly though both ‘my’ lions – Raffi and Anthea are not so healthy. But both these lions are now getting on in life for lions – they are both 18. The conditions in which they were found will also had created some of their health problems – they were geld captive in a tiny cage in top of a Tenerife restaurant, with only intermittent access to water and fed on dog food. So now Raffi has chronic kidney problems - which many domestic cats can have too – and so gets very dehydrated – and Anthea is getting frail just as a result of her age
But the great thing is to know that these two fabulous creatures, who are like an elderly married couple and have been together almost all the 18 years of their lives are still eating enthusiastically and are very affectionate and loving with each others. And as you can see from this picture, Raffi is just as likely to forget his dignity when he’s enjoying a snooze as my Sid is (see post below). Thanks to the Born Free Foundation, they have spent the last 13 of those 18 years in freedom and comfort under South African sun in Shamwari Game Reserve.
If you want to know more about the work of the Born Free Foundation or perhaps adopt an animal for yourself – you can choose lions, wolves, chimps, elephants . . . then check out Born Free here. And while you’re there, please read the information about the campaign to stop the use of wild animals in circuses and consider signing the petition. I hope that just looking at Roque, Raffi and Anthea in their freedom will make you decide to do so.
Thank you!
I just looked around my office and spotted four contented furry bodies lying around – Bob is on the settee, with Spiffy sprawled out beside him and Dylan and Sid are curled in their beds. They’ve just breakfasted and as it’s pouring with rain outside have come in here to settle down for the day so the air is full of purrs! I love their quiet companionship as I start my writing day.
3 comments:
My dad used to work as a postman in London. One of the families on his 'walk' had a lion living in their back garden. Evidently it's teeth had been removed so that it wouldn't pose such a danger to human lives should it 'turn'. I remember my dad thought it was quite funny (I won't apologise for him, his opinions are not mine) but I was absolutely appalled as, even at 10/11 years old, I knew that wild animals shouldn't be kept as pets.
Having said that, my daughter did once have a 'pet' hedgehog. She rescued it as a baby and it grew quite attached to her. I was never sure whether she did the right thing but the hedgehog appeared to be happy enough.
~Sharon
What a lovely idea. I hope you'll keep us regularly updated on how they're doing Kate!
And could you have your well behaved cats come over or write or e-mail to my Daisy? She has a problem with my spending more time with the laptop than her. So regularly I have a head pushed under an elbow or paws across the keyboard. So either she attention seeking or a critic...
And I've said it on my blog - but just wanted to pop over and say thanyou so much for your kind words about Katie. It's a testing time and your thoughtfulness touched me. Thankyou.
Sharon - there used to be a fashion for keeping exotic pets like that - and I agree with you, I thought it was terrible. There are those who believe that the big cat sightings that are seen over the country are former pets like these who have been turned out into the wild.
Hedgehogs - we have a family og hedgehogs who live in our garden. They come to the door in the summer and clearly demand to be fed - they get the left over cat food, not bread and milk that's actually bad for them. And they are quite tame for us. I doubt if your daughter will have done the hedgehog any harm - they don;t need anything like the care and space that lions do!
Trish - I will keep you updated. I used to put reports on 'my' lions and tiger on my web site but it's one of the things I can make more immediate in my blog. My cats well-behaved - hmmm. They were when I wrote that blog because they'd all just been fed but it's not always that way. Daisy might like to know that I sometimes have a 'Cat of the Month' on my web site and if she wants to send her picture by email she might get to be a COTM soon. Writers' pets are always welcome.
As to your sadness with Katie - no problem. I do understand as I've been there with beloved animals too. Hugs for support
Kate
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