Big Cat Breeds

Big cats end up in rescue operations when the owners find themselves unable to handle their "pet" any longer. The owner might abandon the animal, thinking that wilderness instincts will help it survive. The owner may simply choose to neglect the big cats needs or cage it in living quarters too small. Sometimes the feline harms a human by attacking. Authorities step in and try to help the situation, but many times, big cats need to be put down. If they are lucky, the cat might find a home at a rescue shelter.

A zoo is not an option. Many times, this is where the trade started. Unscrupulous zoos breed big cats in captivity to increase attendance at the zoo because the public enjoys seeing new babies. When the felines are grown, the public loses interest, and the zoo can't support the larger cat. The animal is sold off to private brokers who then turn around and sell the animals to the public. Anyone might end up with the feline. Even worse, that owner might try to breed the cat to have another cub or to sell cubs to his friends. When this happens, the cycle begins all over again.

Supply and demand are the two biggest contributing factors to big cat breeds ending up in a cat rescue. The breeders will keep breeding the cats, and the public will continue to buy them. People have a fascination with getting close to an exotic feline. What the public fails to realize is that there is a massive responsibility that goes along with caring for big cats. The cats were never meant to be pets to begin with. You can't keep them indoors, and keeping a big cat outdoors isn't much better. These cat breeds play rough. They are hunters, and thousands of years of instinct tells them they are the top of the food chain. That baby tiger will not "bond" with your toddler. This is not a Walt Disney movie. You can bet that when the tiger reaches maturity, your child, your domestic house pet, and you may be labeled as lunch.

Money is another factor that contributes to abandonment. On average, it costs $5,000 a year to support the nutritional needs of one big cat. At first, that number might not seem so bad, but as the cat grows, so does its demand for more food.

Big cats have been kept in cages that are far too small for them. The minimum size required by law of an animal's cage is one that is large enough for the animal to stand up and turn around in. We all cry out in anger when we hear of Vietnam Veterans who had been tortured in "tiger cages". Why should we subject large felines to the same type of torture?

A big cat rescue shelter can offer a better quality of life for the abandoned animal. Many big cats that do reach the rescue stage are suffering from malnutrition. Others who might have been in show business are nervous wrecks from over-stimulation or are nearly blind from a life of flashing light bulbs and the bright lights of photo shoots. The people who run the shelters have the means and experience to raise the animal properly and meet the cat's nutritional requirements.

Human deaths that result from trying to contain big cat breeds as a house pets continue to rise. Four states passed a full ban on having a big cat as a pet in 2005, and four more states followed with the same law the year after. However, out of so many states, that's only a drop in the barrel. With only $40, any individual can apply for a permit from the USDA to use a big cat in a commercial venture. More responsible preservation of big cats needs to be put into practice and tougher laws should be made.

Suzy is a small striped cat with long white whiskers, who lives in a French seaside village with a fisherman and his four sons. She likes living in France, chasing butterflies and being stroked the wrong way. She doesn't like straying too far from home. But like all cats, Suzy is very inquisitive, which causes problems when she climbs into the basket of a hot air balloon, falls asleep - and is carried up, up and away over the Channel to England!

How will she ever get back to her home in France? It won't be easy, but Suzy refuses to be put off by a bit of water.

A heartwarming story from bestselling author Jill Tomlinson, whose books have been hugely popular for nearly thirty years. Told in clear, simple language, they are ideal for young listeners, who can identify with the baby animals and their adventures. The Cat Who Wanted to Go Home is an enchanting tale that will appeal to any child who loves animals or has ever worried about getting lost.