Christmas Eve brought some news - First off, Lulu is doing much better! The new director took Lulu to the new vet's office for a thorough exam. Her blood tests came out perfect, so the vet recommended they take a look at her stomach to ensure there was no blockage. The new director and staff were allowed to watch the procedure and was able to see the inside of a tiger for the first time.
The new director and vet apparently hit it right off! The new vet was kind enough to take off $1000 off their first bill -- which was a blessing since money is very tight at the sanctuary right now. The cause of the tiger's digestive problem was not found in any test, however she did resume eating once the vitamins were removed from her meat. Instead, the new vet administered a vitamin shot.
Sadly, another tiger at the second property has stopped eating. Madra is an older tiger and she stopped eating yesterday. The two animal caretakers, whom I have written about before in past blogs, wanted to wait until Monday before running any tests so they could leave on time yesterday. Never mind they have the next two days off and then start their vacation time. I am so grateful that the new director insisted the blood work be taken last night. If she is really ill, why would anyone want the animal to suffer for another four days before seeking medical treatment? What kind of animal caretakers are these ladies?
So now we wait for the blood test results -- I was told the blood was very thick and it did not look very good. This cannot be a good sign.
On a positive note, I was told yesterday the new wolf enclosure should be finished by the first week of January 2010. That means the tigers move into their "new" enclosures and the cougars can finally move into a larger enclosure which has a run-off area. It rained hard last night and the temperatures were in the 40s, so I can only imagine how miserable the cougars must be right now. There is no way to get hay into their boxes because there is no run-0ff attached to this cage as it was originally built to house monkeys. The cougars must be so cold and wet. It gets me so mad that the former directors and former board members have the audacity to claim they did the best they could for these animals. How could any board member allow the cougars to be treated so horribly? They should be absolutely ashamed of their actions/in actions.
Speaking of the former directors--it appears the female former director wants to start two new non-profits: Animal Shelter Assistance Program and Auction for Animals. Needless to say, this information was sent up to the Texas Attorney General. In my opinion, this woman should not be allowed to start up another non-profit business after what she did at the sanctuary.
More good news--the County Juvenile Probation Department agreed to send work crews out to the sanctuary again! I'm hoping once a month the youths can help keep the grounds clean and safe for visitors.
So much to be grateful for this year - thank God for his Blessings and Protection. To think, I was thinking of giving up in August because I didn't think this case would ever end. And now look -- thanks to God the animals have another chance. They have a new director that actually cares about them. There are new animal care staff working at the tour property that actually care about the animals. There is a new zoo vet that cares about the animals. There is a community that cares about the animals. And there is a new primate consultant that happens to specialize in HIV chimps that wants to help the animals too! So many new Blessings that have taken place in just a short period of time.
“Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift.” 2 Corinthians 9:16
Merry Christmas everyone!!
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