Trip to Austin?

I am not sure what to do at this point regarding the WAO’s financial situation. Few and far between pay pal donations; the WAO’s phone lines are down due to non-payment; the WAO’s office manager, Kim Meyer was reportedly told to go home 3 days in a row since the WAO has no phones or internet service; Henry and Jamie were reported to have a major argument outside the WAO in the parking lot because the employees have not been paid for some time; the WAO is reportedly behind on its meat payment to the AAA meat company; and a local publishing company says the WAO owes them over a thousand dollars for magazine ads that were not paid from December 09 to present.

Last week I sent a 14-page email to the OAG requesting the information be passed onto the WAO’s board of directors outlining a plan to help increase on-line donations. So far, no response from the OAG or the WAO’s board of directors and the web pages are still horrible. Folks are coming from various tourist sites, click to the homepage and then click right out.

I believe the WAO believes the OAG or USDA will simply take over so they can wash their hands of the place and the animals will all be okay. They are, once again, sadly mistaken. The Cryers are planning games with the animals’ lives and are not taking this situation very seriously.

The Cryers continue to make mistakes when it comes to running a non-profit. The latest mistake made was to hold tours on the weekends every hour on the hour from 10am-4pm. That means if someone shows up for a tour at 1:10pm, the potential donor will be told to return at 2:00pm for the next tour! Even if the potential donor is the only guest on the property! Ron and Carol Asvestas tried this tour schedule years ago and stopped the practice after a short time because potential donors rarely returned once turned away. What is worse, the Cryers did not post this hourly schedule on the WAO’s website.

And now, with no phone service, the WAO cannot even accept reservation for the tours held during the week. That means no money coming in for the animals.

I was told that Kim Myers shared with her husband that the WAO is worse now than when the Cryers first took over the facility. Gee what shock.

On Sunday, I had someone go in on a tour to check on the animals. So far, the small exotic cats were still there, but are scheduled to leave soon to Oregon (Wildcats Haven).

As far as I know, the animals are okay, but I was told last night that Stericycle was at the WAO. This is the company that picks-up dead animals and other medical waste material. I have no idea what animal(s) died, so I am waiting for the pictures from the person who went to the WAO on Sunday. The arrival of the photos is taking forever!

It is no secret that the OAG attorney on the case is getting ready to retire and so no doubt would love to just ignore the WAO’s financial woes. The question is – how do I get the OAG’s office to do something that would benefit the animals – not hurt them further?

Do I need to go in person to Austin in order to plead the animals’ case? I am beginning to think so.

'Life is not the way it's supposed to be. It's the way it is. The way you cope with it is what makes the difference.'