Posted on September 25, 2010 by Alicia
http://wildcatsanctuary.org/blog/
The Wildcat Sanctuary welcomes our newest residents Sierra, Ekaterina and Zeus. These three are from Wild Animal Orphanage in Texas that is closing its doors. Read more about WAO and what The Wildcat Sanctuary is doing to help here. The keepers packed up the van and trailer and headed out on the long journey south. Titan, the tiger, was with us in spirit as his picture is on the sides of the van. Many heads were turning as we were driving down the freeway. However, there was one large and unfortunate complication for the rescue. The director was on her way to the airport when a deer jumped out in front of her. Our main sanctuary vehicle is now totaled, but luckily Tammy was not injured. It looks like we will be needing a new car along with all of the other expenses of this rescue. 
The sanctuary's vehicle after crash
Thankfully, that was the only accident and we arrived at WAO safe and sound. We got there early in the morning to avoid the Texas heat while crating and immediately checked the place out. WAO was once a reputable sanctuary however with lack of funds it must close its doors. It was sad to see all of the animals that would soon be leaving their home but as our own director Tammy Thies, is the placement coordinator we know they will be well taken care of.
Zeus was the most social of the cats so we decided to load him first. He was such a breeze, walking right into our transport crate chuffing all the way. He waited patiently as we got the two girls loaded up. Sierra was the stubborn one but gave a peaceful resistance at least. All in all it only took a few hours before we were back on the road. All three were wonderful travelers, sleeping most of the way.
It took 24 hours to get home and both staff and the cats were exhausted. But there was still work to do. We unloaded the girls first to their new homes. They are living next to Sabrina, another tiger. Ekaterina was the first to explore. At their old home they did not have any grass so the first thing she did was eat some. She also checked out all of the new smells that were left from Tasha, the cougar who lived their before.
Ekaterina experiencing grass in her new enclosure
Sierra playing with her new tug toy
Sierra checked out her den first, jumping up on top. It took her a little while to figure out how to get back down but soon she joined Ekaterina in the fun even playing with the tug toy. Their first full day went well, although Sierra is still not sure about the lions and their noisy roaring.
Zeus was next to unload. Due to a parasite infestation, Zeus will live in our quarantine area until he is healthy again. He was so easy going through everything. He is even living across from Salem, Lakota and Harley, who we took in last month from WAO, so he feels right at home. Once Zeus is parasite free he will be living next to Titan and Lilly and our three lions Asha, Aslan and Shanti Deva. Maybe some of his coolness will rub off on the lions so Sierra won’t have to worry so much.
Zeus on his new perch at The Wildcat Sanctuary
Thank you to all who have helped these three amazing animals get to their new home at The Wildcat Sanctuary. However, we still need help. We are giving them all we have but it is still temporary. We need to build new enclosures for all of them. They deserve the best we can give them just like all of our other residents. Please donate today to help us build their free-roaming habitats so they can be wild at heart.
This is a very unfortunate situation for all of the animals at WAO. This is a ‘do or die’ situation meaning if these animals do not find homes they will likely be euthanized. As advocates for exotic animals, The Wildcat Sanctuary, cannot let this happen. The director, Tammy Thies, is working diligently to find homes for all of the animals at WAO, and we are committed to the end. It is likely The Wildcat Sanctuary will have to take in at least three more cats. So please, for the animals, we need your help. Tell your friends, family, neighbors or strangers. Thank you all for you compassion and commitment.
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Based on the following comment: "She also checked out all of the new smells that were left from Tasha, the cougar who lived their before," it sounds like the Wildcat Sanctuary does not need to raise funds for Sierra & Ekaterina's enclosure since they are living in an enclosure which previously housed a cougar. And it appears the bobcats also are living in an enclosure that used to house another animal(s), so funds for this enclosure will not be required as well.
So why did the sanctuary solicit funds on its website so it could build new animal enclosures when the cougar cove was completed on/about August 27, 2010 for all of its resident cougars (16 in all) and the bobcats had a ready made home for them when the arrived?
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