Showing posts with label Carole Baskin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Carole Baskin. Show all posts

Tuesday, 25 April 2023

2023 Carole Baskin and Nathan Winograd are America's two top animal advocates

I am going to have the temerity to name America's two greatest animal welfare advocates as at 2023. They are Carole Baskin and Nathan Winograd. And neatly, we can divide their efforts into two camps. 

Carole Baskin is an animal advocate for cats, specifically the big cats, wild cats in general and even wildcat hybrids (she hates the idea of creating wildcat hybrids). 

And on the domestic cat side, Nathan Winograd, has been and continues to be a tireless campaigner for the rights of rescue animals in America's shelters and pounds.

Baskin and Winograd
Baskin and Winograd. Image: MikeB based in images in the public domain.

Carole Baskin

You might know that she campaigned relentlessly for an improvement in welfare of big cats. There were far too many at private zoos all across America. America was and still is - until the Big Public Safety Act fully takes effect - the nation where there were the greatest number of big cat 'pets' in private zoos.

Join us in celebrating the passage of the Big Cat Public Safety Act which banned contact with big cats and their cubs, and phases out private ownership of big cats! We have campaigned for this change since the 90s and on Dec. 20, 2022 it was signed into law!  This is the first step to saving wild cats, in the wild, where they belong. - Carole Baskin on BCR at May 2023.

There are an estimated 20,000 big cats kept in private ownership in the US. Carole Baskin's rescue center in Florida, Big Cat Rescue (BCR), picked up some of the pieces of bad big cat ownership. 

With her job effectively done she is now selling BCR and finding alternative outlets for her passion to improve animal welfare. The substantial money that she will raise will be used in projects I understand.

Carole Baskin, almost single-handedly, instigated and forced through the enactment of the Big Cat Safety Act in the UK. It is she who has saved the abuse of so many cubs from roadside tiger and lion cub petting sessions. 

And the abuse that followed with the adults becoming commercially useless beyond a certain age so what happened to them? They were probably euthanised.

The horrible exploitation of big cubs has ended. Although Carole Baskin is the prime mover and shaker in ending the private ownership of big cats in America, we have to thank indirectly a man who is currently in jail for conspiracy to murder Carole Baskin. His name is Joe Exotic. He was the biggest private zoo owner in America at one time.

He hates Carole Baskin because she was so strongly against his kind of operation. His presence motivated her. He hated her so much that he conspired to kill her. And he was found out and was successfully prosecuted for that conspiracy and animal abuse offences.

Carole Baskin triumphed over the private zoo brigade. What a woman.

Big Cat Safety Act

Registration: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service of America announced on 18 April 2023 that individuals who own big cats which includes cougars and hybrids of the species must register them with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife service by the end of the day on June 18, 2023. That is in order to comply with the requirements of that act.

Current owners can keep their animals provided they are registered as per the act and provided that they abide by state and federal regulations. But once the animal's life has ended, that person will no longer be able to own and/or possess a big cat.

The act allows existing owners to continue with ownership until their zoo inventory no longer exists because of the end of the lifespans of these animals.  Of course, it does not apply to bona fide zoos and other authorized establishments.  It applies to John Doe, the individual who fancies possessing a big cat.

Nathan Winograd

He is a great man who has fought tirelessly for a no-kill policy in all of America's animal shelters and pounds. He believes that it is possible for an animal shelter to greatly improve their rehoming of animals in their charge. 

He believes that it is possible to not euthanise any or hardly any animals at shelters (90% save rate is the target) provided the administrators use all means possible to both prevent taking in rescue animals and facilitate the adoption of those animals.

By preventing intake, I don't mean physically preventing it. I mean that they should do all they can to improve cat and dog ownership in the area where they operate. There are two sides to the cat and dog rescue situation. 

There are those that abandon their cats and dogs when they don't need to or they shouldn't and there are those that don't adopt those cats and dogs because they're rather buy a purebred cat or not adopt.

It's down to the people involved in organising animal shelters to tackle both those challenges in my view. In the UK, for instance, there has been a surge in adoptions i.e. purchases of purebred cats over rescue cats during 2022. According to Cats Protection, 38% of people adopted cats during 2022 adopted a purebred cat.

The point is this though that Nathan Winograd continues through his newsletters, speeches and website to improve the running of animal shelters in America to save lives.

PETA

There is one aspect of Mr Winograd's argument that I disagree with, however. He hates PETA and believes that it is an organisation which kills cats unnecessarily. Winograd and PETA have entirely different point of view on some important aspects of animal rescue. I think they should work together by finding common ground.

However, both PETA and Winograd have very strong views which means that it is unlikely they will be able to find common ground.

Tuesday, 20 December 2022

Carole Baskin sums up the advantages of the Big Cat Public Safety Act, now US law


 I am one of those people who admire Carole Baskin tremendously. She has spent 30 years of her life ensuring that this new law, the Big Cat Public Safety Act, comes into force. In the video she tells us that it passed Congress but since then it's been signed off by President Joe Biden and therefore it is now law in the USA.

Note: Come on guys and ladies 😒😢. Judging by the very small number of views of this page almost no one is interested in this and yet it is of major importance in animal welfare in the US. It is huge and a great achievement by Carole Baskin and the others who pushed this law through the legislature.

It tackles two major aspects of big cat ownership. Firstly, it prevents big cat ownership falling into the hands of private individuals where the cats are often mistreated and abused. Carole Baskin in another video says that countries like the UK banned this form of big cat ownership in 1970. She is upset that America has taken until now, 50 years later, to do the same thing.

And secondly, it stops the abuse of big cat cubs in photo sessions and other uses. There are two aspects to be cub abuse. They are torn from their mothers and we don't know the back story to this and how many cubs die in the process et cetera. And secondly when they grow up and become adults they are shipped off to private individuals where they become pets and where they can be mistreated.

"This became the last chance. If it hadn't passed this year I don't think it would have passed with the kind of Congress we have set up for next year. I really think this is the first step to saving the tiger in the wild. And when I say the tiger, I mean the lions, the leopards and everybody because they're all critically endangered." - Baskin

She says that in 20 years' time there will be no big cats in private ownership in the US. It will take that long because the law does not force existing big cat owners to give up their cats. The cats will have to die out. And there will be a while during which the country will have to adjust to enforcing the Big Cat Public Safety Act.

That's going to be a big issue as to how it is enforced and Carole Baskin states that there will need to be a registration process. I presume this applies to existing owners so that they can be tracked and monitored to prevent them adopting and buying further big cats against the law.

There are so many big cats in private ownership in the US that it is going to be difficult to enforce the law. These are backyard private zoos where the animals are often effectively mistreated and treated as "pets".

On so many occasions the police, the first responders, have had to deal with escaped big cats where they've terrorised the public and on occasions they've been shot. This need not happen and going forward it won't happen in the US. The new law protects the public and the cats.

It's been a long time coming. Carole Baskin has many enemies and they are all in the business of abusing big cats for profit. Such is the hatred of her enemies of her that one of them, Joe Exotic, planned to kill her. For that crime he is now serving a life term prison sentence.

Single-handedly it seems she totally unpicked and demolished this objectionable and extensive big cat abuse business in the US. Big cats are vulnerable to abuse because they are very popular. Because they are popular abusers want to breed them to exploit them.

That, over time, will entirely come to an end thanks to the 30 year effort of Carole Baskin. She is the founder and owner of Big Cat Rescue. There are still people who hate her. She is not easily intimidated.

She speaks very eloquently about protecting the wild cats. This new law will also help protect the wild cats living in the wild. She makes the point that today, in the USA, if a person has a piece of jewellery containing a tiger tooth, they can't be stopped and arrested because that tooth may have come from a pet tiger in a private zoo.

But in the future a person carrying such an ornament will be arrested hopefully because it will have come from the wild and to trade in wild tiger body parts has been illegal for many years. That, by the way, is another story because the enforcement of laws preventing the trading of wild species body parts is appalling.

It's critical that the Big Cat Public Safety Act is enforced effectively. A good law without proper enforcement is a bad law.

Wednesday, 3 August 2022

Big Public Safety Act passes U.S. House (278-134) thanks to Carole Baskin and supporters

NEWS AND COMMENT - USA: The Big Public Safety Act is legislation which Carole Baskin of Big Cat Rescue (BCR) has pushed with great commitment for a very long time. It is her legislation. Her baby and it is vitally needed in the US. She has seen first-hand the abuses to which captive big cats and smaller wild cat species are subjected to by people who like to possess them as pets but are unable to truly care for them. This is an abuse of these cats and I sense that Carole Baskin's focus is on the welfare of the cats whereas this legislation also protects owners and the public.

Carole Baskin has campaigned tirelessly for the Big Cat Safety Act her legislation
Carole Baskin has campaigned tirelessly for the Big Cat Safety Act her legislation. She is a great woman although she has her detractors. Strong women annoy weak men. Image: Instagram.

In amending the Captive Wildlife Safety Act, it prohibits future possession and breeding of lions, tigers and other big cats in the exotic pet trade. It targets privately-owned animals with exemptions for zoos accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, sanctuaries, universities and travelling circuses.

Current owners i.e. private owners, of these animals have been 'grandfathered' which means they can go on as they were until the animals die as I understand it. These owners are required to register the animals with the USDA.

The bill is urgently required in order to keep big cats safe and away from abusive circumstances. And often they pose a serious risk to the safety of the public and the owner. I believe that Carole particularly detests the abuse of big cat cubs as photo props at roadside businesses.


Around 10,000-20,000 big cats are currently owned as pets in the US, it is said. Extraordinary. Or they are caged in roadside zoos and perhaps the worst of it is that the country's administrators simply don't know how many there are. And they don't know the conditions under which they suffer.

There have been 740 dangerous incidents involving big cats since 1990 in America.

This new legislation ensures that big cats can only live in secure facilities which can provide proper caregiving. They will be well looked after and will not be a threat to public safety.


My reading of this legislation and the campaign that came before it that it is almost exclusively down to Carole Baskin and her energy and commitment to get this job done. She's been mopping up the mess of self-indulgent people who like to have big cats as pets by rescuing them at her Big Cat Rescue facility for years. She now wants to take proactive steps rather than reactive which is the underlying purpose of this legislation.

Her recent elevation to celebrity stardom by the Netflix series Tiger King has helped to publicise her efforts. There was a silver lining to Joe Exotic's attempt to kill her. By the way his appeal to shorten his sentence has failed and he has been sentenced to a further 21 years in prison as I understand it.

Below is the impressive Carole Baskin requesting further support to push on with the legislation and see it home to enactment.
 

Wednesday, 3 November 2021

Carole Baskin's 'Cage Fight' is about what she does best: stopping the people who hurt big cats


For Carole Baskin the follow-up to the highly successful Netflix Tiger King series is going to be "Cage Fight". It is a two-part discovery+ special about her work as a big cat rescuer. She has fought against these abusive private zoo owners for decades it seems to me and as I see it, this two-part series will tell the world about her work. 

I think it's great for her because she was very disappointed in Tiger King because it painted her in the wrong light. Her antagonistic association with Joe Exotic tainted her, as portrayed by the producers of the series. She says that it turned out to be a reality TV show at best.

Cage Fight follows Carole Baskin and her husband Howard as they investigate private zoos where they mistreat big cats including those that belonged to Jo Exotic. As the world knows he is currently serving a 22-year prison sentence after a conviction for the murder-for-hire plot to kill Carole Baskin. He is seeking a reduction in his sentence and is awaiting the result of the hearing.

Carole Baskin took charge of Jo Exotic's zoo animals as compensation for a successful civil suit against him for, as I recall, defamation. In this new series the cameras explore Baskin and her team which includes a retired homicide detective, Griff Garrison, and Jo Exotic's niece, Chealsi.

The trailer on this page tells us that the kind of people who operate these abusive private zoos can tend to be quite nasty and violent. It is a dangerous world and viewers of the series can see Baskin's people being threatened and guns pointed at them.

Cage Fight will be aired on November 13, four days before the second series of Tiger King which airs on November 17.

Wednesday, 27 October 2021

Two experts attested that Carole Baskin's missing husband's will is a forgery

NEWS AND COMMENT: This is controversial because Baskin inherited millions it is reported on the BBC website ('Carole was left with millions of dollars'). And her former husband Jack 'Don' Lewis disappeared. Joe Exotic, accused animal rights activist Carole Baskin of killing her second husband Don Lewis, who went missing in 1997. It is strenuously denied and there is no evidence to support the allegation. And she has never been charged. But the sheriff's candid and confident statement puts the cat among the pigeons to use an appropriate analogy.

Don Lewis' children ex-wife and kids allege that they were cut out of his will and their inheritance went to Baskin (source: BBC). Personally I have a lot of time for Carole Baskin and her fight for big cat welfare in the face of a bevy of private zoo owning men in the USA who abused and abuse big cats for monetary gain. These private zoos were and are an abomination. Baskin inherited Joe Exotic's zoo to settle a successful defamation claim. Carole Baskin did not cooperate on Tiger King 2 as the producers behaved badly towards her in the first series.

Wednesday, 6 October 2021

Tiger King star Joe Exotic threatens to sue BBC over copyright

The BBC used a song created by Joe Exotic on their BBC 2 documentary Louis Theroux: Shooting Joe Exotic. They used a short snippet of the song Here Kitty Kitty, which the BBC claim is permitted under UK law. 

Joe Exotic
Joe Exotic. Photo: Mail Online.

Joe Exotic's lawyer, Brad Small, from the top US firm Fox Rothschild explained to The Mirror newspaper that their client owns the copyright of the song and that the BBC had not acquired a "master and synchronised licence" for its use. 

They further said that their client was unhappy because he was not getting the money for that licence which should have been applied for. They said that they are confident there will be a resolution by the end of the year. Brad Small says that his client was in fact furious and has threatened to sue for compensation.

Joe Exotic, who used to be America's biggest private zoo owner with numerous lions and tigers and other animals, is now serving a 22 year prison sentence for a conviction of murder-for-hire of Big Cat Rescue Owner Carole Baskin. He has appealed his sentence. Apparently, his sentence has been reduced but we have not been told by how much. Joe Exotic appealed to former president Trump for a pardon unsuccessfully. I believe to that he has also appealed to the current president for a pardon without success.

Carole Baskin was upset with the Netflix documentary series because it painted her in an incorrect light she claimed. For many years she fought against Exotic's excesses and abuses of big cats at his zoo.

ASSOCIATED PAGE:  With Doc Antle finished, Carole Baskin can now push on with her Big Cat Public Safety Act

Friday, 14 May 2021

Carole Baskin offers $5,000 reward to the person who rescues India the Tiger

Carole Baskin's Instagram posting (see embedded posting below): "Carole Baskin, founder and CEO of Big Cat Rescue is offering a $5,000 reward to the person responsible for the immediate, safe hand over of India the Tiger to a sanctuary that is accredited by the Global Federation of Sanctuaries provided that person's efforts with law enforcement is sufficient to convict both buyer and seller involved in the transfers of the tiger. "


The tiger in question is the one which recently featured in news media as it was wandering around West Houston, USA. It is a pet tiger. It was all over the news. You can read about it by clicking on this link.

Update

The tiger has been captured and transported to a sanctuary (May 17th).

Carole Baskin

What ever you read in the news media about Carole Baskin take it with a pinch of salt because so often they don't understand the true character and this misinformation gets bandied around the Internet where it tends to become fact but it simply isn't. Carole Baskin does a great job in rescuing abused and used wild cats. She is the founder and manager of Big Cat Rescue in Florida as you probably are aware. 

She starred in the Netflix series which was meant to be a documentary but according to her distorted the facts of her dispute with Jo Exotic who is currently languishing in prison for conspiracy to murder Carole Baskin! She has always taken the high moral road; focusing on rescuing cats whereas Jo Exotic always took the moral low road meaning he abused the wild cat species and other animals in his large private zoo. 

They are very different characters but they were painted by Netflix as similar in a long-running feud. That is a misrepresentation as mentioned. 

Please click on this link to see a range of articles on Carole Baskin. She is a significant personality in the cat world. She is a major force for cat welfare in the USA. I know that there are people who'll disagree but I am convinced that they are wrong.

I hope that you will learn about her and learn to admire her. I certainly do. She has fought against a lot of sniping and trolling by people who don't understand. There are many people who dislike her. Some people hate her such as the Jo Exotic types of this world who like to abuse animals for commercial gain. There are a lot of people like Mr Exotic in the US.

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