Posts tagged "sanctuary"

Goat Skips Town for Greener Pastures

by Rebecca Quimby (Subscribe to Rebecca Quimby's posts): Sep 14th 2009 3:00PM Filed Under: Pets News

Photo: Farm Sanctuary

It's a story that starts off like a bad joke: Why did the goat cross the road -- or should we say, the Hutchinson River Parkway?

In the case of an emaciated baby Nubian goat found wandering in New York City on September 1st, he was most likely saving his hide from being sold at a live meat market. The east Bronx area isn't new to goats on the lam (sorry!) as two others, Isabella and Duncan, were also found in bad shape walking through the borough in July, reports the New York Daily News. The lucky refugees were rescued by animal control and are now living at Farm Sanctuary in Watkins Glen, NY. Paw Nation spoke with Farm Sanctuary national shelter director Susie Coston about how this latest goat is doing and his chances for rehabilitation.

Does the goat have a name?
Not yet -- we usually wait to see their personalities come out. He's been so out of it we haven't really gotten to know him yet. Just today he started talking and making some normal little goat sounds. We'll name him when we know him a little better.

How is he doing?
The mobile vet is checking on him, because he's still dehydrated. He doesn't have a good appetite, and he's on antibiotics for pneumonia. He's definitely loaded with parasites. He's emaciated and very weak and tired. We've had much worse pull through so we're hoping he will too -- he just needs a week of really good care.

He's only about a month old. He's a Nubian, so he'll eventually be about 200 lbs. Baby goats usually aren't mortified by the presence of humans, but these city ones are mistreated -- we always find them diseased and full of parasites. It's mind-boggling to me that they are sold for meat.

Why do you think he was wandering in the Bronx?

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Woman Shares Home With Lions, Tigers and Cheetahs - Oh My!

by Kristen Seymour (Subscribe to Kristen Seymour's posts): Jul 2nd 2009 12:00PM Filed Under: Exotic Pets

Photo: BARM / Fame Pictures

How many times have you watched wildlife documentary footage of sleeping lions and dreamt of snuggling up with one of them? Of course, all it takes is a scene of the same big cats ripping apart a water buffalo and that desire tends to disappear. But it sure hasn't deterred one woman in South Africa, who disregards any concerns about living amongst the ferocious felines and lets 11 big cats live in her home.

Riana Van Nieuwenhuizen shares her living space with four orphaned cheetahs, five lions and two tigers. And when we say share, we mean share: They climb in bed with her, prowl on her countertops, steal table scraps, and do many of the other things a typical house cat would do. In fact, they even play with her (small) dogs, and curl up with the pooches when it's time to snooze.

Van Nieuwenhuizen didn't just start bringing big cats into her home for fun -- she's working to prevent the extinction of these animals through Fiela's Fund Cheetah Breeding Project after being involved in "Friends of the Zoo" for over a decade. Van Nieuwenhuizen's first tame cheetah Fiela (born in January 2006) acts as a sort of animal ambassador to educate people about the endangered animals.

Inside Chimp Retirement Homes

by Rebecca Quimby (Subscribe to Rebecca Quimby's posts): May 27th 2009 2:00PM Filed Under: Exotic Pets, Photo Galleries

According to a census conducted by the Primate Rescue Center, it's estimated that there are 235 privately owned chimpanzees in the U.S. The same study, compiled by April Truitt, who runs the Kentucky-based center, found that the owners of about 70 chimps said they would give them up to a good home if they could.

The only option for these animals -- too wild to remain in a home and too domesticated to reside in the wild or even a zoo -- is a chimp sanctuary, also known as a chimp retirement home. Finding a home for a chimp isn't easy (the nation's sanctuaries are nearly full with more than 600 chimpanzees, Truitt recently told the Associated Press). Many sanctuaries have reported an influx of calls following extensive media coverage of Travis, a pet chimp that suddenly attacked Stamford, Conn., resident Charla Nash in mid-February.

But despite the struggles such centers face (most sanctuaries offer opportunities to donate or volunteer -- click here to make a donation to the Primate Rescue Center), chimp retirement homes continue to be safe spaces where domesticated chimps can live out safe and happy existences. We decided to peek inside a few.

Chimp Retirement Homes

Center for Great Apes
The Florida non-profit Center for Great Apes opened in 1990 when founder Patti Ragan learned that there was no place in the U.S. for a baby orangutan she'd been caring for -- who because of his background could not be cared for at a zoo or returned to the wild -- to live. The park's tropical forest setting resembles apes' natural habitats (with the addition of a super-fun-looking elevated tunnel and chute system for climbing and playing -- very Ewok village) and there's even a special needs area for handicapped and elderly residents.

Center for Great Apes

Chimp Haven
Located about 20 miles outside of Shreveport, Louisiana, the federally-funded Chimp Haven provides care for hundreds of chimpanzees who have retired from medical research, the entertainment industry or are no longer wanted as pets. This amazing facility is a product of the Chimpanzee Health Improvement, Maintenance and Protection (or Chimp) Act, passed in the final days of the Clinton administration. Its residents have it pretty good -- indoor bedrooms, expansive play yards, forested habitats, TVs and DVD players, banana smoothies...hey, can we retire here, too?

Chimp Haven

Save the Chimps
Save the Chimps was founded as a safe haven for 21 chimps, survivors and descendants of those captured in Africa in the 1950's and used by the Air Force in the original NASA "chimpanaut" program. (They were originally going to be sent to a biomedical laboratory in New Mexico.) In addition to rescuing these chimpanauts, Save the Chimps soon afterwards was able to take over the New Mexico laboratory and rescue the primates housed there as well. Now the chimps luxuriate in a natural environment in Florida, without threat of ever being sent to a lab (or outer space, for that matter).

Save the Chimps

Beekse Bergen
Funded in part by the Dutch government, Beekse Bergen, a safari park that houses over 1500 animals of different species, has in the last few years welcomed chimps rescued from research labs as well. Most of these chimps were captured as babies and confined to small concrete pens while they underwent medical testing. Their new keepers report that it takes them some time to feel comfortable exploring and playing like normal primates.

--Amy Shearn

Maartje Blijdenstein, AFP / Getty Images

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Camouflage Animals

Madagascar Day Gecko
The green Madagascar Day Gecko lives in the dry regions of forests in Madagascar and neighboring islands. They usually grow to be between four to six inches long. Their tail makes up almost half of their length.

Getty Images

Camouflage Animals

Argentine Horned Frog Reptiles
The Argentine Horned Frog, also known as the Horned Frog or Pacman Frog, originated in South America. The green and black amphibian, which can grow up to six inches long, is a popular pets and can live for as long as 10 years.

Camouflage Animals

Walkingstick
The Walkingstick takes its camouflage abilities to the next level by creating the appearance of a stick or twig to hide from predators. While they normally stand still, these insects are able to walk around as though they were a twig caught in the wind. They can be found in tropical forests or woodlands all across the world.

Camouflage Animals

Dwarf Puff Adder
Found in Nambia, the venomous Dwarf Puff Adder hides from the hot desert sun by burying itself in the sand, where only its eyes show.

Camouflage Animals

Stonefish
Often resembling a rock, the brown colored Stonefish camouflages itself perfectly in the ocean. With 13 venomous dorsal spines on its back, the Stonefish can cause tissue damage and respiratory distress, which can lead to cardiovascular shock if left untreated.

Camouflage Animals

Chameleons
Chameleons, the quintessential color-changers, can transform their skin color when their mood, temperature or the amount of light around them is altered. Their hue, which can vary from yellow and pink to brown and black, is also altered when they communicate.

Camouflage Animals

Green Anole
Often confused with chameleons, Green Anoles turn brown when they're stressed or sick. Found in the trees and shrubs of the Southeastern United States, these lizards are popular pets.

Camouflage Animals

The Eastern Wood Frog
The Eastern Wood Frog tricks competitors by changing colors to match its surroundings. Found in North American woodlands, the frog also has a dark black patch from its eye to the base of its front limb that can change colors.

Camouflage Animals