Wildcat Sanctuary partners with Lake Superior Zoo for Wild Pet ...

By Tammy | June 11, 2012 at 1:56 pm | No comments | Events

The Wildcat Sanctuary is joining forces with the Lake Superior Zoo to host Minnesota?s first ever Wild Pet Amnesty Day, an awareness and educational event focusing on inappropriate/illegal pets. The event will be held at the Lake Superior Zoo on July 21 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Amnesty Day coincides with the Wildcat Sanctuary?s No More Wild Pets campaign. The day itself is a no judgement informational event, not a surrender day for exotic pets. Wildlife rehabilitators, reptile and bird experts, dog and cat rescue groups, zoo staff and Sanctuary staff will be on hand to offer advice on where to surrender wild pets and how to choose an appropriate pet, but animals should not be brought to the zoo.

According to the Sanctuary?s director, Tammy Thies, organizations such as the Sanctuary and the zoo can have a major impact on improving the lives of millions of wild animals in the US simply by educating the public.

?Because there is little regulation, exotic pet ownership has turned into a multi-billion dollar industry,? Thies said. ?When a baby tiger cub can be purchased for less than the cost of a purebred dog, we have a serious problem on our hands. At first cute and cuddly, they soon grow into dangerous carnivores that are all too often destined to life in a backyard cage under deplorable conditions.?

These animals also pose a huge risk to the public. Thies noted that 21 people have died and 246 have been mauled by exotic cats since 2000. There have also been 253 escapes.

The zoo?s Director of Animal Management, Peter Pruett, said it was important the zoo partner with conservation and rescue organizations to educate the public on the wild pet ownership problem and the need to change the legislation that allows it.

?Most people do not understand the complexity of this issue,? he said. ?There are many, many breeders who exhibit and exploit animals at roadside zoos and malls. When they reach an age where they can?t be exhibited and aren?t cuddly anymore they are useless to them, so they breed more. There are few regulations and in some states, none.?

Pruett added that wild cats were not the sole problem. ?The problem is widespread, from boa constrictors, alligators, endangered birds, you name it. People think it?s cool to have unusual pets, but they often realize too late how dangerous and demanding they are.

cranberry sauce oregon usc la auto show powerball winning numbers powerball winning numbers uc davis pepper spray uc davis pepper spray