You're  probably wondering why we always seem to have our paws in your pockets trying to get you to part with some of your hard earned money.  If you've ever looked these magnificent creatures square in the eyes, you already know why.  We are stewards of these majestic, noble beasts, and at EARS, we take that responsibility to heart.  It is our duty to try and right the wrongs that were inflicted upon them, or at least make their lives now, as safe, happy and good as they can be, considering they are in "jail" instead of the "humans" that beat, neglected, starved and mutilated them.   

Some people say, well, they shouldn't be in captivity, why don't you just set them free? We wish it were that easy, because being free, really free, back in the wild, with no limits on how far you can run, where you can splash in any stream you want, can romp in the grass and play with whom you want, well, that would be ideal, yet it is not realistic.  You see, all of our big cats we have at EARS, have been born into captivity.   They would have a difficult time making it on their own in the true wilderness.  The odds today, would be stacked against them even more because poachers sneak on reserves to kill them for their body parts.   You do know that there are not many tigers left in the wild?  Three subspecies have already gone extinct, with the others not far behind.  

The human race.  Doesn't it make you wonder what we're racing towards when "humans" maim and kill God's innocent creatures?  So reality is, the next best thing to being free, is a safe, secure, loving home at a facility such as EARS, where they get plenty to eat, medicine if they need it, people that spend time with them.  These cats and all the other animals here know they are loved.  You can see it in their eyes.  You also can see the love and appreciation they have for their rescuers.
  
Long story short, it takes a lot of money to run a sanctuary. We want our residents to have the best quality of life possible.  Here's the short list of things that cost money every day:
Food, cold storage of food, help to prepare and serve the food.  "Leftovers" eventually come out the other end that have to be cleaned up.  Dens and turnouts are washed down and disinfected daily.  Imagine cleaning your domestic cat's litter box every day, if he weighed 300-800 pounds and consumed around 20 pounds of meat a day!  We have many mouths to feed so, of course, there's lots of shoveling!  There's always on-going maintenance of the fencing, shelters, and grounds upkeep.  

I could go on but you get the picture.  The work is physically demanding and is never-ending, yet it is a labor of love and never thankless.  All you have to do is look into the animals eyes to know they're grateful to be cared for and loved.  It is truly an honor to be able to interact with these beautiful angels on earth. 

Mahatma Gandhi  once said,  "The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. I hold that, the more helpless a creature, the more entitled it is to protection by man from the cruelty of man"

"Savannah Sketch - Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons "Attribution 3.0" http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/" Please visit Kevin's website www.incompetech.com

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