Big Cat Rescue

BCR, says the user description at youtube, is “an educational non-breeding accredited sanctuary and a registered non-profit 501c3.” Here is more from the user description:

BIG CAT TV is a close look into our day to day operations, the conservation efforts we support, and the 100+ feline residents of “Big Cat Rescue” in Tampa, Fl. USA

Join our Animal Lover’s social network site where you can upload unlimited photos, video and MP3s for free at www.ChatBigCats.com. Our videos (and yours) are much better video quality there.

Our Vision Statement: A world where the animals we share it with are treated with respect and caring and where their habitat is preserved to insure the indefinite future survival of these wonderful gifts of nature. We also hope the same principles of respect and caring will carry over to the way humans treat each other.

Fur Ball, the organization’s annual fundraising event, will be held in October. Wondering what to wear on such an occasion? Big Cat’s webmaster comes to the rescue:

We call the unique Fur Ball attire “Safari Costume Formal”. You can come in traditional formal attire, come in safari, cat print or jungle orientation costume, or any mix in between, such as part formal with cat print accessorizing. Be creative and have fun with it! Use your imagination – get wild! Costume contest prize is a week in a mountain timeshare! To see examples from past years visit www.bigcatrescue.org/FurBallPhotos.htm.

A statement by the founder of the sanctuary—worth reading if you doubt the need for advocating animal rights—can be found here.

Fur real

OK, here’s where I come out of the closet as an animal-rights supporter. PETA is running a campaign against Burberry and other companies that continue to use animal fur. Here’s part of a message I got from PETA recently:

What do Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, and J.Crew have in common?

They all refuse to use or sell fur. Many top designers and retailers have stopped using and selling fur for good as a result of constant pressure from PETA and our members.

Every day, PETA members fight hard for the animals who are maimed and killed for their fur. Together, we have made real changes in the fashion world and have spared millions of animals from torturous lives and grisly deaths. But there’s so much more to do—and so many more animals need our help right now.

In the fur industry, dogs, cats, raccoons, rabbits, and many other animals are commonly skinned alive, crushed to death, and painfully electrocuted.

As I’m sure you know, PETA will do anything—including take our clothes off—to get media coverage and the public’s attention in an effort to stop this cruelty. For more than 25 years, celebrities, PETA members, and other concerned animal advocates have joined us in the fight against fur. Many have even shed their clothes to announce to the world that they’d rather go naked than wear fur.

Activists of all ages and stars such as animal rights superhero Pamela Anderson, as well as many other celebrities, have taken a stand for animals by posing in PETA’s “I’d Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur” ads. Recently supermodel Janice Dickinson and 30 other models made news when they hit the streets of Hollywood stripped down to their undies and holding signs with the message that wearing fur is heartless and cruel. You can see the photos here.

PETA’s groundbreaking and head-turning anti-fur ads are seen on taxi tops, buses, and billboards all around the world thanks to your support.

To see our latest celebrity anti-fur ads, click here.