PAW
PRINTS - July 2003
The
Voice of Fellow Earthlings' Wildlife Center, Inc.
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Happy Fourth of July! Our newsletter comes to you from
the sunny high desert where summer is in full swing. All
the "snowbirds" have left for the season while
the meerkats are just revving up for their favorite time
of year.
April, May, and June were very busy and fulfilling months
at the Center. Over the last months we have hosted adoptive
parents from across the nation and as far away as Australia
and Sweden! Meerkat fans abound worldwide!
Our heartfelt thanks go to all who adopted
or re-adopted a meerkat. We are also very grateful to
all of you who have supported the Center by purchasing our
T-shirts and books.
Lastly, we thank all of you who have benefited the animals
by donating your time and skills to various
projects. We are overwhelmed by your generosity!
Creativity in giving comes in many forms. We recently received
a very unique donation. An adoptive parent, who has continued
to support us through the years, recently sold her house.
As part of the sales agreement, she stipulated to the agent
that a percentage of the profit be donated to the Center.
Additionally, our angelic adoptive parent matched the donation
with her own funds. Because Fellow Earthlings' Wildlife
Center is a 501(C)3 non-profit facility we were able to
provide each individual with a tax write-off. The animals
benefited greatly from this stunning and very creative gift.
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Getting The Word Out
Public Relations
- We were honored to host Carol Fleisher and Lionel Friedberg,
both accomplished and award-winning documentary filmmakers,
who are slated to produce the cheetah documentary for The Discovery
Channel. Carol and Lionel flew out for the day to look at our
cheetah enclosure and discuss the logistics of the film.
- The Press Enterprise newspaper (Riverside, California) sent
a reporter and photographer to the Center for an extensive interview
that appeared as a front-page article on June 9, 2003. The interview
focused on the daily rigors of running a sanctuary for wildlife
and the challenges, time commitment, and cost of operating a
facility.
- Calvin Fan, an attorney and long-time supporter, won First
Place for his Meerkat collection at the San Diego County Fair.
The competition was "fierce," but he managed to triumph
over one Dalmatian collection and two Hippo collections. Not
only did he win for the "Animal Collections" division,
but he also won First Place for the whole "Collections"
division that included stamps, antiques, coins, etc. Congratulations,
Calvin!
Fur, Feathers, Paws, and Claws
Center News
- In our quarterly pond cleaning, Jake, our Anatolian Shepherd
(see the Focus on Jake in this issue) discovered a hatchling
red-eared slider turtle. We currently have 8 adult red-eared
sliders that have been rescued from various circumstances, but
we had no idea that we had a baby! One of our donors suggested
that we name him "Ninja."
- We received a call from the Big Morongo Preserve that is
located next to the Center. A kind motorist had turned in a
turtle that he had rescued from the middle of the highway. The
Preserve's host wanted to know if we could take in another turtle.
Our family continues to grow!
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Jengo
and Nalo enjoy a musical interlude.
© Denise Robertson
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- In our constant quest to provide enrichment for our highly
intelligent meerkats, we have begun music stimulation sessions
that are modeled after select zoo programs. Timon, one of Fellow
Earthlings' original meerkats, was an avid music fan that had
a special fondness for music that included animal vocalizations
and nature sounds. We are currently experimenting with a tape
produced by Bob Weir (famed Grateful Dead guitarist) and his
sister Wendy Weir. The pair wrote and produced an enchanting
children's book called Panther Dream. The tape that accompanies
the book incorporates nature and animal sounds taken from the
rainforests of Africa along with instrumental music. Our new
music program has been met with standing ovations (literally!)
from the meerkats as they listen to the sounds of their native
continent. Is Mozart for meerkats next? (Wendy is one of our
adoptive parents and she kindly sent us an autographed copy
of the book.)
Cheetah Project Update
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The
enclosure is finished! Inspected, approved, and ready
for occupation!
© Denise Robertson
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On June 28 the service area for the cheetah enclosure was wired
for electricity by two of our adoptive parents. (One is a licensed
electrician.) Not only did the electrician and his wife do the
work, but they also donated all of the supplies. The cheetah's
service area now has a 500-watt Brood-Right heater for warmth,
recessed lighting in the service area and den area, porch lights
(very cute), wall outlets, and outside flood lights. Big thanks
to our Angels in Thousand Oaks, California!
Also, an Angel in Tustin, California provided the funds to buy
and install the shade/rain Ramada for the cheetah enclosure. Thank
you so much!
- We have received our final inspection from both California
Fish and Game and the USDA. Both agencies rated our cheetah
enclosure as "exceeding all standards."
- Terrie Correll, Assistant Director at The Living Desert, completed
the AZA (American Zoo and Aquarium Association) On-Site Inspection
of our cheetah enclosure. We're happy to report that we passed
this inspection, too.
- Jack Grisham, the SSP (Species Survival Plan) coordinator
for cheetahs, is assisting us in becoming a member of the SSP.
Jack is one of the top authorities on cheetahs and the conservation
of this critically endangered animal.
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David
Fagan D.D.S. and Kevin Leiske D.V.M. perform the annual
cheetah dental exams at The Living Desert in Palm Desert,
CA.
© Phil Wallberg
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- Kevin Leiske D.V.M., the veterinarian at The Living Desert,
Kim Clark and Jennifer Johnson (both Animal Collection Managers
at The Living Desert) kindly invited Pam Bennett-Wallberg to
observe the annual dental exams for their cheetahs. David Fagan,
D.D.S., the noted exotic animal dentist, performed the exams.
Dr. Fagan's clients include Siegfried and Roy's tigers, the
late "Bart" the bear, and many other animal stars.
In April Dr. Fagan and his wife visited our Center and inspected
the cheetah enclosure. We are happy to report that he was very
complimentary. We are thrilled that Dr. Fagan expressed a desire
to be our cheetah's dentist.
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Pam
Bennett-Wallberg observes Sabi, the cheetah, recover
from anesthesia.
© Phil Wallberg
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- Denise, our volunteer Director of Development, recently returned
from a three-week business trip to South Africa and Zimbabwe.
Denise visited the Cheetah Outreach Center in Stellenbosh, South
Africa. She spent the day with their Director of Education and
was given some valuable information about their ambassador cheetah
program. We plan to incorporate some of this information into
our own ambassador program. Denise was provided with a special
"behind the scenes" tour of the Center and she also
enjoyed a "nose to nose" encounter with one of their
ambassador cheetahs. Fellow Earthlings' Wildlife Center is a
proud supporter of The Cheetah Conservation Fund in Namibia
and we also hope to continue to work with the Cheetah Outreach
Center in an effort to save the wild cheetah.
Cheetah Wish List
Although the enclosure is technically completed and has been
approved by all agencies, we would still like to provide the cheetah
with all the "creature comforts."
Thanks to your generosity there are only three more items on
our Wish List.
- Landscaping -- cat "friendly" grasses, bushes, and
trees for comfort and enrichment. $600.00
- Irrigation system -- to keep the plants healthy and to cool
the ground for the cheetah's comfort. $1,100.00
- Late model van -- for transporting the cheetah, dogs, and
humans.
Meerkat Trivia
Now that the hot weather has settled in for the season, the meerkats,
who store heat so well through their dark "solar panel"
bellies, reverse this process and actually dispel excess heat
in the same way. How, you might ask? Through a process called
"hearth rugging." So what on earth is "hearth rugging"?
Visitors to the Center are often amused when they see our meerkats
lying sprawled out on their stomachs with their front and back
legs stretched straight out. Although comical, this "lounging"
position is actually a behavior that cools them down by "unloading"
body heat to the ground.
The term "hearth rugging" was coined by zoologists
who thought the posture looked like a rug in front of a hearth.
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Suri
demonstrates what we at the Center affectionately refer
to as his "Flat Kat" pose.
© Denise Robertson
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Focus on Jake
by Pam Bennett-Wallberg
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Jake.
© Denise Robertson
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Last spring, as I sat in a meerkat enclosure with some visitors,
my husband, Phil, drove out the gate to buy a newspaper at the
Morongo Fruit Mart. 30 minutes later Phil returned and, as he
drove past me, I noticed a blonde sitting in the front seat next
to him. I wondered who the blonde was.
Our visitors, Karen and Hugh Dennis and their 3 year old child,
Katelyn, were preparing to leave when the little girl pointed
behind us and yelled, "Horsey, Horsey, Horsey!" Granted,
a lot of animals call Fellow Earthlings' Wildlife Center home,
but not one of them is of the equine persuasion. So, I thought,
perhaps, Katelyn had seen a jackrabbit.
We all turned and watched in disbelief as a palomino pony raced
toward little Katelyn. Fortunately, the pony stopped just short
of knocking the child to the ground. Then, the pony calmly sat
down and Katelyn threw her arms around it. As we collectively
breathed a sigh of relief we noticed that Katie was actually hugging
a very (very!) large, yellow dog. (Ah ha, the mysterious blonde
in the van.)
Karen asked, "Where does the dog live?" At that moment,
Phil appeared from behind the cottage and replied, " He lives
here."
Admittedly, his statement did not please me. After all, we were
raising a puppy for The Guide Dogs of the Desert, we were very
busy with the Cheetah Project, and we had lots and lots of other
animals to care for at the Center. Plus, I had an uneasy feeling
that I had met this dog before.
Two and a half years ago "Jake" was considerably smaller
so it was hard for me to realize that the 125 pound behemoth next
to me was actually the same dog that visited us almost daily.
We tried to discourage Jake's visits by sternly telling him to
"go home." But, he was enjoying himself too much to
stay away for very long. He regularly dug under our fence, romped
in the pond, chased the turtles, terrorized the cats, harassed
the rooster, and pestered the meerkats. All in good fun, of course.
Phil began to tell us Jake's "sad story." Evidently,
Jake had had four homes and got booted from all of them because
of various "infractions." Behavioral "issues, "
so to speak. The lady who worked at the Morongo Fruit Mart told
Phil that she was going to have to take him to the pound that
day if we didn't take him.
I knew it was hopeless. Jake was here to stay. So, I went inside
our tiny 700 sq. foot cottage and re-arranged the furniture to
accommodate our newest family member.
Jake, it turns out, is a rather unusual breed. He's (mostly)
an Anatolian Shepherd. Anatolians are originally from Turkey and
they are used to guard livestock.
The Cheetah Conservation Fund in Namibia, Africa has raised and
placed Anatolian Shepherds with ranchers to protect their livestock
from cheetah predation. The dogs don't kill the cheetahs but they,
very effectively, frighten the cats away from the flocks. Thus,
preventing the ranchers from having to kill this magnificent and
critically endangered species.
We wanted to have Jake participate in our Cheetah Educational
Programs because he would effectively illustrate what his breed
is doing to help save the cheetah from extinction. But, in order
for Jake to participate, we had to resolve his behavioral "issues."
Luckily, Jake was an apt pupil and he learned his lessons well.
In fact, he learned his lessons so well that he was awarded an
"ambassador's jacket" from The Guide Dogs of the Desert.
This is a very rare honor! When Jake wears his stylish, blue ambassador's
jacket he can go anywhere with us - restaurants, libraries, grocery
stores, post offices, anywhere.
I'm so glad the blonde is here to stay!
In closing this edition of Paw Prints, we want to acknowledge
the extraordinary people we have had the privilege of meeting
because of meerkats and cheetahs. From zookeepers to documentary
filmmakers to our adoptive parents, we are constantly amazed by
the caliber of people who visit here. You have generously given
us your time, talent, and love. And, your donations have allowed
us to continue and expand our work. We are exceedingly grateful!
I
expect to pass through this world but once. Any good therefore
I can do, or any kindness or abilities that I can show to any
fellow creature, let me do it now. Let me not defer it or neglect
it, for I shall not pass this way again.
William Penn
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