Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
But todays article on the Nay Aug wildlife center begs the question of their priorities.
"After the death of 15-year-old Reba, a park favorite since 2003, Mayor Chris Doherty approached Margaret Miller, the center’s director, and said it was up to her if she wanted to get another tiger. Ms. Miller said she was undecided but quickly convinced by the overwhelming number of cards and letters from kids and visitors."
Do they simply want to rehab animals, or do they want to be a zoo... and pick up animals to be an "attraction"?
I admit I am not a big fan of the operation as it sits, I simply think its an outdated facility with little room for the animals allready there..
It seems pretty clear that they want animals that will be "attractions." This is obviously inconsistent with a facility that calls itself a "sanctuary." But then, we can just add this latest move to the long list of other behaviors at the GWC that are inconsistent with the purpose and goals of a good animal sanctuary. BTW, Ms. Miller does **not** seem too worried about the letters she gets from people expressing concern about the conditions at the zoo.
(Not realizing this thread was here, I started a new thread on this topic myself, called "New Tigers at GWC." I'll make any additional comments here, to keep everything all in one place, but anyone wanting to read my initial comment can see it at the other thread. Also, on the other thread, Scrantonluna commented on the fact that there are 2 cubs--a male and female--which brings up the issue of possible breeding of the cubs in the future. I don't know if there are plans to breed them--I certainly hope not!)
There's no reason a non-profit cannot have a cash register or an admission fee.
Admissions and cash registers, in and of themselves, are perfectly legit at a non-profit as far as I know. I've certainly encountered admissions and gift shops (with cash registers) at many museums, non-profit zoos, art galleries, etc.
It seems that the center has drawn the attention of PETA now, I wonder where this will go. It's such a sad situation with no easy solution. There's really no reason for the city to sink $ into the center when a 10 million dollar gift from the state 'may' come eventually, yet it really is hard to defend the current conditions. Certainly, not adding to the problem may have been at least a more sensible approach for the time being. Any suggestions other than posting sheep photos? I know I'll probably see one soon, weluv has degraded to canned doherty hate speach and photobucket.
There is nothing canned about it buddy. The GWC should LEAVE the city facility and RUN back to a private facility. They do not belong in Nay Aug, they are not a ZOO and the animals shouldn't be stuffed into cramped cages and undersized pens for the benefit of Doherty's political ambitions.
THEY DID NOT IN ANYWAY SHAPE OR FORM NEED TO GET NOR HAVE THOSE TWO NEW CATS.
Don't kid yourself Doherty pushed for those cats and he probably made some kind of backroom deal with Miller like he did when he asked them to come here originally.
These new cats are nothing more then another pawn for Doherty to use in his little political chess game.
I honestly hope that PETA comes down on them like pile of bricks.
You wanted suggestions well here it is....You and your friends in lackawanna whatever should goto Uhaul and get some boxes then haul ass back to the GWC and start packing.
It seems that the center has drawn the attention of PETA now, I wonder where this will go. It's such a sad situation with no easy solution. There's really no reason for the city to sink $ into the center when a 10 million dollar gift from the state 'may' come eventually, yet it really is hard to defend the current conditions. Certainly, not adding to the problem may have been at least a more sensible approach for the time being. Any suggestions other than posting sheep photos? I know I'll probably see one soon, weluv has degraded to canned doherty hate speach and photobucket.
Just so everyone knows, I'm not the one who alerted PETA (although I have been tempted from time to time ). PETA is a bit too extreme for me on some issues.
It seems, after reading the letter in today's Times-Trib, that it is Margaret Miller who has drawn the attention of PETA by going to a truly notorious facility to get her two tiger cubs. As soon as I read the story about the cubs, I googled the "G.W. Exotic Animal Park," where the cubs came from. Turns out that it's one of these places where people pay a fee to pose with lion and tiger cubs and get their pictures taken. This is cruel to the cubs for a variety of reasons, and in some cases has had tragic consequences for the people posing with the cubs. It's a practice that should really be outlawed for everyone's safety. Typically, these places breed tons of cubs, because once the cubs get beyond a certain size no one can pose with them anymore, and a steady stream of cubs means a steady stream of revenue. Needless to say, a lot of these animals end up being discarded in one way or another. Also, it seems that PETA is not the only one who has had problems with the G.W. Exotic Animal Park. The USDA fined them $25,000 for various violations of the Animal Welfare Act. Without more information than I have, it's hard to tell whether Miller rushed out to "rescue" these cubs, or whether she's essentially doing the truly horrible G.W. Exotic Animal Park a big favor by taking two unwanted cubs off their hands. No one should in any way be supporting the G.W. Exotic Animal Park. If Miller were bringing these poor cubs to a lovely home, then at least one could truly say they had been rescued. Unfortunately, their new home will be far from lovely. At any rate, PETA is truly angry about the G.W. Exotic Animal Park, and from what I can tell this is a case in which PETA is not being too extreme. If Miller did not want to call the wrath of PETA down upon her head, she should not have had any sort of dealings with the G.W. E.A.P. At the very least, it seems that this is yet another case in which she did not do her homework. At any rate, no matter where she got the cubs, it's pretty clear that anyone who would even think of adding two tiger cubs to the collection of animals at the old zoo is not using the best judgment.
Everyone seems to think that Ms. Miller is some sort of a saint. Whats her history like? Was she the greatest while at her facility in the poconos?
Maybe a little background on Ms. Miller will shed some light on the situation here. I wonder if she is any better then the place in Oklahoma?
Do we really know anything about Ms. Miller and the GWC, REALLY?
There are to many patterns here.
Maybe the USDA and PETA and the Human Society should be contacted to take a CLOSER LOOK at how things really are at the GWC.
Last but not least............Doherty is using these animals for political gain and thats it, if you can't see that then you are blind, blind to all that is going on in the city and blind to the way that the GWC has been nothing but a pawn for Doherty and his political machine.
Luna its not canned its the reality of the city, but hey when the sheppard calls the sheep come a runnin right?
This is what the tigers can look forward to for the rest of thier lives.......
This is what they deserve and should have, but they will never see this in Scranton. But hey Nay Aug looks great and Doherty is the best for bringing back the zoo, right?
There is nothing canned about it buddy. The GWC should LEAVE the city facility and RUN back to a private facility. They do not belong in Nay Aug, they are not a ZOO and the animals shouldn't be stuffed into cramped cages and undersized pens for the benefit of Doherty's political ambitions.
THEY DID NOT IN ANYWAY SHAPE OR FORM NEED TO GET NOR HAVE THOSE TWO NEW CATS.
Don't kid yourself Doherty pushed for those cats and he probably made some kind of backroom deal with Miller like he did when he asked them to come here originally.
These new cats are nothing more then another pawn for Doherty to use in his little political chess game.
I honestly hope that PETA comes down on them like pile of bricks.
You wanted suggestions well here it is....You and your friends in lackawanna whatever should goto Uhaul and get some boxes then haul ass back to the GWC and start packing.
We've been over this before; where would they run to? They do not have another facility that I know of, and even with all the support from the city, they are still supposedly short on funds, so how would they ever continue to operate? The sad truth is that many of the animals at the center are "second hand," in that they are not suitable for zoo purposes, and would probably be euthanised (sp?) should the center close; I don't think any of us would really want to see that happen.
I've said it before, and I will repeat it here, I really feel that Doherty has very, VERY limited communication with GWC, if at all. At the end of the day, GWC is still a non-profit organization, and a SEPERATE ENTITY from the city and park system, and I believe that is how the Mayor's office treats the matter.
So what's the solution?
People out there seem to think that Ms. Miller is taking care of the animals, but not well enough (space, enrichment, etc.). The bulk of these complains seem to be centered around the style and space of confinement. If the city digs in it's heels and invests some serious money at the center, everyone on here will be up in arms that we can't afford it. And even then, it's still not a city zoo, it's a non-profit organization that could leave town at any time, and can operate however they please. A risky gamble with tax dollars.
If Doherty comes in and finds a solution, it's branded a back room deal and a political ploy; if he does nothing, he's a monster for letting conditions carry on at a facility that is not owned or operated by the city, or even an extension of the city administration.
Sounds hopeful.
Last edited by scrantonluna; 07-25-2008 at 12:53 PM..
What was wrong with their former facilty? Why was the GWC so QUICK to come to Nay Aug AT THE MAYORS REQUEST!
Don't sit here and play off Doherty's involvement in the GWC. I'll beat dollars to donuts that he had urged Ms. Miller to try and find a MAIN ATTRACTION for the GWC and NAY AUG during his campaign year. The treehouse, bridge the NEW TIGERS will be in the forefront of his accomplishmenst over the last 7 years because they are the only things that he did.
If he wasn't so interested in the GWC then why was he such a part of the story about the new tigers?????? Why was his name in double point spacing and caps in the middle of the article when it was supposed to be about the new tigers and the GWC?
Lets not forget the DOHERTY pushed name the tigers contest.......Just another way to promote the park as a accomplishment and keep it in the news using the new tigers to do it.
SECOND HAND ANIMALS..........I didn't think that these cats, that are being taken away from their mother to come here and be used as pawns, were even old enough to be considered second hand. If they are so rare and only babies then I would think that they would have no problems going to a zoo or a center that is better suited to raise them correctly and help to preserve their RARE SPECIES.
What is wrong with these two cubs that they deserve to damned to a life of cramped and under funded spaces? I would think that if Ms. Miller truely cared about the animals the way that some of you want us to think then she would have said that they could not and should not take in these healthy cats that deserve a better place then the GWC.
Lets face it these are not some cats that were illegally raised or circus misfits or what not, these are two rare healthy cubs that deserve a chance at a good life.
I THINK THAT THE GWC AND MS. MILLER ARE ONLY CONCERNED ABOUT USING THESE CATS TO INCREASE FUNDING FOR THEIR CENTER. THE MAYOR IS ONLY CONCERNED ABOUT CAMPAIGNING ON NAY AUG AND THE NEW MAIN ATTRACTION. ITS A WIN WIN FOR DOHERTY AND MILLER AND A LOSING SITUATION ALL THE WAY AROUND FOR THESE TWO HELPLESS CUBS THAT ARE JUST ANOTHER SCRANTON POLITICAL FOOTBALL.
I gave you the answer....The GWC needs to start looking for new location(their financial mistakes and poor management are not our problem) and they do need to find a proper home for these cubs while they are young enough to place somewhere. The city needs to stay out of the animal business and DOherty needs to go away.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
). PETA is a bit too extreme for me on some issues.
