not to beat a dead horse... (Scranton, Oklahoma: landscaping, neighborhood, wedding)

[scrantonluna]

Just to show we are fair here, I want to point out that today's edition of the Times has a volley of letters in defense of the center.

I was unable to listen in to the radio program on Thursday, anyone catch it?

[scrantonluna]

Well the letters to the editor continue, I think this one pretty much sums up the common sense approach:

Short-term relief

Editor: I don’t believe that any of the letters in opposition to the placement of the tiger cubs at the Genesis Wildlife Center were critical of Marge Miller or the staff at the center.

I am certain that everyone involved in caring for the wildlife at the sanctuary is a caring individual who loves animals. I am also quite certain that those in opposition to the placement of the cubs at the center are also caring individuals who love animals and support their welfare.

What I am not certain of is that a more appropriate placement of the cubs could not be found. While I applaud Mrs. Miller and the staff for their efforts in rescuing and rehabilitating the animals housed at the sanctuary, the sanctuary should serve as a temporary shelter, and efforts should be made to relocate the animals to a more appropriate habitat.

CAROLE BATTAGLIA

DUNMORE

Did we ever find out if the land situated between Roaring Brook and Elmhurst Blvd. still belongs to Nay Aug? I would rather see a pole barn and some outdoor pens constructed there, at minimal cost, to allow some elbow room for the animals at Genesis. This would also pull them out of the public eye, not to hide conditions, but I think a more secluded location would be better for the animals. The zoo building could be used for temporary display of one or two animals, with pens modified for more room or specific functions.

No one has called me yet about Steve Corbett's show, so I'm guessing they did not discuss the zoo as stated on Wednesday?

[johnqpublic]

Would claws and paws possibly be able to step in and house some of these animals??? Its not the Baltimore zoo, but its much better than Genesis' facilities

[scrantonluna]

Originally Posted by johnqpublic

Would claws and paws possibly be able to step in and house some of these animals??? Its not the Baltimore zoo, but its much better than Genesis' facilities

Eh, my wife was just at Claws and Paws and she saw a few things that she wasn't too happy with.

[weluvpa]

Doherty pushed Miller to get those cubs, he pushed for a new "main attraction" at Nay Aug during the election. The GWC was it, the city can't even get the new grove built.

The name contest and the all the hype, but guess what mayor it backfired didn't it? The people of the city KNOW the conditions at the GWC and are suddenly not happy about the new cubs, isn't that right?

The problem is that few know that he was behind the cubs coming from the beginning. He called Miller the day after REba passed and asked her if she wanted to try and get some new tigers for the GWC because he knows that the big cats are the big draw.

He has made ALOT OF PROMISES TO THE GWC AND HAS YET TO FOLLOW THRU WITH ANY OF THEM.

I just hope that people are as critical of Doherty and his part in this, as they are of the GWC and Ms. Miller.

[scrantonluna]

Originally Posted by weluvpa

Doherty pushed Miller to get those cubs, he pushed for a new "main attraction" at Nay Aug during the election. The GWC was it, the city can't even get the new grove built.

Actually, look for the Grove to be finished by this time next year. I will be posting details in a few months.

[FightinPhils]

Originally Posted by scrantonluna

Actually, look for the Grove to be finished by this time next year. I will be posting details in a few months.

Just in time for election season photo op for Doherty!

Also look for more taxpayer-funded "Summer in the City" billboards next year with Doherty's face on them. Amazing those billboards always surface in a mayoral election year.....probably just a coincidence, hayna?

[scrantonluna]

That's not the motivation behind it, I'm not going to get into it now, I'll be posting info soon enough with more detail.

[Cat Girl]

My letter to the editor was printed today. Here is the complete version:

Mayor Chris Dougherty and Margaret Miller showed extremely poor judgment when they added two tiger cubs to the already overcrowded and poorly maintained Genesis wildlife “sanctuary.” Previous editorials have drawn attention to the unhealthy conditions at Genesis. I want to begin by expressing my agreement with these sentiments: the small concrete cages are cruel, unhealthy environments for the beautiful creatures that they contain.

But as bad as the living conditions are at Genesis, the problem with the recent adoption of tiger cubs goes much deeper. The cubs were acquired from a breeding organization called the G W Exotic Park in Oklahoma. A little research on the GW Exotic Park reveals some very sad facts. To begin, the GW Exotic Park is an unaccredited sanctuary. Its website proclaims that it is a member of the “United States Animal Sanctuary of America Association.” As this absurdly redundant name implies, this organization does not actually exist. There are only two organizations in the U.S. that provide accreditation to sanctuaries. They are The Association of Sanctuaries (TAOS) and the American Sanctuary Association (ASA). A phone call to the ASA revealed that the GW Exotic Park is not accredited and that its staff made up a fake accreditation in order to dupe the public.

Why, one might ask, is the GW Exotic Park hiding behind a false front? In 2006 PETA sent undercover investigators to the Oklahoma facility to observe the living conditions of its animals. Their report noted that, “GW has a record of animal abuse and chronic failure to comply with the federal Animal Welfare Act. During our investigation of GW last year, an undercover investigator witnessed that a lion was not provided with pain relief following the amputation of the stump of her leg after it was torn off by tigers, that a wounded horse suffered for days with an untreated broken leg before dying and being fed to big cats, that tigers were hit with a rifle butt, and that a goat had an untreated head wound.” Moreover, GW has received numerous complaints from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for violating the minimum standards of care set forth in the federal Animal Welfare Act. In January 2006, GW was put on probation for 18 months and paid a $25,000 fine to settle USDA charges that included “dangerous animal-handling practices, filthy transport conditions, failure to provide drinking water, insufficient staffing, and many filthy, wet, unsafe, and dilapidated enclosures.”

On the website for the Genesis Wildlife “Sanctuary,” Margaret Miller states that the purpose of her organization is to “help rescue exotic and endangered animals” from being abandoned, “thrown away,” or euthanized by their previous owners. In itself this is a noble aim. However, the recently acquired tiger cubs were not “rescued.” The GW Exotic Park has a long history of intentional and orchestrated tiger breeding, creating numerous litters of cubs each year, which in turn are traded and sold.

GW’s owner Joe Schreibvogel, who calls himself “Joe Exotic,” is a self-proclaimed magician. "Joe Exotic" hauls his collection of animals around the country to malls where he exploits them in his magic shows, while renting out baby tigers for birthday parties and weddings. GW Animal Park’s website boasts photo-ops and playtime with baby tigers for a mere $25. “Joe Exotic” needs a constant supply of baby tigers for his enterprise, so he simply breeds them. The surplus cubs end up in dismal homes, like the Genesis wildlife center.

Good sanctuaries do not breed or have accidental births. Good sanctuaries do not buy sell or trade exotic animals. The only organizations that should breed exotic animals are accredited zoos that work with the Survival Species Plan, a carefully monitored program that insures the continued survival of endangered species. There are over 5,000 tigers in private hands and pseudo-sanctuaries in North America. Sadly, so many of them end up neglected and abandoned by naïve pet owners and poorly run zoos. Currently, the American Sanctuary Association is desperate to find homes for many aged and abandoned exotic animals, including tigers. Margaret Miller of all people should know first hand the dire problem of unwanted and abandoned exotic animals. By acquiring tiger cubs from such a dubious organization as the G W Exotic Park, The Genesis Wildlife center compromises its credibility and only exacerbates the problem any legitimate sanctuary should be fighting to end.

Until The Genesis wildlife center shows legitimate plans to become an accredited sanctuary and create a viable natural habitat for its animals while adhering to standards that will prevent them from acquiring animals from breeding mills, my family and I will not support this organization. If these problems are rectified, I will gladly lend any support, both financially and professionally.

[mbs7]

Originally Posted by johnqpublic

Would claws and paws possibly be able to step in and house some of these animals??? Its not the Baltimore zoo, but its much better than Genesis' facilities

I tried, some time ago, to get one of the GWC animals placed at a better home--a reputable zoo was definitely interested. I later learned that when the zoo contacted Miller, she turned them down, saying "[that animal] isn't going anywhere". (I don't want to give the name of the particular animal or the zoo here because I don't want to get the reputable zoo embroiled in this whole mess. But they were very nice about it and told me they were "not impressed" by Miller and her operation.) (BTW, the animal was not a tiger.)

My own personal opinion is that Miller is viewing the animals more as "pets" than as "rescued" animals deserving of the best possible home. That would also be consistent with her attitude toward breeding. And she seems to expect the taxpayers to help her care for her menagerie. Further, judging from what we've seen so far, it seems that Miller has neither the expertise nor the judgment to properly care for her charges. As the acquisition of the tiger cubs illustrates, even if Miller had a lot more money and a lot bigger facility, there is a fair chance that she would just keep acquiring more and more animals, leading eventually to the same substandard conditions we've all observed currently. The resulting situation is terrible for the animals and terrible for the city. Concerned citizens really have to press for some solution to this problem before more animals are acquired or a GWC staff member, volunteer, or visitor gets hurt. I've already written one letter to the mayor, which was ignored. A friend of mine also wrote, and was ignored. Maybe if hundreds of people write, we might finally get some action. It doesn't have to be a long letter: just let Mayor Doherty know that you are appalled at the conditions in the center, worried about the safety of the center, and doubtful of Miller's ability to manage the center, even with adequate funding. It's time for the taxpayers to demand some oversight of the GWC.