Emerson, a tiger, came from a roadside zoo in Missouri. It was shut down due to safety concerns after a volunteer went to the hospital with a bite wound supposedly from a dog, but actually from one of the zoo’s tigers.
text and photographs by Nick Pironio
Tucked away just off NC-64, between the town of Pittsboro and Jordan Lake, lies Carolina Tiger Rescue. To visit this 55-acre refuge for rescued lions, tigers, and other wildcats is to enter a surreal foreign land. More than 40 neglected or abused wildcats have found safety in this vast sanctuary, just down the road from the farms and churches that dot the otherwise-familiar North Carolina landscape. With their growls and roars, territory-marking scents, and majestic beauty, the place sounds, smells, and looks like a world apart.
The entrance to Carolina Tiger Rescue.
Carolina Tiger Rescue was founded in the 1970s as a research institute by UNC geneticist Dr. Michael Bleyman. His task was to breed keystone species (those that perform a crucial role in the life of a particular ecosystem) as a way to protect the population of those animals until their home habitats could support them once more. As time went on, the organization decided the need to breed wildcats was less important than the need to rescue abused and neglected wildcats.
Roman, a lion, prowls about. He came to North Carolina from a rescue in Ohio that shut down due to lack of funding.
How does a lion or tiger wind up in North Carolina and need rescuing to begin with? There’s an online market for these big cats, which are bred (often excessively inbred, resulting in deformities) to be sold for a profit. It’s made worse by the lack of state regulation on the ownership of a non-native species. Some counties in the state including Wake, Durham, Orange, and Chatham counties have made it illegal to possess these animals, but it’s usually only when these animals happen to be found – often in the wake of their owners’ brush with another law – that they are taken into custody.
A note that was attached to Elvis, a serval, or medium-sized cat, when his owners left him at the rescue. The note documented his care, which Carolina Tiger Rescue realized was inaccurate based on the animal’s actual health.
As I photographed the wildcats, many hobbled around in pain from arthritis caused by years of abuse. Some were declawed by their owners, or locked in small cages for long periods of time. Once-mighty creatures, they now live out their days riddled with aches and pains. Spending time with them – which I did several times over the course of the last few months – was both a humbling and disheartening experience. It’s no wonder the rescue, which employs 17 people, has a list of approximately 160 volunteers to help them care for these beautiful animals.
Fenimore, a tiger, gives a big yawn. He was rescued from the same Missouri zoo that Emerson came from.
But it’s not all sadness there. Many of the wildcats are still playful and energetic, despite their circumstances. Some even played a game of “hide-and-seek” with me as I tried to photograph them through the mesh of their spacious cages. Once, when I turned my back, a tiger named Madonna playfully pounced on the cage wall behind me.
Madonna, a tiger, eyes the photographer from behind a tree.
Still, they’re dangerous, and never in direct contact with any humans. And only half of the wildcats at the rescue are on view for what the organization calls “The Show,” which is what visitors see when they take a tour of the refuge. Those with anxiety or aggressive tendencies are kept out of view, and spend their time alone being cared for by the staff.
After emerging from her hiding spot, Madonna reclines in her rescue’s habitat.
Safety cages are scattered throughout the complex, and are used to protect people in emergency situations or any time a wildcat is moved.
Elvis, a serval, in a contemplative pose.
Tarzan, a lion, reigned over the first floor of a hotel in Mexico until he was one year old. When he became too large for that task, he was locked in a cage in front of the hotel that was 3-feet tall, 3-feet wide, and 6-feet long. He spent two years there, and now cannot stand up or fully extend his legs.
Tarzan curls up for a late-afternoon snooze.
Star, a cougar, gazes through a fence. Star came from a roadside zoo in Mississippi that was shut down due to numerous violations of animal welfare and human safety.
Aria, a tiger, was a privately-owned pet in South Carolina for 10 years. She became sick, and her owner’s neighbors called authorities, who contacted the rescue. She was found to have a pancreatic deficiency that required a specifc diet. The family eventually gave her to the rescue so she could receive better care.
The memorial gardens at the resuce, where each brick bears the name of a wildcat that has died.
A well-loved toy.
