Small Cat Crisis Relief

When the Big Cat Public Safety Act passed in 2022, it felt like such a victory. The relentless work of animal welfare professionals across the country had finally paid off. Congress voted to prohibit private ownership of and direct contact with big cats or any hybrid of tigers, lions, jaguars, leopards or cougars. This new legislation brought about many positive changes. It placed new restrictions on the commerce, breeding, possession, and use of big cats. In order to continue to possess these animals legally, the Act required individuals or entities to register any big cat(s) in their possession with U.S. Fish and Wildlife by June of 2023. What a win! Unfortunately, as with any epic battle underdogs are also revealed… or in this case, under CATS.

Today, in 2024, we are facing The Small Cat Crisis. Since the passing of the BCPSA, sanctuaries like ours have seen an enormous uptick in placement requests for small exotic cats. Black Pine, alone, has had more requests for small cats since January of 2024 than in the last 5 years combined. Susan, a Savannah cat, and Black Pine’s newest resident came to live with us when the facility she lived in felt they were perpetuating the small cat crisis by owning her. Susan was a previous ambassador animal for the facility. They were in free contact with her and used her for educational programs. Due to the increase in popularity of exotic pets, especially exotic cats, the education team of the facility wanted to change their programs to not show certain animals in a “friendly” or “pet-like” manner. Although she’s not considered a “big cat,” the Big Cat Sanctuary Alliance was their only hope for help. The alliance reached out to Black Pine, and Susan came to live with us this April. She is housed next to Whiskey, an African Serval, who came to us in February of this year after a private owner decided he wasn’t an ideal pet. When humans purchase these legal-to-own exotic animals and discover they are not suitable pets, the crisis is exacerbated as they begin their search for placement for that animal.

Sanctuaries across the country are frequently turning away small exotic cats due to the lack of space available to properly house them. When a true sanctuary can’t be found, these animals become at risk of ending up in roadside zoos or worse. In response to the small cat crisis Black Pine Animal Sanctuary has begun construction on a brand new small cat habitat, and we need your help! The new habitat will safely house 4-6 small cats and is complete with indoor/outdoor access and plenty of space for exercise, enrichment and the REST of their lives. Completing the outside portion of this habitat will take $20,000. We are asking our generous supporters to consider a gift that will help us meet this desperate need.