It is with much sadness that we let you know of the passing of another Wild One, one of Shambala's little known treasures. Kunta Serval. He passed away on July 31, 2010. Chuey noticed that morning that he was not eating and seemed bloated. Dr Anton was called; who is Dr. Bernstein's associate. Kunta was taken to see Dr. Anton and after test were done it was decided that surgery was the option to see what was going on internally.

Once Dr. Anton had him open he could see that there was a large tumor and it was attached to the intestines as well as the pancreas. There was nothing that could be done for him so Dr. Anton and some of the Shambala animal crew that were there all agreed the best thing for Kunta was to let him go. He was sent over to the other Shambala were all the Wild Ones who had gone on before were there to meet him. Maybe even Daisy as she had been one of his next door neighbors!
Kunta was born March 24,1994. He arrived from PAWS in Lynwood, Washington...he had been turned in by a private owner because he had bitten her daughter. He arrived at Shambala on January 18, 2000.
He shared his wonderful enclosure which was in the back of Tippi's house with Petey Serval and Bugs Bunny Serval; which is why they were not on the tour. He and his den mates had for neighbors Daisy Cougar on one side and Patrick Liger on the other.

Servals are native to Africa and can be fond in grasslands, thorn scrub as well as savannah woodlands, they can weigh up to 38 pounds and of the three Servals, Kunta was the largest. They also have the long ears for hearing sounds we can not hear as well as long legs to leap for prey and they can leap 6-8 feet in the air and catch a bird. Kunta loved to sun himself on his deck either with Petey or Bugs, even at night he could be found with one of his buddies but when it came to his meals he choose to spend that time eating with his buddy Petey.

We will miss this little known Shambala treasure.

Tippi's Letter to Daisy Cougar
December 7, 1991 - July 10, 2010

Daisy

Darling Daisy, I so want you to be running through the fields, climbing trees, patiently waiting to leap upon your prey, find your mate, having your cubs, and teaching them to live in the wild.

All of us at Shambala who cared for you these past 19 years hope you will be living the life you should have had.

It is because of very caring man, an actor, writer, I had known for many years, Gardner McKay (TV show “Adventures In Paradise” – late 60’s) who arranged for you to come to Shambala. He was living in Hawaii, and called me asking if we would give a 7 month old Mountain Lion/Cougar/Puma/Catamount, etc. cub a home, and explained the problems.

Daisy, do you remember being born in captivity? Or were you born in the wild and orphaned because a hunter had killed your mother for a trophy? Do you remember a long journey by boat or flying over the ocean? You lived as a cub in that beautiful place called Hawaii. However, because it is illegal to own or import exotic felines in that state, you never received the immunizations that would keep you healthy. Any veterinarian would have had to turn you over to the authorities; your new owner did not want to take that chance.

Daisy as a cubThe side effects of the cat fever you survived left you unable to control the muscle spasms in your little body. When you arrived at Shambala Trudy and I discussed your condition often, trying to diagnose how to help you. Do you remember taking several steps and falling over to one side or the other, getting up and trying all over again?

Trudy and I thought toys of different weights and materials would help to strengthen your little body. You were young and loved to play. We tried balls of all sizes and weights, Coconuts, small to medium “boomer” balls and bowling balls which proved effective. You would bat the ball so hard at times – when it hit my house it felt like an earthquake was taking place. Soon you were not falling over any longer, but the staggering and muscle spasms continued throughout your unusually long life of 19 years.

Daisy, you were one strong little lady. You never gave in to the debilitating physical problems life handed you. Whether it was Jaffra Tiger or Precious Tiger who was living next to you and regardless of how loudly you told them off they simply chuffed to you.

You innately realized that you had to be very strong, that because of your physical problems you would be on the top of the “hit list” of their instinctual dictates.

You are an inspiration of strength and at the same time an example of why wild animals should not be bred in captivity to be sold as pets.

We will all miss you, including Patrick, Bugs Bunny, Kunta, and Petey, and your vocabulary of chirps, whistles, growls and purring. It is the wish of all of us at Shambala that you are now “free” and living the life you should of always known and should have always been yours.

You are loved so much, Daisy. Everyone at Shambala sends our love and caring with you as we know you have crossed the Bridge. You will always be with us.

Again, with love, you will always be one of my favorite neighbors,
Vote for Chris Gallucci's new book, Elephant Man..The Journey in Blurb.com's People's Choice Photography Book Now! Voting ends August 20th, so Hurry! And tell your friends!

It is with much sadness that we bring you the news of our dear Kara Black Leopardess's passing. She was 24 years old and Shambala's oldest big cat. Arthritis was causing some paralysis to the back legs and with some hearing loss as well as some eye site loss, her quality of life was deteriorating . With Dr. Naditch and the animal crew discussing Kara's health and her quality of life all agreed it was time to let her cross over the Rainbow Bridge. Last Saturday May 29th, Kara was let go surrounded by all who had loved and cared for her.

Kara had been abandoned in sub-zero weather in a garage in Wyoming. She had only a small box to stay in and no heat. She suffered from frostbite on the pads of her feet and tail (approximately three inches had to be amputated). She also had some intestinal problems as well as being undernourished Through the efforts of the Wyoming Fish and Game Department, Shambala was to be her home and she arrived here in February 1988.
As can be expected she was very angry when she first arrived so Trudy Farley now Shambala's Animal Supervisor adopted Kara has her "rehabilitation project". Under her tender and loving care Trudy worked hard at getting all of Kara's animosity out of her by just sitting outside her enclosure and spending the time talking to her as well as bringing her own paper work to do. With this affectionate care, Kara made enormous progress and would come directly over to where Trudy was waiting and then roll over on her back. Then one day while Trudy was sitting outside of Kara's enclosure there was a tap on Trudy's shoulder! It was Kara wanting Trudy's attention! For Trudy it was such a breakthrough to see this reversal of attitude on the part of a formerly severely stressed wild cat.
Kara was never on the tour as she was never comfortable around large groups of people, however she did have several adoring Wild Parents who came to see her on Parents Day. Because of her story she was one of the Wild Ones that had the most Wild Parents supporting her over the years.
She was small as female leopards are but she was powerful when it came time to get her femur bone. She would come to the fence and jump up to help the femur bone through the feeding hole in the fence. We all would marvel how well she did this even as she got older and her arthritis slowed her down. Ramps were put in her enclosure as she got older to help her get on top of her den box. She loved playing with her boomer ball. She always amazed us when we saw her and I wondered if by some miracle she had the energizing bunny in her!

Dear Kara you will be missed by all of us but we will cherish the many memories you gave us.
"Have you heard? At the U.N. wildlife meeting last week they voted to reject proposals by Tanzania and Zambia to weaken the 21 year-old ban on ivory sales over concerns it would further contribute to poaching. Nearly 2 dozen central and east African countries came out against the proposals. Another victory for our side".
Busy Weekend in May
On Saturday, May 22, 2010, Shambala benefactors, the Shultz's, held a birthday party for their daughter Ally and brought water buckets being modeled by Shambala animal crew members and Vice President Chris Gallucci with help from Tippi, Trudy and the Shultz's.
Spring cleanup in liger Patrick's compound on Sunday the 23rd with the help of volunteers Chris Link and Dave Gainey.
Tippi and Chris Gallucci with local Sheriff deputy and Fire Fighter at LAFD event in nearby Agua Dulce on Sunday afternoon.
Our monthly Safaris are filling fast, as these pictures from Saturday the 15th of May shows! Get your reservations in early!
Spring Cleaning at Shambala...a sunny morning in mid-May brought out Rafael Perez, Dave Gainey, Chris Gallucci, Ann Adkins, and Thomas Ryan for some heavy-duty weeding.

Everyone at The Shambala Preserve, animal and human, are so very grateful for Mary Dudley, Dave Gainey, Susan Rodgers, and Luana Law for all hours they spent cleaning our tent to get ready for the summer tent stays.

 

Photo by Chris Gallucci

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