feline conservation center

since i mentioned the fcc, the residents there are next up. i don't have alot of photos from there for one main reason, the enclosures there are so well landscaped for natural habitat, often when it was open i wouldn't see any of the residents. the photos posted are from my two recent visits and mostly of ming wah. ... ming wah is the female snow leopard. she is seventeen and was born on 5.19.92 at the sfzoo. she was an active and successful member of the species survival plan (ssp) for many years, but becuz of age she is no longer breeding. ... her neighbor is rigel, a male snow leopard who was brought there as an intended mate. i actually saw him out for the first time yesterday, he is a beauty too! his fur seems to have a more tan coloring, where ming wah has the traditional white. he seems very into her and playful. he was watching her closely and doing a bit of play stalking from his enclosure which is adjacent but divided by a fence. ... the three fishing cat siblings are, sunfish, angelfish and goldfish. they were born at fcc on 6.14.03 ... the ocelot family includes the female inca (b. 12.19.04 at sfzoo) and male diego (b. 11.17.03 in florida), who are the parents to all four of the male cubs there. one pair, gustavo and ricardo born 5.19.07 and the other pair, santo and frisco in april. ... photos are of ming wah, one of the fishing cats and the juvenile ocelots.

june member morning

my blog plan was to do resident profiles before going wide publicly, but i haven't gotten that far and i want to comment on this am's event held in the feline conservation center. the fcc has been closed for about a year/half now and it really is too bad for all the cat lovers, becuz you really do get to see some beauties in a great environment. the fcc was established as a breeding environment (i believe). the current residents include two snow leopards (once intended mates), three fishing cat siblings and and an ocelot family that includes parents, two juvenile brothers and a pair of ten week old boys. i was lucky enough to get a private visit a couple months ago (thankx! to katheryne) and see ming wah (female snow leopard) get fed by keeper allison (thankx!). that was a treat, but as the fcc is a special place, i was given another treat today. after the event was over, my friend andie and i, along with another pair were invited by keeper hilary (thankx!) to stay and get a peek at the ocelot cubs (who weren't visible during the event)!! she brought us into the outer enclosure and opened the nesting box where mama inca and her two babies were! there is fencing at the opening and they were about three feet from us! these are my best shots (open full view for best viewing) as we weren't allowed to us flash (even though mine went off accidentally once! sorry!). it was very special and i'm grateful for the experience.