SAN DIEGO — Four big cats will now live safe, dignified lives after they were rescued from a defunct drive-thru roadside zoo in northeast Oklahoma.

Rescue partners include the AZA-accredited Oakland Zoo in Oakland, and the globally accredited big cat sanctuaries Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge in Eureka Springs, Arizona, and Lions Tigers & Bears in Alpine, California.

They all collaborated to rescue the two tigers, one lion and one tiger hybrid from the Oklahoma facility that was once opened to the public and offered cub-petting and photo opportunities.  

The facility was cited and shut down by the USDA in 2008 after multiple safety and welfare violations. The four big cats rescued were the sole remaining animals at the abandoned facility.

All of the rescued animals were female and declawed, a standard practice in the cub-petting industry.

“Declawing cats. There’s no reason for it. It’s super painful,” Bobbi Brink of Lions Tigers & Bears said. “It’s like cutting, you know, behind your knuckle. And the pain for the big cats is, as you can see, it hurts, and it’s for a lifetime.”

Kallie the tiger is making her permanent home at Lions Tigers & Bears with Brink and her team.

Keeper Lorenzo Vasquez has a proven strategy for getting her to trust them and realize she is safe.

“We work slowly and quietly,” Vasquez said. “We approach her with real caution at first, and we just move doors slow. We try not to make any loud noises, no equipment. Make sure that she knows she’s a good girl.”

Oakland Zoo and Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge conducted on-site animal evaluations for all four big cats, and Lions Tigers & Bears used its state-of-the-art, self-contained animal rescue hauler to transport three of the big cats to California.  

Each facility will provide these big cats with a proper habitat enclosure, species-specific diets, veterinary care and more, using the highest standards of care as is required by the American Zoos and Aquariums and the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries, a certification held by only the top sanctuaries in the nation that provide lifetime care for rescued animals — including Lions Tigers & Bears and Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge.  

Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge, Lions Tigers & Bears and the Oakland Zoo encourage support for reputable animal sanctuaries and facilities and advocacy for the Big Cat Public Safety Act, which places much-needed restrictions on big cat private ownership and contact with the public.  

“Being their voice so that the future can get better, and there’s not as many animals to rescue,” Brink said. “And don’t support the roadside zoos. Whatever you do, please don’t support the roadside zoos.”