Mission Statement
- To provide a responsible alternative to euthanasia for abused, neglected, and unwanted captive wildlife
- To educate people about animals in crisis, and how they can make a difference
- To work for the welfare of all animals
- To build bridges between animal sanctuaries, animal welfare organizations, zoological institutions, and government agencies
- To oppose cruelty in all its forms
Mission Statement Expanded:
Rescue: To cope with the growing number of non-adoptable companion animals and the unethical and often illegal trade in exotic animals, sanctuaries are relied upon by government agencies and animal welfare advocates to provide homes for thousands of animals that have been abused, neglected, obtained or imported illegally, or have simply exceeded their owners' capabilities to care for them, as well as potentially dangerous animals that have no place in a typical residential setting. Each animal is evaluated individually and with regard to its species, and provided with ideal living environments and appropriate levels of socialization, enrichment, and human interaction, while maintaining the highest standards of safety, nutrition, and veterinary care. Rescue animals must not be bred, bought, sold, traded, or otherwise exploited.
Education: Educational programs are essential to the future success of the sanctuary movement. Internships and student staff programs train the next generation of sanctuary founders and directors. Education is also a preemptive measure against future animal abuse, and a means of generating an interest in animal welfare and the conservation of endangered species. While the sanctuary must be closed to the general public for the well-being of its resident fauna, a limited number of educational tours are permitted, particularly to school-aged children and college students. All tours are treated as educational tours, regardless of the participants, which may also include donors and members of the local community, however tours are not to be a primary activity of the sanctuary or a method for fundraising via gate receipts.
Animal Welfare: While the primary focus of the sanctuary must be the animals under its care, the welfare of all animals is necessarily connected. The caretakers of companion animals must be held to a higher standard of care, and every effort must be made to reduce pet overpopulation and feral animal populations through sterilization programs. Likewise the care of livestock and captive wildlife must come under greater scrutiny and a higher quality of care must be pursued. Efforts must be made to preserve wild populations under threat from habitat loss, pollution, poaching, and other factors of human design. The connection between captive wildlife and wild populations is especially clear in the case of traditional eastern medicine, where wild populations of tigers, leopards, bears, rhinoceros, and other species have been decimated to satisfy the market. As wild populations decrease, suppliers rely increasingly upon captive animals. Bears are already farmed by the thousands for their bile in China and Vietnam, and tigers may be next; numerous entities in the Far East have been discussing the possibility of farming tigers for their body parts for several years - a controversial proposition that has received very little international attention.
Cooperation: Sanctuaries, zoos, animal rights and animal welfare organizations, and government agencies tend to be suspicious of one another - a sentiment that is often well-justified. However, when working toward a common goal, these organizations need to learn to work together, whether in formal coalitions or through loose affiliation. Without deliberate cooperation, organizations tend to compete with each other to achieve the same goal, resulting in limited success and maximum expenditure of time and resources by all concerned parties.
Opposing All Cruelty: Cruelty can be defined as actions disposed to inflict unnecessary pain or suffering. Opposition to cruelty must not be selective; while our primary concern is cruelty to our target animal species, we must be prepared to actively oppose all cruel practices should the need arise.
Posted on July 11, 2006
