Don't make fun of me...
...because this, in my world, is HUGE!
The Marcan Tiger Preserve in Ponce de Leon, FL is an amazing place dedicated to preserving the Bengal Tiger (and all it's variations)> Also, it is where my tigers come from.
The Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo holds a contract with the Preserve so that we help to raise a few of their litters of cubs a year. These are MY cubs, Sheena, Bandipur, Yovana, Venus, Indira, Fatima, and Ussuri. Last summer when I was put in charge of the cubs, this wasn't exactly cleared with the preserve. When they showed up on a random visit one day, and I was in doing a Tiger Encounter, things could have gotten very interesting. Instead, they stood outside and watched (with my heart pounding out of its chest thinking I would be on a plane in an hour) and then came and talked to me after the guests left. Instead of being horrified at an intern working so closely with their cubs, they told me I had a gift for tigers in that I loved them so much, and that they obviously loved me in return. This was one of the greatest moments I had at the Zoo.
Today, one of their lead tiger men, Jerry, added me as a friend on Facebook. Laugh all you want at how excited I am over this but it's a BIG DEAL! These people do what I dream of doing, and have such a deep connection with their tigers that I will forever be in envy. They travel over the country, teaching people about Tigers, showing them what amazing creatures they are, and encouraging them to help. Did I mention these tigers are AMAZINGLY HAPPY, healthy, and have more litters of cubs then another preserve could dream of? (The number one sign of a healthy environment and animal is reproduction.)His adding me on Facebook means that he remembers me. It means that he might like me. It means I have an IN. I would do anything to work with these people and developing a friendship with them now, having them trust me now, will weigh heavily in my favor when I graduate and it comes time for me to follow my career dreams.
So laugh all you want, but this is a big deal. This is what I want to do with my life. Here's a picture of Jerry. Hopefully in future years, you will see pictures of me like this.
:)
The Marcan Tiger Preserve in Ponce de Leon, FL is an amazing place dedicated to preserving the Bengal Tiger (and all it's variations)> Also, it is where my tigers come from.
The Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo holds a contract with the Preserve so that we help to raise a few of their litters of cubs a year. These are MY cubs, Sheena, Bandipur, Yovana, Venus, Indira, Fatima, and Ussuri. Last summer when I was put in charge of the cubs, this wasn't exactly cleared with the preserve. When they showed up on a random visit one day, and I was in doing a Tiger Encounter, things could have gotten very interesting. Instead, they stood outside and watched (with my heart pounding out of its chest thinking I would be on a plane in an hour) and then came and talked to me after the guests left. Instead of being horrified at an intern working so closely with their cubs, they told me I had a gift for tigers in that I loved them so much, and that they obviously loved me in return. This was one of the greatest moments I had at the Zoo.
Today, one of their lead tiger men, Jerry, added me as a friend on Facebook. Laugh all you want at how excited I am over this but it's a BIG DEAL! These people do what I dream of doing, and have such a deep connection with their tigers that I will forever be in envy. They travel over the country, teaching people about Tigers, showing them what amazing creatures they are, and encouraging them to help. Did I mention these tigers are AMAZINGLY HAPPY, healthy, and have more litters of cubs then another preserve could dream of? (The number one sign of a healthy environment and animal is reproduction.)His adding me on Facebook means that he remembers me. It means that he might like me. It means I have an IN. I would do anything to work with these people and developing a friendship with them now, having them trust me now, will weigh heavily in my favor when I graduate and it comes time for me to follow my career dreams.
So laugh all you want, but this is a big deal. This is what I want to do with my life. Here's a picture of Jerry. Hopefully in future years, you will see pictures of me like this.
:)