The beginning -- Nala was owned by a man that ran a petting zoo, before I got her. Nala had lived her first 3 months of her life in a medium sized car carrier. She slept in her own waste & ate from a bowl that was never cleaned out, only added to. Nala came to us with Rickets, Pneumonia, Taurine deficiency, & a Heart Problem, all due to Severe Malnutrition. She also had ulcers/sores on her feet and legs due to the waste and lack of space. We do not know if she will live or if she does if she will be able to develope normally with all that she has been through.

September 30, 1999 -- Nala's heart is much bigger than her body at present. She loves everyone, cuddles, rubs against you for attention, & purrs non-stop. Now Nala has a safe room she can go to to get away (not to be locked in), she has her own blanket to suck on when things get to be too much, and her own chew toy, so hopefully she will not chew on my things. She has to be watched closely because if she gets stressed or eats more than a spoonful or two at a time she can not breath. The vet said it will be sometime before we will know if she will live or die. We have a lot of abuse to over come. Lets hope that Nala's strength is as big as her heart.

October 14, 1999 --- Nala is coming along great. She has learned that people are the Law and even when she does not want to she has learned to listen to the rules. Like a kid she tries to push it and when caught tries to pretend she was not doing anything wrong. We have learned that Nala likes to play just like an ordinary House Cat. Only problem is she is a rather Large Cat and this can sometimes cause problems. A House Cat jumping into your lap is cute, Nala at 20 lbs jumping into your lap is not quite so cute, but when full grown I would not want it to be my lap she is jumping into. We try to think ahead to the time when she will be full grown and teach her now the things that will make her safer as an Adult. Since, she has been so close to people we can not turn her loose. She could be a danger to herself and anyone she might come across, so we are looking around to find a safe, but happy place for her to live out her life, should she make it. We all have grown to love her dearly and would like to place her where maybe we could go see her once in awhile. Maybe a place where there are other Cougars for her to play with.

October 30, 99 -- Nala died. The vet said that when we got her body well, her heart could not take it. So at the age of 4 months she died of a heart attack. We will never forget her. She brought a lot of joy and laughter into our home for the short time she was with us. Now she is in Kitty Heaven playing with all the other Baby Cougars there.

Did you know: All Mammals must have Taurine to live, but Cats are the only Mammal, which their bodies can not make/produce it. Big Cats like Small Cats must have Taurine for their Heart to develop. When Animals are not given correct nutrition during their growing years it can have very bad effects. Many of these animals like Nala never make it to Adulthood.

How can you help the Nala's you come across. DO NOT BRING THEM HOME, unless you know the correct why to handle them. When a wild animal is in a petting zoo tell the people running it you will not contribute to the abuse/neglect of animals. Tell them you will not bring your kids to any petting zoo, which contributes to this kind of thing. If these people cannot make money from these animals they will stop doing it. Money is why they do this and Money is what will make them stop. As long as they can get the dollars for it they will keep on abusing/neglecting animals. Goats, Sheep, Donkeys, Ponies, are nice safe hands on petting zoo animals. Wild animals belong in a Zoo where they can be kept safely or in the Wild.

If you do not agree with this think of Nala. My farm critters love to go places and be with kids. This makes them and the kids happy. A happy animal is a safe animal. An unhappy one is an accident waiting to happen. Think about that the next time your kids are enjoying the critters.

If you still do not agree with this it is a free country and you have a right to your own opinion, as I have a right to mine. I can only hope it is not your child that is the next to be mauled, maimed, or killed by an unhappy critter.

Thanks,
Lisa & Nala