Once in awhile-now and again-this is us

frank and linda recently took us to the tippi hedren’s big cat reserve – shambala- in acton. it’s about 1 1/2 hour drive from here. the sanctuary was built in 1983 on a former movie set zoned for wild animals. tippi was shooting a movie there and decided it would be a good place for displaced animals. with a lot of work and money she got it done. it houses only big cats now. lions, tigers, cougars, bobcats, leopards, and so on. they have 27 cats living there now, coming from all kinds of situations. many are pets that people no longer wanted or could care for, abandoned cubs, hurt or sick cats with no place to go. micheal jacksons tigers ended up there. we had heard of it before but never made it out there. so we were excited to be invited.

the day was beautiful, not hot and not cold. somewhere in between with a little bit of a breeze. very comfortable.

they only give tours once a month. it’s pricey at $50 but well worth it. thank you frank and linda for such a special treat.

as you walk in you immediately see the cats. linda took some great pictures. volunteers keep an eye on you at all times so you don’t get too close. the cats are all still wild and no one goes in the cages. they are not trained or bred.

cats of all sizes are some of the most beautiful animals – other than horses of course.

there was an homage to tippi’s movie “the birds”. she lives in a small house on site and is 90 years old.

her house is just a small nondescript building, but look at her front yard.

afterwards we went out to eat at a very nice italian restaurant. had a great meal along with great talk about the reserve and the great things it is doing.

thanks again frank and linda for including us in your adventure. we had a swell time.

oh, i forgot a picture. we’re back to our old tricks sticking our fingers in any nose we see.