Meet Gandhi . . . A Tiger Cub September 26, 2011
Posted by nrhatch in Animals, Life Balance, Nature.trackback
On Saturday, Smithsonian Magazine Museum Day, we returned to Ringling Museum to tour a new wing of the Tibbals Learning Center & Circus Museum:
While there, we enjoyed a special treat . . . meeting Gandhi:
A 4-month-old Tiger Cub visiting from Big Cat Habitat in Sarasota, FL:
Big Cat Habitat, a Gulf Coast Sanctuary, educates the public about the need to preserve natural habitat for wild animals like Gandhi:
On a related note . . . remember this Big Cat from our last visit to Ringling?
Handcarved by volunteers at the museum, this tiger’s mouth detail involved taking a dental plate from a tiger at the Big Cat Habitat & Gulf Coast Sanctuary (while it was under anesthesia for another procedure).
My . . . what big teeth you have!
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Spirit Lights The Way 
Adorable! I don’t like zoos but I do think we need preserves for animals such as these.
Zoos with small concrete cages and animals pacing should be outlawed. Those with wide open spaces for animals to roam probably serve a valuable purpose . . . educating the public about the vast diversity of life on this wonderful planet.
The Big Cat Habitat offers a safe haven to other species as well ~ from lemurs to chimps to bears to cockatoos.
Looks like fun! And I love little Gandhi. . .the “kitten” looks adorable.
He played just like Tigger did as a kitten . . . running, bouncing, and acting Tiggeriffic! Gandhi rejected the proper toys proffered to him . . . preferring to chew on the edge of the swimming pool. 😀
There’s something about circuses I’ve always found a bit scary… and yet terribly fascinating at the same time! Looks like such an interesting place!
🙂
There are touch screen panels throughout the new wing allowing visitors to view video clips of clowns, acrobats, wild animals, human cannons, jugglers, etc.
There’s also a “high wire” for people to test their balance on. I fell off . . . and landed with a thud . . . no net!
Good thing they placed the “hire wire” in close proximity to the floor. 😀
No net?!
Yikes – good thing I don’t do my own stunts!
🙂
Same here . . . and I wasn’t even juggling flaming batons when I fell off. 😀
Ghandi is adorable! What a special treat that was!
He and Tigger are dead ringers for each other . . . except for the size of those paws! 😀
That first picture is too funny and the tiger cub is too cute!
I love the skewed perspective in that first photo. The paper mache mask is only 15 inches tall . . . but it towers over the lady in the back of the room. 😀
Gandhi delighted us with his antics and “peaceful protests” (when the keepers tried to unhinge his jaws from the side of the plastic pool).
*Grabbing my soapbox. Glad I don’t need a microphone*
Our Wildlife Rescue Service just released several seals and eagles…all recovered from human insensitivities (go away spell check! Surely that’s not a new word!) and injustices – free to go back into their natural habitat.
I wanted to volunteer at the center, but they have excellent questions that screen out folks who would be tempted to cross the line beyond care.
When I watch the video of those two English blokes who raised a lion cub than released it in Africa, I am moved to tears. Not just because it’s very dear, but because of the depth of understanding that these two men have. They did not turn the lion over to some game farm or zoo. They took the lion “home”. And the lion never forgot them!
That speaks volumes.
I learned a great deal about animals in other countries in my youth. When I went to Africa and listened to our guides, I was amazed at how much I had learned about African animals. My sources were an encyclopedia, National Geographic or a textbook. What I saw and learned in Africa could not have been offered at a zoo or game farm. ‘Live’ is not synonymous to ‘living’ to me.
*Wondering where I heard “Ah…that feels better!” *
I agree, Amy. Animals need room to roam.
I just wish that we could stop the poaching and bushmeat trade in Africa ~ as well as the canned hunts to bring in tourists. Rhinos should not be killed for their horns, nor elephants for their tusks, for tigers for their tails.
Totally adorable cub, Nancy. Love that last picture of you 😀
Thanks, Kate. Watching Gandhi play was a hoot ~ running, tumbling, tussling, and tossing things about. I’m sure he took a long nap that afternoon. 😀
I’m pretty sure I’ve been there.
All babies are adorable, aren’t they?
Yes . . . except, maybe, for newly-hatched birds (like pelicans). They are gangly to the max! 😆
Poor tiger baby… captivity can be sad…
The sculpture on the other hand is fierce. 8)
Born Free . . . Live Free. 😀
Isn’t the sculpture grand? The woodcarvers at Ringlings (all volunteers) do amazing work creaing animals and refurbishing circus memorabilia.
Ghandi is adorable..I would love to cuddle up with him. Well at least for a minute or two.
He was quite cuddly . . . but I bet his claws and teeth would get your attention. 😀
A regular cutie, that Gandhi. 🙂
He’s rather Tiggeriffic! {{boing boing}}
Very clever to name the tiger Ghandi as most won’t forget what this organization is doing for the cats. 🙂
We rescued a kitten once. After trying out a few “wrong” names, the “right” name for him appeared . . . Buddha. _/!\_
yes so cute that precious tiger cub! Thank you for sharing this!
A cuddly cub for sure. 😀
Did you get to pet the tiger cub? Sounds like a wonderful museum.
I wish! There were too many people there to even ask if I could pet the kitty. The poor wee thing would have been inundated with hands reaching out to touch him.
Our town’s little (and I mean little) zoo has managed to acquire bengal tiger cubs twice, a number of years back and then again last year, or was it this year? Anyway, they are the most wonderful cats, adorable and playful. But even as cubs we could tell they were going to be a huge handful as adults. But they’re still sooo loveable. 🙂
I hope they had some room to roam. I hate to see tigers and lions pacing back and forth in tiny cages.
Aw cute, amazing animals!
Animals are amazing ~ and the diversity from species to species is astonishing. Here’s to a lasting peace for all of us.