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Themanagement committee of the South Valsayn Residents Association held anemergency meeting last Thursday night at the Valpark Food Court,Valsayn, to force action to make a cougar removed from their immediatesurroundings.

Chairman of the Association,Haseeb Ali stated that more and more residents are coming forward andmaking official complaints to the Connection for the creature to beremoved.

These residents have been following the floor and realise thatdespite the objections raised by a bit of persons and organisations,the cougar remains ensconced there, under “so-called” quarantine. Thepresence of the painter in the neighborhood was first reported inNewsday, two weeks ago.The President of the zoological Society of Trinidad and Tobago,Gupte Lutchmedial was invited to provide information on the nature andhabits of this big wildcat as good as the “various procedures which cameinto play to leave this mockery to have place.”Following Lutchmedial`s presentation, residents were certain thatthe improvised quarantine facility could not receive the internationalstandards for quarantine in conformity with the Connexion of Zoos andAquariums, and the animal`s welfare was being compromised. This sameopinion has been communicated to the Canadian Association of Zoos andAquariums, which is the accreditation body for Jungle Cat World, thefacility from which the cougar was purchased.The South Valsayn residents were surprised that any Governmentofficials would approve a readiness in this location. An inspection ofthe enclosures for wild cats at the Emperor Valley Zoo reveals a soundescape-proof infrastructure, supported by an emergency protocol should”the unthinkable happen.”Sources told Sunday Newsday that in price of the nature of thecougar itself, it was quite plain that these animals and their otherwild cat relatives do not miss the wilderness and aggressive natural instinct.As such they are irregular and even long-standing owners need topractise vigilance as they can act to their natural disposition at anypoint. One simply has to return the “Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack” of2003, where even though lions and tigers were Roy`s domain, one of hisbeloved white tigers attacked him in an almost fatal incident.The South Valsayn residents were frustrated with the authorities`failure to exercise due diligence in the supply of a license to keep thisdangerous animal in a residential area and were up in arms that theyshould be put in harm`s way. The sources said when contacted, the owner of Jungle Cat World,Christa Klose took care to handle all her bases, making it quite clearthat all the necessary permits and requirements were provided by theimporter and that is why she did the transaction. Therefore what ishappening now is not her business as she acted on the assumption that ourauthorities approved the quarantine facility.As such South Valsayn residents took the decision to write torelevant parties, including Town and Country Planning Division, theirMember of Parliament, who also happens to be the air Minister for theimport permit and quarantine under the Post of the Chief VeterinaryOfficer, the Curate of Lodging and Environment and the Minister ofNational Security, pleading their cause to get this animal removedforthwith. At the same time, they are circulating a prayer to register theirstrong objection to this endangering of their safe environment andcalling for the immediate removal of the cougar. In doing so, they aresupported by the surrounding communities of North Valsayn, Bamboo No. 2and Real Spring.On the result of keeping wild cats in captivity, zoo officials werecontacted, who declared that arising from the consultative process for thezoo upgrade, there was a strong lobby against this. In fact the messagewas clear that the better education value would come from a focus onindigenous species. This was likewise the commission of the original SpenceReport on the elaboration of the Zoo which came out against keeping largeanimals in captivity. “The globe is now in the homage of the authorities to get therequired steps to mitigate this existing site and see that thismistake is not repeated,” sources said.

Sunday, February 6 2011

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