My wife Carol and I had become involved as volunteers with an organization called Vanishing Species http://www.vanishingspecies.org. Vanishing Species is a wild animal sanctuary with an emphasis on big cats. They rescue and rehabilitate animals such as lions, tigers, and bears (oh my) that people thought might make good pets, that is until they realized what's involved in taking care of a 700 pound siberian tiger. Some of the animals have been used in movies or commercials, and then were due to be destroyed because they had become no longer useful to the owners, or confiscated by customs or fish and game for various reasons.