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Wild Creatures Turned Into Playthings For People

There's a heartbreaking article in today's ElPais about wild animals kept in captivity by drug kingpins, paracos, maffia and traquetos in Cali and other places in Colombia, subjected to much cruelty and mutilations, fed with human flesh and used to torture and kill people.

The puma recently rescued at the Country Club comes most likely from one of the houses in the area: it is not a wild animal that strayed to the city from the Farallones, but had been seen prowling the area for quite some time, looking for food as it obviously has been fed by somebody and it has no idea how to hunt.

In the article, people from the animal shelter tell totally horrible stories of animals that they have been able to bring in: dying and mutilated, tortured and denaturalized. TThe worst is that there are NO LAWS to protect wild animals from the cruelty of man. For example, if you want to have a dolphin in your bathtub it's ok as long as you can convince the authorities that the dolphin has enough water to swim and is fed.

I'm no animal rights activist but I HATE seeing wild things reduced to be playthings and toys for people, or work in a circus. The uses the drug traffickers and other criminal elements in Colombia put these animals is totally disgusting and shows a total lack of any sensitivity or decency.
http://www.elpais.com.co/paisonline/notas/Mayo312009/cal3.html

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By Desideria (Moderator) (Trustee board) on May 31, 2009, 12:39 in Friendly Talkzone.

Desideria (Moderator) (Trustee board) says on May 31, 2009, 13:06:

I don't know if it started with Pablo, but this keeping large felines as pets and feeding them human flesh certainly has been described as something narcos and paramilitaries were/are doing.

A fronte praecipitium a tergo lupi

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Pappassito (☼Travelguide writer) says on May 31, 2009, 13:09:

"Wild Creatures Turned Into Playthings For People"

Sounds like a night out at Mango's.

"A wise monkey never monkeys with another monkey's monkey."

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adrimm (Moderator) (☼Travelguide writer) says on May 31, 2009, 13:21:

Thats terrible - I was interested to read just this afternoon in the wild, Jaguars have not attacked people - a recent study on one population found that natural diet consisted of peccaries (similar to wild pigs) and turtles.

article: http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_8074000/8074124.stm

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Catfish35 says on May 31, 2009, 13:22:

I agree Desi..

Political correctness is a doctrine, fostered by a delusional, illogical minority, and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a turd by the clean end."

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Atrevido (☼Travelguide writer) says on May 31, 2009, 14:03:

Imagine feeding an oscelot kit fruit juice...!!!

https://sites.google.com/site/colombianaturesite/nature-images

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quantum says on May 31, 2009, 21:00:

Depressing story but with a ray of hope. Here in Boquete, Panama an incredible English couple built an animal refuge, called Paradise Gardens Wildlife Rescue Center. They have and are continually taking in a wide range of wild animals from oscelots and margays to monkeys and macaws. Its beautiful, so well done and the animals are superbly cared for. Cali has a fantastic zoo, but they cant do it all obviously. Maybe somebody can step up to give em a hand like has happened here. But its a big commitment without a doubt. Full time job, but work worth doing.......hopefully this article in El Tiempo will inspire some positive activity.

quantum

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Lisa Zee says on May 31, 2009, 21:24:

This is very sad. How IGNORANT of this people.

Vive la vida y deja vivir!.

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