liberty

TWS has rescued numerous cougars through the years, but Liberty's journey demonstrates what too many exotic animals have to endure.

TWS arrived on a rural farm to pick up a cougar who was being surrendered by her owner. But what we found astonished us. Liberty was no larger than a lynx. She was emaciated and dehydrated. We couldn't get over how small in stature this cougar was. The owner explained that she had fed only milk to Liberty her first year of life and that Liberty had fractured both of her back legs which had gone untreated. Liberty cannot extend her back legs fully, she has a severe curvature of the spine and pelvis. The tops of her ears were dangling by a small amount of flesh but were about to fall off. She had urine burns on both sides of her tail.

The owner said Liberty wasn't eating or drinking very well. But Liberty ate four times the first night she arrived at TWS and eight additional meals the next day. She continues to love her food and has put on weight each day. Liberty weighed 45 lbs. upon arrival at TWS. This is the size of a six month old cougar - Liberty is six years old. The initial fecal showed Liberty also had round worms and coccidia.

We are working with Dr. Baillie and a specialist to perform radiographs and evaluate Liberty's back, pelvis and rear legs.

Though Liberty's journey has been rough, she finally has a life that will ring true to her name. Her spirit has shown through every day and she is getting braver at experiencing life at the sanctuary. Shalico, the lynx, living near her is absolutely smitten. He calls to her each time she appears from her den and stares at this beautiful girl until she retreats.

Beth Jett from KSTP wrote a blog about Liberty and the irony in her name. The blog also includes several photos from the day she arrived at TWS. Click the button to read Beth's blog. You must have Adobe Acrobat Viewer to view the attachment.