The cat's meow...or roar

There's Jasmine, whose eyes pierce through you, instilling sympathy and fear all at once.\n There's Tucker, who greets you with a bellowing yawn. There's India, whose translucent-like greenish blue eyes send chills down your spine. And you can't forget Jenny, Henry, Ginger and Sampson -- the tiger cub siblings who spent Friday afternoon on their crumpled, plastic swimming pool socializing and cat-napping.\nLiterally.\nJenny perched on her wooden platform, chewing on a calf's leg, extending a paw and hissing whenever her brother Henry galloped toward her.\nGinger and Sampson could care less. They just sat in the corner with their heads resting on their oversized paws, trying not to let the quarrel across the cage keep them from dozing off.\n"Aw, what's the matter Henry? Is Jenny not sharing?" asked Jean Herrberg, assistant director of the Exotic Feline Rescue Center in Center Point, Ind. "They're just magnificent. The cubs think I'm their mom because I bottle-fed them. It's just very special to be accepted by the cats."\nHerberrg came to the now 11-year-old EFRC eight years ago when she quit her job as an elementary school teacher. Her increased involvement with the organization made her realize she couldn't tear herself away from the animals, she said\nMeanwhile, over to the right of the cubs a dead cow lay in the middle of the walkway, bloated and almost ready for butchering.\n"It's only been dead for about five hours," called out a rescue helper in bloody attire, lifting the animal's leg in the air and bending its ankle back and forth. "Rigor mortis hasn't even set in yet."\nThe smell surrounding the cages was a mixture of humid Southern Indiana rain with wet fur and blood. The occasional growls in the distance made it clear what the dead cow was to be used for.\nDinner.\nHome to almost 130 cats, the EFRC takes in exotic felines to let them live out the rest of their days in a comfortable, safe environment.\n"We go through about 2,000 pounds of meat a day," said Joe Taft, Director of EFRC, as he stripped off his plastic gloves dripping with blood.\n"We make a commitment to giving these cats a permanent home with state-of-the-art veterinary care," Taft said. "We are strictly a rescue organization; we don't buy or sell cats. Most of these have come here malnourished, and 10 percent of them have come in either blind or with cataracts."\nTaft said most have undergone eye surgery to correct their vision.\nUpon passing the giant cage of Tucker, the friendly, down-to-earth lion, greeted Taft by rubbing his mane against the cage and giving a welcoming purr.\n"They do that just like a regular pet would," he said, rubbing up against the cage with the lion in a playful manner. "They want attention, but most of the cats here would tear you apart at the drop of a hat."\nTaft said a lot of the animals that come through are turned over by the government, and many have come from circuses where if EFRC didn't take them in, they would have been killed.\n"A lot of them suffer from psychological problems because of having lived in these," Taft said, pointing to the many old, tiny circus cages he has parked on the outskirts of the center. \nTaft's interest in felines began approximately 12 years ago, when he had a fantasy of "driving around in a Lotus with a cheetah and blaring Vivaldi." He somehow wound up buying an ocelot, a native of Central and South America and of leopard descent. \nHis involvement and increased compassion for felines, however, began just before the inception of the center when he witnessed some tiger cubs in what he calls the "photo booth business." \nThese tigers are used to pose with individuals in professional photographs and after they're two months of age, they're considered throw-aways and were going to be put down until Taft rescued them and gave them a permanent home, which they still live in today.\nWalking through the 110-acre center, 20 acres of which are now home to EFRC's felines, Taft can name every animal and give a detailed history of each, including Jasmine, an African Lion who was brought to EFRC from a movie ranch in Idaho once she exceeded the "useful" age limit.\nEach cat at the center has their own unique story -- like the tiger that was been rescued after being found in the back seat of a drunk driver's car, and the lion that had been used as a guard for a methadone lab in Missouri.\n"He must not have been a very good guard, though," Taft joked. "He's in a cage here, and his owner's in a cage somewhere else."\nTaft said he isn't opposed to private ownership; he's opposed to people not taking care of the cats.\n"If you don't live in the country, if you don't have a large enough space for a big cage and don't provide veterinary care, then I'm opposed," he said.\nHis house is embedded between a few of the cages; Taft literally lives among the felines. He has an opening in the side of his home to allow for the easy-access of his two pet tigers and leopards.\nTaft said he chose the rural area of EFRC for privacy and safety reasons, and while there aren't many people around the area, there are some nearby residents who oppose the EFRC out of fear for their safety.\n"We've got a perfect safety record," Taft said. "No cat has ever escaped. The only people opposed to it, really, haven't even ever been here."\nCarrie Hood of Harmony, Ind. dropped by EFRC with some children to check out the cats.\n"We never expected to see so many cats up close," Hood said. "It's amazing that so many people think they can have such large animals like these as pets."\nIU has had a number of volunteers help out at EFRC including Alpha Pi Omega, the School of Public and Environmental Affairs and faculty members who help construct the large feline cages and any other needed chores.\nWhile it costs approximately $250,000 to care for the cats each year, donations and an $8 entry fee finance the non-profit organization. They also sell merchandise such as sweatshirts, hats, EFRC membership plans and sponsorships for individual cats.\nTo learn more about EFRC, log on to www.exoticfelinerescuecenter.org for more details.