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"and what may I ask is the conservation and education angle on this one? Oh, I see, the famous engaging-connecting bla bla bla, sorry sometimes I am so old fashioned,,," Paolo "Strictly to make money. They solicit a donation which in this country is called a "Ding Joint", if the proprietor takes the picture and sells it, the establishment then becomes a "Mug Joint" hence the name "Mug Shot". Buckles
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Wednesday, June 04, 2008
The Tiger Temple #1 (From Josip Marcan)
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12 comments:
Here is a reference for Tiger Temple - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiger_Temple
I wish them all the luck in the world, but that's still an accident waiting to happen...
Cindy Potter
From my limited experience in a monastery, all I can say is, I sure wouldn't have to be under the authority of the Tiger Temple's abbott. He must be one tough -add your own term here- to handle that lot. The monks are probably no slouches either.
Also, the "Pope" is simply considered the Bishop of Rome with the full falability all humans. Hope he doesn't go back into the tiger business in Rome.
Cindy is right. This kind of idiotic shenanigan is among the continuing examples of the severely misguided thinking they have some unique taming power over wild animals. Roy Horne thought so with the white tiger Montecore. Tippi Hedren thought so allowing her people to clean inside tiger pens with the tigers still present. Roy got carried off by the neck, and Tippi's guy is lucky to be telling the story. How incredible it is that such people so badly misconstrue the animals basic nature, and you can't beat any sense into these folks with a hickory stick. Ego-tripping is expected of movie stars and politicians, but it doesn't work with animals who don't recognize how self-important humans believe they have altered wild genetic memory.
As for Adaline, being the bishop of Rome is no simple matter, not that you will be in a position to know, and no pontiff has been associated with tigers.
Roger Smith
Mr. Smith,
You mean to tell me all that Tiger whisper stuff that is promoted, and the "they are part of our family" card is all nonsense? Or is it not considered "shenanigans" if we do it in "The Steel Bound Arena"
Among the education I am most grateful for is first my short time with Mr. Beatty, then my continued apprenticeship in Thousand Oaks. There, with the Old School no-nonsense masters, who had long-since lost patience with every animal goofus who came in and out of the place, any idiot mentality was immediately dismissed, and no such employee was given regard. Thankfully, I had gained the presence of mind to keep my ears and eyes open and my mouth shut. I had learned to truly listen. With Mr. Beatty, there was no process of gradual osmosis. It was learn it right here and now, practice it correctly on the spot, and never make a mistake afterward, because no margin is so provided. This discipline of listening is what got me the attention of Benny Bennett, Dick McGraw, and, in time, with the special persuasion of Uncle Ben, even Mabel Stark. Once this is the case, some of the old-timers warm up to teaching someone who deeply intends to learn.
But somehow, all this knowledge missed something. Good Heavenly Days, none of us knew you could tame tigers by cooking the blood out of their meat. Who would have thought? At times, we certainly could have used "The Staff" of the Tiger Temple to control some of the stripes we had, and there were times indeed we would have been overjoyed to trot out the abbot to calm an agitated tiger. Hell, forget Louis Roth, Rudolph Matthies, Roman Proske, and Mabel Stark. Let's all run and get the abbot. Wouldn't he be the man for the job? But he's in Thailand. Rats. That leaves us with Tippi Hedren.
Roger Smith
To Casey: It has been my experience that wild animal training in the steel arena has been a meaningful relationship between humans and highly intelligent animals who can be trained and never tamed. I'm not sure of the meaning of your question. As for "whispering", I've trained animals for 30 minutes twice to three times a day without so much as uttering a single word. Some trainers need to shout, bang on props with sticks, chase the animals, and demonstrate beligerance. I was shown that I never needed to. I trained by my movements and management of the props and the arena, and spoke to the cats only in rare words of easy encouragement.
If you'll check your taxonomy, you'll find we and the animals are not of the same family, and such was never intended. Being together in this world, there can be compelling co-existence when, in our case, extraordinary relationships between trainers and animals can be found.
Roger Smith
My point was that this buffoonery (people crawling around on intact and untrained tigers under the assumption it is safe cause they eat cooked meat) is phony. As is the insinuation often passed to the public from circuses that the trainer treats them as if they are one of the family, so obviously the animal would never hurt him or anyone else. And while feeding that story we will shove a baby tiger in your lap for a photo op. (see above comment from blogmaster ie. mug joint)
I just have never understood the need for the stories with cats, we went from dominating subjagators to phony whisperers over night. And the problem is that neither is true. Maybe if we just told the public, big cats are trained just like any other animal except 100 out of 100 tigers bite, so you have to be careful when training them.
As long as we are making leaps of subject matter, are we no longer applying the "no cute names" netiquette?
My apology for the facitious (and obscure) comment dredging up the ancient history of the Roman empire and its usage of the Coliseum. The point was to underscore the necessity for adequate training and safety as critical to achieving that moment when humans and animals do and can interact with grace. Not simply a glorification of humans supremacy over the animal kingdom and martyrdom to those who do not concur.
Moorpark College Exotic Animal Training and Management Program isn't far from 1000 Oaks, is it?
Thanks for your response.
Rog,
Not for nothing, but you forgot the shooting of blanks, in your description of "quiet" training.
Adaline,
Moorpark Exotic Animal Training??? You aren't holding that up as a standard, are you???
Wade Burck
If you're an animal trainer, shooting blanks has no place during training any more than cracking a whip. The whip and the gun are theatrical props in a performing style, and are integrated, if you so choose, after your act has been trained, routined, and made presentable.
Roger Smith
Roger,
WHAT????????????????
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