Predator Pets (2018) Season 1 Episode 1
From cowboys to Hollywood legends this episode has it all, and that's just the owners. We meet Bonnie and her bears, RC the cowboy and his pet Wildthing, the world's only tame bison, and venture into Tippi Hedron's big cat sanctuary Shambala. It's a dangerous world out there, especially for these exotic animal lovers!
#documentary #animals
From cowboys to Hollywood legends this episode has it all, and that's just the owners. We meet Bonnie and her bears, RC the cowboy and his pet Wildthing, the world's only tame bison, and venture into Tippi Hedron's big cat sanctuary Shambala. It's a dangerous world out there, especially for these exotic animal lovers!
#documentary #animals
Category
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AnimalsTranscript
00:00Humans have had a close relationship with animals for thousands of years.
00:26Scientists agree the domestic dog has been a trusted pet for around 15,000 years, and
00:31cats became part of the household from 10,000 years ago.
00:35And now it's estimated there are at least 600 million pet cats in the world.
00:41Exotic pets have also been kept for thousands of years.
00:46It's well documented that the Egyptians kept baboons as pets, and exotic animals kept in
00:51the home feature in many ancient texts.
00:55In modern times, the keeping of exotic pets has increased.
00:59A staggering statistic is that there are more tigers in the U.S. alone than there are in
01:04the wild.
01:09Animal owners truly believe they are playing a role in preserving the numbers of exotic
01:13animals.
01:14But on the other side of the debate, there are those who believe it is a cruel practice
01:19to keep any animals in captivity.
01:22This series explores the issues from both sides, from those who know the dangers but
01:30see the benefits, to others who condemn the keeping of exotic pets.
01:35Their stories follow.
01:43Driving one of these big trucks is a woman who, if you met at a truck stop, you would
01:47see what you think is a tough but fairly normal person.
01:51This truck driver is far from normal, but in a pleasant, caring way.
01:56Bonnie is an interstate truck driver, but when she gets home, her life is about her
02:01animals.
02:02I rescued her.
02:03She had a broken leg when she was a puppy, and they were going to put her down, and I
02:08said, how much do you want, how much is the vet going to charge you to put her down?
02:12And they said, oh, $50.
02:14I said, well, I'll give you the $50 and take the dog.
02:18Bonnie's ranch is far from ordinary.
02:21Let's start with the dogs.
02:22I've had up to $50, but being that I'm driving truck all the time now, it's too much.
02:28$20 is a little much anyway.
02:30It's a lot of work, and I have a great guy that comes out here and works and helps me
02:35do stuff.
02:36You know, it gets monotonous, I mean, because, you know, you've got some that, when I'm gone,
02:40stay in the house, and they don't get out, so, you know, you have a mess to clean up.
02:44The guys, you know how guys are about doing that, but they do a pretty good job, I have
02:48to admit.
02:49But, because I've got some really old girls in here that are in there, you know, 14, 15
02:55years old, and they can't take this heat, and they can't take the bad weather, so you
03:01just have to do what you've got to do.
03:03He's the one that brought the bears home.
03:07This is Reno, and he's a giant schnauzer.
03:11This is not something that's happened just all of a sudden, trust me.
03:15I've been doing this, like I said, for many, many years.
03:17I don't think anybody could have enough dogs.
03:20I mean, dogs are your buddies.
03:23That's the dogs, about a dozen of them.
03:25Next, exotic parrots.
03:27You shut up.
03:29You shut up.
03:31What did I tell you about that, talking like that?
03:34Give mama a kiss.
03:36You love mama?
03:37Oh, I love you too.
03:42He's very intelligent.
03:43He can do all kinds of little things when he wants to, but getting him to do it's another
03:47story.
03:48It's like, you know, I don't have to, don't make me.
03:53From there, it's horses, about 10 of them, and then an unlikely friend, a fully grown
03:58adult steer.
04:01He's a very good pet.
04:02I probably could ride him if I wanted to, but he's a very good pet.
04:06Everybody thinks I ought to sell him, but I can't sell him.
04:09He's a pet.
04:14Shrek is a miniature mule.
04:16That's his mama right there.
04:20Yes, that's a bear off in the distance, and its neighbors do eat a lot.
04:26This is what the tigers eat.
04:27This is my so-called dispensary.
04:30They get chicken.
04:31This is what they're getting today.
04:33They're getting steaks, yum.
04:36You heard right, tigers.
04:39You have to try to give them variety.
04:42You have to give them chicken.
04:43You have to give them beef, pork.
04:45You give them horse meat.
04:46We do get deer in.
04:48This is the freezer for chicken.
04:51My people that work for me, so what I have them do is I have them take the chicken out,
04:57and I make them look at the label for the weight, and I tell them exactly how much I
05:02want fed every day.
05:05So for them to calibrate it, and then we have records that we keep on how much they eat,
05:10who didn't eat what today.
05:12Technically, USDA requires you to do that, but I do it on my own because if something
05:19happens, I can go to the vet and say, okay, this is what this tiger's done all week long,
05:24and he has a better frame of mind of what's happening.
05:28This is what the bears eat.
05:29This is the bear freezer.
05:31We have yogurts.
05:32We have butter.
05:33We have creams, rice pudding, a little bit of everything.
05:37Their favorite, ice cream.
05:42If you're getting a feeling that this is Noah's Ark, you are right.
05:46Bonnie is a serious animal lover.
05:48Just think about what all those treats cost.
05:51Her two American black bears were accidental strays.
05:55The 750,000 black bears in America kill less than one person per year, and attacks in captivity
06:00are rare.
06:01But is Bonnie at risk with her bears?
06:04The answer to that is more about how they are looked after rather than whether or not
06:09they are dangerous.
06:11Contrast that with 26 deaths by dog attack each year, although there are millions of
06:17dogs in the U.S. alone.
06:20This is Bam Bam and Pebbles.
06:22They're about four years old now.
06:24They came to me.
06:25I have a big black schnauzer I have.
06:27He's a giant.
06:28They were following him, and I thought they were dogs, but they end up being bears.
06:33Once they got the bottle and got realized what was going on, they became my pets.
06:41These are American black bears.
06:43Come on.
06:45These are American black bears.
06:47Come on.
06:48Show them how tall you are.
06:50Good boy.
06:52Good boy.
06:57Come on.
06:58Good girl.
06:59Oh, mama.
07:00Baby loves you.
07:01Mama loves you.
07:02I know.
07:03And these are my babies, and they've got really long claws, as you can tell, and they usually
07:09tear me up.
07:10There you go.
07:11Good girl.
07:13Good girl.
07:14Pebbles, Bam Bam, stand up.
07:16Come on.
07:17Come on.
07:18Good boy.
07:19Good boy.
07:24Hey, you're stealing them.
07:26Okay.
07:27They're stealing them.
07:28They're stealing them.
07:30Good boy.
07:31Yes, sir.
07:32Mama loves you.
07:36I love these bears.
07:38You can get in here, and I can mess with them.
07:41Of course, you don't want to ever trust them because they show no sign that they're going
07:46to attack you.
07:47I have been bit.
07:48I've been clawed.
07:50I've been knocked down by them, and usually I carry a taser with me when I'm out here
07:56by myself so I can get up, and she's about as unpredictable as you can get.
08:04I've scared her, and she's turned around, and, you know, I walked up on her too quiet,
08:09and I've scared her, and she came at me, but, you know, it wasn't a attack.
08:13As soon as she realized it was me, she stopped.
08:15I can't express enough that these are wild animals, and their mind can change at any
08:21moment.
08:22They can be killers in a matter of seconds if they wanted to.
08:29I have found with my experience with animals, exotics, domesticated, you feed them well,
08:35you take care of them well, you give them plenty to eat.
08:38They seem to be fine.
08:41When you start not feeding them and doing what you're not supposed to do, you hurt them,
08:46then they hurt you back.
08:51If you come at them aggressively, they're going to come right back to you aggressively.
08:55Like if they're doing something, and she's wanting to bite me, I just change her mind
09:00and go, no, no, no, no, you know, it's okay.
09:02You know, you turn the tables on them.
09:06And loud noises will scare them.
09:08There's times that, like, I'm doing something and they're being nosy.
09:12If I don't run around, I'll slap the side of the tank and they run.
09:16I'm not a bear expert and never claimed to be, but being with these and these are my
09:21first challenge with them, I've learned a lot.
09:25You know, I mean, it's been trial and error.
09:28I think they're doing good.
09:29I think I'm doing okay with them.
09:31I mean, some people may say I'm not.
09:34But they seem happy to me, don't they, to you?
09:37They're very easy to take care of.
09:39I'm really surprised.
09:41I've offered them meat.
09:42I've offered them fish.
09:44I put four rolls of hay out there day four yesterday.
09:48Look how easy they mangled it.
09:50They go up in the trees.
09:52They get on them.
09:53They climb up on them.
09:55I mean, they get way up there.
09:57They come down to eat and to pick on me.
10:01Have you touched one?
10:03Come here.
10:05Bam, bam.
10:06Come over here on this side.
10:07Touch the butt.
10:08These bears can be dangerous, but that is also part of their appeal.
10:12And this could be why predator pets are popular.
10:16The feeling of being with these animals is a mixture of fear and fascination.
10:21I'm slightly worried now.
10:25Oh, he's licking me.
10:27Oh, dinner.
10:33They're very strong.
10:35They can take a log, and they can literally push it, move it, wherever they want to.
10:41Oh, look at that.
10:43Is that good?
10:45When she comes in heat, she gets a little cantankerous,
10:48and she can get pretty rough on you.
10:50When she comes in heat, she gets a little cantankerous,
10:53and she can get pretty rough with him.
10:55But he doesn't show any aggression.
10:58He just does his own thing and gets in a different tree.
11:02Like a man, goes to a man cave.
11:05But this is my baby right here.
11:07This is my baby.
11:10My main concern is keeping them where they're supposed to be, keeping them fed.
11:15And like I said again, as long as you feed them, feed them well, they're not going anywhere.
11:19And these guys here can't go back out in the wild because they don't know how to feed themselves.
11:24So basically, they're mine until I die, and then when I'm dead,
11:28I have a sanctuary that's going to take them, and that will take them and the cats.
11:33So they already have a place to go.
11:35This way, people won't have to say, well, she's an old woman.
11:38Where are they going to go when she dies?
11:40Well, there is a place for them to go, and it's a wonderful place.
11:43And they will care for them like I care for them.
11:46I've been there a zillion times to keep on different times and make sure how they take care of their animals,
11:51and I'm very impressed.
11:53I don't know how long they're going to live and how long I'm going to live, so there we go.
12:02They stand on the edge, and this is what happens to my $500 stock tank.
12:09Huh? More toys? Huh?
12:13For our crew, bears are one thing, but Bonnie's apex pets require a little more respect.
12:22It is estimated that there are more tigers in the U.S. than in the wild globally.
12:27Bonnie's younger tiger was born in captivity, and to Bonnie, he is just a big, playful cat.
12:33She's, you know, just that playful teenager stage where everybody's a toy and everything we have is a toy.
12:41No, no, no, gentle, gentle, gentle.
12:50You notice how she has not hurt the dog? He hasn't yelped or anything?
13:02What are you doing with the water?
13:05That's called chuffing.
13:08That's called chuffing?
13:14She goes, what was that?
13:16Oh, oh, oh, don't run, don't run.
13:19Are you okay?
13:20The concern is what will happen when the big cat reaches maturity.
13:24Incidents of pet tigers killing people are rare, but we have to always remember they are an apex killer.
13:33So, Bonnie, one way or the other, is taking a risk.
13:40Do you want a stick, Bonnie?
13:41Bonnie, here's a stick.
13:42No, no, I got it.
13:44No, you stop.
13:46Now come on.
13:48Don't bite my leg.
13:54Not just with one tiger, her second one is a fully grown female.
13:59Well, she came to me seven years ago.
14:04She had ringworm and a yeast infection all over her hair.
14:08And she was pretty poor, but now you can tell she's magnificent.
14:13She's healthy, you know.
14:16And it's not that she doesn't like that cat, she's just telling it to back off.
14:21But she's my baby, and I love her.
14:25She weighs 450 pounds.
14:27I go in there and pet her, and I clean the pen, do everything, like I did with the other cat.
14:34But when people are here and the cameras, she gets bashful.
14:38So, and I think, you know, I mean, she's back here in the back.
14:42She don't get a lot of people here to socialize with her.
14:45If she had more people to socialize with her, she'd probably be all over us.
14:49But really, she's a very good cat.
14:52She's not mean, she's not aggressive.
14:54You know, when she's scared, you saw what she did.
14:56You know, she kind of growls a little bit, you know.
14:58But, I mean, that's just to show you to back off.
15:01You know, she's a tiger.
15:02Again, you know, don't feed her.
15:05She'll eat you.
15:09I've only been scared of one cat in my life.
15:12I was in the pen with two cats, and I was against a fence like this, and they double-teamed me.
15:18One come here and one come here.
15:20They've never hurt me, but it is definitely a feeling that, you know, okay, this could be it.
15:27You know, but otherwise, no, I'm not afraid of them.
15:31I mean, I should be.
15:33I mean, I'm very caught.
15:34Let's put that a different way.
15:36I'm very, I'm not scared of them, but I'm very cautious of them.
15:40You can't, I don't know how to explain this feeling.
15:44But, I mean, I just don't have the fear of them, but I know they can kill me.
15:48I know they can hurt me.
15:50You know, I don't turn my back on them.
15:54I mean, I know what they are.
15:56I know that they can be an aggressive animal, and they can be friendly one day and be an idiot the next day.
16:05The thing is, is when you're feeding them meat, get out of the pen.
16:08Why do you want to be there?
16:09They're eating.
16:11If they're having a bad day, why irritate them?
16:13Leave them alone.
16:14Let them just have, go through their bad day.
16:19It's a sense you have with animals, you know.
16:22If you have that sense, your chances of getting hurt is minute, you know.
16:28But if you're bullying them or doing things and you don't pay attention, then you get hurt.
16:32And that's what usually happens with people.
16:34They're not for everybody, you know.
16:36And not everybody wants them.
16:37They're a big expense.
16:38They cost a lot of money every month to feed.
16:41It's not that they're a lot of work, but you have to take care of them.
16:44You have to know when something's wrong with them.
16:46But that's the whole idea of owning animals anyway, isn't it?
16:50Oh.
16:52Come on, Anushka.
16:53Come on, mama.
16:54Come on.
17:02Anushka.
17:03It comes from Alaska and it means the first ray of light.
17:08So that's what I thought of.
17:09And then Sunita, the little one's name, is a Spanish name for beauty.
17:16But those are my children as children go.
17:29The American bison is an unpredictable and at times lazy and unconcerned animal.
17:38They appear peaceful, but this large mammal has a temperament that is totally unpredictable.
17:46Bison roam the plains of North America in their millions.
17:51Hunting decimated their population down to less than 1,000 animals.
17:55Today, things are looking up.
17:57The population is growing, and to one family, a pet bison is the perfect house companion.
18:03Even if the house is a little A-frame cottage on the plains of Texas.
18:08People that don't know me think I'm crazy, and the people that know me know I'm crazy.
18:16I've been here for 31 years and I've been training horses for a living.
18:20And I use buffalo or bison to train my horses with.
18:24Yeah, I was fascinated with them when I was a kid and never thought about even owning one.
18:29I don't think when I was young you could eat legally on a bison.
18:32They're a little on the crazy side, and most people that raise cattle don't want to mess with them
18:37because they tear your pins and stuff up.
18:39They're a lot wilder than a cow is, and they're harder to handle for most people.
18:44But if you know how to handle them, they're almost as easy to work as cattle are.
18:52Sharon and R.C. are both extreme animal lovers.
18:55We both love animals.
18:58Sharon and R.C. are both extreme animal lovers.
19:01We both have a fascination with bison.
19:09I'm not much for the little bitty dogs or anything like that. I like the wildlife.
19:14And that's one reason why R.C. and I fit together, because we both like the wildlife.
19:19The more Western it is, the better we both like it.
19:23The first time I ever saw a bison was, of course, with R.C.
19:26I mean, you know, in life. I've seen them on TV and all that.
19:31But the first time was whenever R.C. brought some home to train his cutting horses.
19:37After that, we decided to own a wild thing, and he'd become our pet.
19:44Keeping a bison as a pet does have its challenges.
19:48They can weigh up to 2,700 pounds and run at over 30 miles per hour.
19:53And they can get a little grumpy.
19:56A lot of times, you've got to go in the pen with them.
20:00And you've got to know your distance and everything, because if you get too close,
20:05you can get a little grumpy.
20:09And you've got to know your distance and everything, because if you get too close,
20:13they're going to come after you, or they're going to run away.
20:16And if they don't run away real quick, they're fixing to come and get you.
20:22They're the largest land animal in the United States that's native to the United States.
20:28They can outrun any horse.
20:30It's always dangerous being around a herd of bison, because you don't know when one's going to attack you.
20:36And I have had them horn my horses and knock my horses all the way down on top of me.
20:42Oh, he's been asked to put it back in place.
21:12I've been in this situation a lot.
21:22One particular cow one time come after me.
21:25And if I hadn't had a jacket, I threw it on top of her horns.
21:29And I got out of the pen while she was fighting the jacket.
21:32He got me down one time, three times in one day.
21:35And my wife had to dress me for three days.
21:39He knocked me down.
21:40He was wanting me to be a buffalo and play with him,
21:43but I got to an axe handle and explained to him we didn't do that.
21:51Arcee counts Wild Thing as his pet and his companion on the ranch.
21:56This big bison is, at times, almost cute.
22:09Wild Thing, of course, you know, I mean, he's a little orange calf, you know, whenever we get him.
22:15He's about two and a half, three months old.
22:17And, of course, Arcee's trying to haltertain him and everything.
22:22And he conquers that.
22:24But then I have a brilliant idea.
22:26And I said, well, why don't we bring Wild Thing in the house?
22:29Hello, Wild Thing.
22:32And he says, you don't understand.
22:34And he says, you don't understand.
22:36He is a bison.
22:38He could tear up your house.
22:40You may not have nothing left.
22:42And I, well, you only live once.
22:45You bring your cats and your dogs and your kids in the house, so might as well.
22:49So ever since then, we've been bringing Wild Thing in the house, and he's grown up with us.
23:05He has lots of personality.
23:08Even though he's a bison, he's got personality.
23:10I mean, if he gets his feelings hurt, he goes and pouts.
23:13And you know when he pouts because he just has that certain look in his face and the certain movements that he gives.
23:21Wild Thing also likes to be pushy sometimes.
23:24But then again, Wild Thing can be loving.
23:28Wild Thing!
23:30Hello, baby boy.
23:32But only to Arcee and I.
23:34Only the past 10 years, I've been able to actually touch him and groom him.
23:40I mean, I'm always out there taking pictures of him and different things like that.
23:45I can wear fringe and wear big headdresses that I make with feathers.
23:50Arcee, he can't wear fringe around him.
23:52Not safely.
23:54So, you know, and I think it's because Wild Thing's used to Arcee being just a cowboy.
24:00And he's used to me being just out there.
24:04Because, I mean, I am. I'm always out there.
24:06So he never knows what to expect of me.
24:09But there's times that Wild Thing is sitting outside, relaxing.
24:13And I may kind of crawl in and lay close to him.
24:18I can't touch him. I can't lay up against him.
24:20Because then he'll jump up.
24:22But I do lay in there with him.
24:24And then sometimes Arcee and I both will lay in there together.
24:29And, I mean, you know, he can be, you know, seem real sweet.
24:33But he's not a, you know, sweet animal per se, you know.
24:38I mean, he is a very dangerous animal for others.
24:42Well, I was afraid he might tear up stuff, you know, if we brought him in.
24:46But when I brought him in, it was kind of odd because he behaved himself in here.
24:50And then pretty soon I was leaving the door open.
24:53And he'd come back and forth in the house.
24:56But he never used the bathroom in the house.
24:58If he'd ever used the bathroom in the house, this deal would have never happened.
25:03He potty trained himself.
25:05I do not have a clue how you could potty train a buffalo.
25:09Now that he's gotten big, we had to move coffee tables and couches around.
25:13It's like having a small car come through your house.
25:19He has a hard time getting his horns through the doors.
25:23We've had people eat with us before at their own risk.
25:27But it's not probably perfectly safe for them,
25:30although I'm willing to lay down my life to save theirs.
25:37When the grandkids come over, we have to put up fences.
25:40We have to put up everything in the house.
25:42We don't have to when Wild Thing comes around.
25:45I'd rather have the Wild Thing in the house than my grandkids most of the time.
25:50So far, he hasn't tore up anything.
25:53He's just been perfect in the house.
25:56He looks at everything. He's real curious about everything in the house.
26:00But he doesn't tear up anything.
26:02A lot of times, as soon as he walks out of the house, he'll knock my barbecue pit over.
26:06But it's outside.
26:08But in the house, he's a perfect gentleman.
26:10He's unpredictable.
26:12In the house, he's pretty predictable.
26:14Outside, he's really a crazy, wild, crazy animal outside.
26:19He's very dangerous for anybody else to be around.
26:26It's taken 10 years for Sharon to be able to go around them safely.
26:30And I still want to be there for her.
26:32Because I will attack him.
26:34I can't win, but he thinks I can win.
26:38Always being the alpha, you've got to be the alpha.
26:42You've got to have enough courage to stand up to him, even though you know you can lose.
26:47I don't have a chance against him, but he thinks I can.
26:50Once I get him by the horns, he thinks I got him.
26:57It's a big bluff.
27:00It's a big bluff.
27:05It is likely that Wild Thing is the only fully-trained bison in the world.
27:10His skills go beyond wrecking the fences.
27:13He pulls a chariot, plows a garden.
27:16He was our best man at our wedding.
27:18My boy's the first one to ski behind a buffalo on sand.
27:23And my daughter's the first one to snow sled behind a buffalo.
27:26He eats at the dining room table with us.
27:29Any crazy thing I can think of to do, I do it.
27:33He's the first one to ever pull a canoe.
27:36There are times that Wild Thing seems to get what's going on,
27:40even at a big event like his owner's wedding.
27:43I just thought it was something different to do.
27:45I didn't know anybody ever knew about it but us.
27:48But I thought it was kind of cool to have a bison or buffalo as our best man.
27:54Our minister, he knew us already, so...
27:58He wasn't real comfortable, though.
28:00No, he wasn't real comfortable, but he liked it.
28:03I mean, he thought he was neat, you know.
28:05And he only said, only for us, not for everybody.
28:09Our wedding has been all over the world.
28:13He was a good gentleman. He did throw the rings off his horn, so...
28:24I see him as a little baby.
28:26I don't see him as a big buffalo. He's a baby to me.
28:30He's not big to me because I've raised him, and he's still a baby to me.
28:35Yeah. And when you look at his little face, it just looks so sweet.
28:39So you just fall in love with him, you know.
28:41I have no fear of him at all, but I do know when not to mess with him.
28:46He's moody. Sometimes I know that I better leave him alone.
28:54There is no doubt that this is a dangerous animal.
28:57It could escape and cause a lot of trouble.
28:59But to date, Wild Thing has seldom wandered beyond his local street.
29:04If he gets out, everybody just take pictures from their porch,
29:07but they know not to go around him.
29:09He goes down the road about a quarter of a mile and fights a cedar tree.
29:14And I learned the first time I went down there,
29:17I better let him fight the cedar tree for a little while,
29:20because he'll come after me if I try to make him quit too soon.
29:23So I let him go ahead and fight it for a little while,
29:25then I'll put a rope around his horns and lead him home.
29:33He's got a real big barn, and he has fans in it.
29:37And I water the ground every day because it's hot this time of year.
29:41And he stays pretty comfortable.
29:44Of course, his favorite place is in the house.
29:46I go there and feed him every day.
29:48I can pour the feed in the trough.
29:50If you try to pour the feed in the trough, he'll kill you.
29:53He don't want anybody feeding him but myself and Sharon.
29:57I have let other people feed him through the fence, and he'll attack them.
30:01R.C. treats Wild Thing with mutual respect,
30:05but it is R.C. who has to do the cleaning up.
30:08I just got a lot of joy out of him.
30:10I got to clean his poop out of the yard every day.
30:13And you know what, I'm glad it's out there so I can clean it up
30:16because I just enjoy him.
30:18I brush him every day.
30:20I spend more time with him than I do my wife.
30:26I'm in the pen with him when he's tearing up stuff usually.
30:29He may be throwing the canoe in the air or tearing the fences up.
30:33I stay in the pen with him.
30:35Ever since he hurt me one time pretty good,
30:38I think he knows he hurt me, and now he don't want to.
30:46In the hard part, when we're filming or doing something out there
30:50and we want a video or something,
30:52I can't get close to him when he's tearing up stuff.
30:57But for the opposite reason, you think.
31:06If I get close to him, he's going to quit.
31:12Because he's going to protect me by quitting.
31:15So if I want to share him doing a video of him tearing up a fence...
31:23I got to stay back far enough that he won't quit.
31:26Because once I get in a danger zone, he shuts it down.
31:33He knows I'm his best friend because I never do anything against him.
31:36I do everything for him.
31:40I think I'll be here all of his life.
31:44We'll never give up on a thing.
31:46Hopefully he's middle-aged. He's 12 now.
31:49And he should live to be around 25 at least, I hope.
31:55And he's not going anywhere.
31:57There's no amount of money that could ever buy him.
32:00He'll never be for sale.
32:02And he would be too dangerous for anybody else to have.
32:05And one thing about the bison, there are some other trainers.
32:08There have been other trainers.
32:10I know four of them killed in the last five years.
32:13And they killed nearly all the trainers.
32:15And he may kill me.
32:17But I hope he don't.
32:19And I sure want to protect her.
32:29It's hard to define Tippi Hedren,
32:31the Hollywood legend and star of The Birds,
32:34Marnie, Roar, and The Countess from Hong Kong.
32:37She has been an active humanitarian,
32:39creator of a multi-million dollar manicuring industry,
32:43and is the only actor to have worked on films
32:46with both Alfred Hitchcock and Charlie Chaplin.
32:49But her real passion is with the beauty and majesty of the big cats.
32:54Her recent biography looks into her acting career,
32:58but spends more time on her love of animals.
33:02Tippi is the founder of Shambhala,
33:04a sprawling 40-acre wild animal sanctuary
33:07a few hours north of Los Angeles.
33:10Shambhala is home to around 30 big cats.
33:13I can't even imagine my life without these big cats.
33:19I can't even imagine it.
33:21I mean, they've given me so much.
33:27Certainly on understanding the species
33:31and totally respecting the qualities
33:34that are inborn into those beings
33:39and what is in that brain
33:42and what activates those instincts
33:46and just getting to know these animals.
33:50It's been a great honor.
33:52It's been something that we have to have done
33:57to be able to give them the life that we have given them,
34:02to be able to understand them.
34:05We can't understand everything about them.
34:10Enough to really give them a good life.
34:13There's something very, very fascinating
34:16about something of great beauty.
34:18The personality of the great cat is varied
34:22and elaborate and dangerous,
34:25and, you know, they can kill you
34:28without even thinking twice about it.
34:34Well, I've always been in love with them,
34:37even before I even had a possibility of going to Africa.
34:41Seeing them actually in their own environment,
34:45in their own way of life and being free,
34:50was an astounding time.
34:56Shambhala Reserve is not a zoo or an animal park.
35:00It was set up to take on the role of looking after animals
35:03that no longer had a home in the U.S.
35:06Some were dropped off at the gates,
35:08others have come from circuses or zoos,
35:10and many from private pet ownership.
35:13It is estimated that over 3,500 tigers alone
35:16are in private ownership in the U.S.,
35:19with many of them now too large to look after.
35:22I don't know the exact numbers of them,
35:25but I know it has diminished because people are getting smarter.
35:29I mean, with the exotic feline,
35:32you're dealing with an apex predator.
35:35You're dealing with an animal who could just as soon kill you
35:39as just walk across the room.
35:42They are extremely dangerous.
35:44They have instincts born in them that can never be removed.
35:49And they are dangerous.
35:52Tippi Hedren knows too well the dangers.
35:55During the production of her feature film, Roar,
35:58tigers and lions featured heavily in the story.
36:01This meant working closely with a number of dangerous animals,
36:04and incidents did happen.
36:07I had seen a number of accidents caused by these animals.
36:12I was hurt.
36:14You know, practically all the people on our movie
36:17had some sort of an encounter with one of the animals,
36:22with a lion or a tiger.
36:24And, oh, they were going to name a wing
36:28at the Palmdale Hospital after us because we were there so much.
36:35Melanie Griffith, Tippi's daughter,
36:37a well-known actor in her own right,
36:39was also on the set of Roar.
36:41Melanie was very used to having the big cats around,
36:44but even then, things can go wrong.
36:47Gosh, she was, uh...
36:52leaned over.
36:55She did something.
36:57Anyway, one of the cats, uh...
37:01was a lion.
37:04And it got her right across her forehead.
37:09I just grabbed her and ran, got out the gate,
37:14and put her in the car, and we went to the doctor.
37:17And she had to have a whole, you know,
37:20all these stitches put in her forehead.
37:23Fortunately, he did a really good job.
37:25You never know it.
37:27So I do know from where I speak,
37:30you know, these are not animals that should be in somebody's home
37:36as a pet or in captivity
37:41in somebody's backyard in an 8x10 cage
37:45or, you know, that kind of confinement.
37:49I think the American public is becoming smarter.
37:53They're becoming more aware of the fact that this is a brute...
37:57it's simply brutality to have those animals in a circus.
38:02It's not only brutal to keep the strict confinement that they're in.
38:07The treatment that they have in order to do those stupid tricks
38:11that they make them do is, um...
38:15it's obscene.
38:17It's horrible, and those poor animals...
38:20I'm surprised more people haven't been killed
38:24by these animals from the treatment they've had.
38:28Shambhala is Tippy's home.
38:30Shambhala is Tippy's home.
38:32She shares the 40 acres with her cats,
38:35and in the past, it was common for some of the animals to live in the house,
38:39even to the point of sleeping on the bed with her daughter, Melanie.
38:43Tigers and lions were their pets,
38:45so much so that this image of a tiger jumping through the kitchen window
38:49was not set up.
38:51It was just one of the many daily events
38:54that happened over many years of rearing the big cats.
38:58But Tippy reached the conclusion that rather than having them as pets,
39:02they should be studied and left to live their natural lives
39:06rather than be part of the household.
39:08The decision was made to stop the interaction with the animals,
39:11especially after the dangers became more noticeable.
39:15There was a whole group of women.
39:17They were in college.
39:19They wanted to have a photograph with a tiger,
39:24and they found the tiger,
39:27and the tiger was trained to stand there and be photographed.
39:31And they all went up and had their picture taken with the tiger,
39:36and one of them went up, and the tiger moved and stepped on the girl's foot,
39:41and she screamed, and the tiger jumped her.
39:45There are situations that are so frightening
39:50and so unnecessary
39:53that never should happen.
39:57In fact, at one point, I remember gathering my staff around,
40:01and I said there will be no more contact with any of the animals again.
40:08Right now, it's over. It's done.
40:12And they were all really angry
40:15because they really enjoyed having that one-on-one with the animal,
40:21with the lion or the tiger,
40:23and they were smart.
40:25They knew what they were doing,
40:27but that doesn't make a difference.
40:30You're dealing with an apex predator
40:34who has the top say.
40:38They have the top word.
40:41It's a great honor to have one of these animals be your friend,
40:45to know that that animal recognizes you and likes you,
40:50but they're a weapon.
40:53They're a weapon, and they operate simply on their minds and their instincts,
41:00and you can't ever forget that.
41:05When you're not dealing with a killer,
41:08I think any kind of an animal needs to have whoever becomes the power
41:17in a captive situation must know everything about that species,
41:23about what does that animal need,
41:26and what can I give it that they need?
41:30Not what I feel like giving them.
41:33Do I feel, oh, well, I've got an 8x10 cage out in my backyard.
41:38That'll be fine. He'll fit in there.
41:41That's not enough.
41:43There's a great deal to know about an animal,
41:47any animal that you decide to take into your life,
41:51no matter what it is,
41:54whether it's my little cat that just walked by or whatever.
41:59What can I give that animal
42:02that will give him a life that he will be content?
42:07And if you look at it that way,
42:11there probably wouldn't be so many unhappy, miserable animals in captivity.
42:20I think there are a lot of people who would like to have a wild animal as a pet.
42:27You know, of course, it depends on the type of wild animal that you choose.
42:31However, if you're choosing an apex predator to become your pet,
42:38you're making a very, very big mistake, a huge mistake,
42:43because the instincts in those animals are in their brain,
42:51and there's nothing you can do to change that.
42:55They will always be a danger.
42:58You just don't ever know when it's going to come to the foreground,
43:02and most likely you wouldn't have the strength
43:06or the knowledge of how to react to it.
43:12I mean, these animals are powerful beyond belief.
43:20I don't know, the tensile strength of these animals is one that we can't,
43:25in their greatest amount of power that they exude,
43:32there isn't any way that you could fight that other than a bullet.
43:38I feel very, very grateful that I've been able to have this life with the big cats.
43:45I am very grateful that I have managed to become an older woman.
43:52I've still got all my limbs, and I'm still walking upright,
43:56because there have been times when I was put in the hospital.
44:00Because you're dealing with an entity that is so powerful and so unforgiving,
44:08and they're not good at telling you what their plans are.
44:16We feel very, very fortunate that we haven't had any serious problems with these animals,
44:25and I do not recommend anyone acquiring a lion or a tiger as a pet for any reason.
44:36The fascinating thing about them is that you just never know.
44:41I mean, you can have ten years of just absolute angel,
44:46angel lion, angel tiger, and then bam!
44:52It's like playing Russian roulette.
44:56Shambhala has its role.
44:58It is one place where lions and tigers can feel safe and cared for.
45:02Tibi Hedren has done so much for these animals.
45:06They are in captivity, but the respect shown to each and every one of them goes without saying.
45:12But the final word on owning a predator pet is a warning.
45:16With the exotic cats, you're dealing with a serial killer.
45:46.