{"id":419040,"date":"2026-01-20T16:39:11","date_gmt":"2026-01-20T16:39:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/419040\/"},"modified":"2026-01-20T16:39:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-20T16:39:11","slug":"big-cats-rescued-in-central-america-relocate-to-north-carolina-wsoc-tv","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/419040\/","title":{"rendered":"Big cats rescued in Central America relocate to North Carolina \u2013 WSOC TV"},"content":{"rendered":"

PITTSBORO, N.C. \u2014 Carolina Tiger Rescue announced the successful relocation of big cats to accredited sanctuaries in the United States, a move that is part of a broader commitment to animal welfare.<\/p>\n

The relocation, which was coordinated with Little French Key under the leadership of Leonardo Lahijani, aligns with efforts from FEMA, agencies in Honduras, and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. This initiative adheres to national and international regulations to ensure the animals receive appropriate long-term care.<\/p>\n

The efforts to relocate eight big cats, five tigers and three lions involved years of coordination and advocacy, culminating in their transfer from temporary holding to permanent sanctuaries at Carolina Tiger Rescue and Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge. This transition marks a significant improvement in the animals\u2019 living conditions, allowing them to thrive in more suitable environments.<\/p>\n

Carolina Tiger Rescue officials emphasized the importance of this relocation: \u201cThis rescue reflects a shared commitment to animal welfare, responsible sanctuary care and ensuring that each animal can live with dignity, choice and lifelong care.\u201d Their dedication to enhancing the well-being of these animals has been central to this process.<\/p>\n

VIDEO: Snake farmer says Lincoln County exotic animal ban threatens business<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Snake farmer says Lincoln County exotic animal ban threatens business <\/p>\n

\u00a92026 Cox Media Group<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"PITTSBORO, N.C. \u2014 Carolina Tiger Rescue announced the successful relocation of big cats to accredited sanctuaries in the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":419041,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[29722,200378,200379,39076,26441,85919,200376,31778,200375,200374,200381,3729,3,200380,200377,79,1977,201],"class_list":["post-419040","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wildlife","tag-alex","tag-alex_patton","tag-animal_services","tag-channel_9","tag-commissioner","tag-eyewitness_news","tag-jesse_putnam","tag-ken","tag-ken_lemon","tag-lincoln_county","tag-lincolnton","tag-local","tag-news","tag-patton","tag-putnam","tag-science","tag-video","tag-wildlife"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/419040","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=419040"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/419040\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/419041"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=419040"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=419040"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=419040"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}