The Performing Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) is an international animal protection organization dedicated to the protection of captive wildlife and to providing sanctuary to abused, abandoned or retired captive wildlife. Founded in 1984, PAWS has been at the forefront of efforts to rescue and provide appropriate, humane sanctuary for animals that have been the victims of the exotic and performing animal industry. Currently, 100+ animals reside at our sanctuaries.
PAWS captive wildlife sanctuary is a place where abandoned or abused performing animals and victims of the exotic animal trade can live in peace and dignity. For more than twenty yx4ears, PAWS has been at the forefront of efforts to rescue and provide humane sanctuary for surplus animals providing the space, natural habitat and quality of care which they deserve.
PAWS is a true sanctuary—a permanent home where animals come first. PAWS is internationally recognized as a leader in animal welfare- - among our greatest concerns are the treatment of animals in traveling shows, animal acts, television and movies; captive breeding, the exotic animal trade and inadequate standards of care for captive wildlife.
PAWS co-founders, Pat Derby, and partner, Ed Stewart, maintain 3 sanctuaries for captive wildlife—30 acres in Galt, California, 100 acres (The Amanda Blake Wildlife Refuge) in Herald, California and 2300 acres of pristine, natural habitat in San Andreas, California (ARK 2000).
The story of PAWS began when Pat Derby worked with exotic animals as a trainer on the sets of many popular television shows in the 1970’s (Flipper, Daktari, Gunsmoke, Lassie, Gentle Ben) , Disney and other animal films, and as the trainer and spokesperson for famed Lincoln Mercury car commercial cougars, Chauncey and Christopher. In the process of developing her own training methods based on love instead of fear, Pat was shocked to discover a profession rampant with neglect and abuse. Her autobiography, “Lady and Her Tiger†(Dutton 1976), was the first expose’ of the harsh training methods and minimal care which were standard in the entertainment industry.
It was during this time that she met Ed Stewart and retired her animals, but stories of abusive training in movies and television prompted the PAWS co-founders to lobby for legislation which would mandate better standards of care and handling for captive wildlife. In 1984, Pat and Ed moved to Galt, California and established PAWS and the Galt wildlife sanctuary.
Pat Derby has appeared on Entertainment Tonight, The Crusaders, Inside Edition, Nightline, Inside America’s Courts, The World’s Most Dangerous Animals, Dateline, 20/20, Animal Planet, The LeezaShow, Montel Williams, The Today Show, CBS Evening News and other national media educating the public about the need to protect wildlife habitat and to control captive breeding of exotic animal species.
Pat Derby and Ed Stewart have pioneered a method of elephant handling that uses NO bullhooks, weapons or aversive training techniques. PAWS was the first facility to use this “non-dominance†technique successfully, and since 1985, the work of Derby and Stewart has been a model for elephant handlers around the nation and around the world.
PAWS has maintained an animal sanctuary in Galt, California since 1984 without problems or incidents and has earned an excellent reputation and the greatest respect from neighbors and the local community. PAWS sanctuary animals receive 24-hour care from a staff of twenty knowledgeable, highly trained, compassionate technicians and an exotic animal veterinarian who is on call twenty-four hours a day. PAWS takes pride in an excellent track record of animal health maintenance, disease prevention, behavioral enrichment and constant monitoring of all the animals to promote the best quality of life for victims of captivity.
Please visit our official website www.pawsweb.org
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