The tigers of Serenity Springs

Nanda worked in California as a “hit cat” and was trained by Charlie Sammit.  Her job was to knock actors to the ground without hurting them and walk away. She was trained with positive reinforcement using food and is so gentle you could take food right out of her mouth. (Not that anyone wants to try it!)  Retired at the age of 6, she is now 15 and still loves to take down anyone in with her who is not paying attention.

Valic was the smallest of his siblings. When he was 6 months old he was getting injured while playing with his sisters. An exam by CSU showed that he had a severe calcium deficiency.  We separated him and started intensive calcium treatments. After a year his calcium levels were 100% and it only takes a look to see that he is no longer the runt!

Animal control officers from the Mt Rushmore area called SSWC in 2002. The owner of an animal park had abandoned several animals with only $35 in an account. The owner was charged with 50 counts of animal abuse in South Dakota and Colorado but only received a $1000 fine. Reyna was one of the tigers SSWC rescued. She is now happily living her mate, Shirkhan, at SSWC.

When Shirkhan was used for photo opportunities in an animal park in South Dakota, he was lifted out of his cage by his front legs and sustained a torn rotator cuff. He is no longer in pain but will never be 100%. He loves to play and splash with Reyna in their pool. Watch out or he'll splash you too!

Tiger was purchased by a couple in Texas to be a pet for their 4 and 6 years old daughters. At a year old and 160 pounds the family became afraid of him. They chained Tiger to a tree and called SSWC to pick him up. Tiger became an educational cat and went to schools with Nick until he was 5 years old.  Tiger liked his trips so much that when Nick returned home, he did not want to get out of the back of the van!

Seth, one of our fuzzy tigers, came to SSWC with his two sisters from Myrtle Beach, SC where they were used for photo opportunities. They were not properly vaccinated and contracted parvo, Seth was the only one to survive. Seth loves to rough house and play with his buddy Daisy.

These playful boys, Twinkle, Lazareth and Diablo were born at SSWC. Their parents are Reyna and Shirkan. Lazareth likes to dunk his food in the pool and then eat it. Ick! Twinkle is the dominate male, probably to get back at the person who named him Twinkle and Diablo loves to play in the pool and stalk and pounce on his brothers.

Bianca, a 15 year old white tiger, was born in Dirk Arthur's endangered species breeding program and featured in his live show and television on Dirk's Animal Planet Special "Big Cat Magic". A calm sweet cat, performing was starting to be a bit much for her due to her age. She now spends her time playing and resting in the sun.

Previously owned by Dirk Arthur, Snowmagic was brought to the SSWC to retire after being a featured performer in Arthur’s Xtreme Magic show at the Tropicana Resort and Casino in Las Vegas.