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Mountainburg Woman Calls for Help with 30 Tigers

By: Cassidy Hodges
Updated: November 15, 2012
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A Mountainburg woman is calling in backup to take over caring for her 34 tigers, cougars and leopards. Now Turpentine Creek is scrambling to find space at their facility.

"I get up about 4:30 every morning," says Betty Young, who operates River Glen Tiger Shelter.

At 72 years old, Betty Young is still taking care of 34 ferocious felines.

"We are a registered humane society in the state of Arkansas."

For more than 20 years, she's lived with tigers, leopards, even cougars.

"Animals have been my life but tigers, they're just fantastic animals," says Young.

But now, she's barely keeping up, working sunrise to sunset on a crutch.

"I asked Turpentine Creek to help."

Two by two, the Eureka Springs rescue is taking tigers off Betty's hands.

"I realize that it has to be done for their sake because i can't take care of all of them now by myself," says Young.

"They were born and raised in Arkansas so they need to stay in Arkansas so we're hoping we can help them," says Tanya Smith, the President of Turpentine Creek Rescue.

But these tigers aren't too tickled about transition

"So these guys will do just about anything I ask them to do because they love and trust me, but after this, I don't know how much they're going to trust me," says Young.

"Poor ducky, it's going to be alright sweetie," says Young.

And a few tigers aren't going anywhere.

"I'm going to stay here and take care of those because some of them are just too old to transfer. It'd be cruel."

"It's all gone Ms Ducky Duck."

A sad goodbye, just 80 miles away from a brand new beginning.

"All the animals are endangered species and it's really important these animals aren't just euthanized, they need to be cared for and they've got a lot of years to live," says Smith.

But Turpentine Creek doesn't have the facilities right to support all 34 cats. They'll need more than $200,000 to build cages to house them.

For more information on how to donate, head to the Turpentine Creek website.

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