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Alcu and Bagira were born in October 2001. They were just 6 months old when they were taken from the wild. As a cub, Alcu was captured in a vicious leg-hold trap, which severed one of her front paws. Fearing that her injury would reduce their profit, the dealers sent the poachers out again to trap a second snow leopard to be sold more lucratively with Alcu as a pair. Bagira, was their next victim. In her case, the trap cut off two of her toes.
Dogs guarded the two terrified cats at the traders’ home, where they were kept chained around the neck under appalling conditions until they were rescued in a risky undercover operation by a dedicated anti-poaching team, funded by CWI. Alcu and Bagira were taken to a rescue centre in the Issyk-Kul Biosphere Reserve in their native home Kyrgyzstan. Sadly, their severe injuries and the trauma they were forced to endure mean that they can not return to the wild. By supporting this adoption programme, you can help to provide the long-term care they now rely on.
Between 4,500 and 7,500 snow leopards live in the remote mountains of Central Asia. Until a few years ago, Kyrgyzstan was home to the world’s second-largest population. But since the early 1990s this number has dwindled to an estimated 260 to 700 a 50 to 80 per cent reduction. Snow leopards are killed for their bones, which are used increasingly in Traditional Chinese Medicine as a substitute for tiger bones. Their pelts are used to make fur coats and live animals are sometimes sold to private collections. All this is illegal under both national and international law. Effective anti-poaching is vital if they are to survive.
Your adoption will help us support a highly trained, dedicated and carefully selected anti-poaching team charged with stemming illegal trade in snow leopards and other protected species. They risk their lives every day to this end. By adopting Alcu and Bagira you can provide them with a safe future and help protect wild snow leopards from becoming casualties of illegal trade.
Snow Leopard Adoptions - £24.95
Adopt Alcu and Bagira for one year and you will receive:
A personalised adoption certificate with a colour picture of Alcu and Bagira
An exclusive snow leopard T-shirt
A CWI window sticker
A snow leopard fact sheet packed with information
An update on Alcu and Bagira's progress after six months of adoption
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Care for the Wild International (Registered Charity No. 288802)
Care for the Wild International (CWI) is an animal welfare and conservation charity that funds practical projects . We make areas safe from poachers, rehabilitate sick or injured animals and provide sanctuary for those who cannot return to the wild. We also act as a global voice for wildlife through research, education and advocacy.
