Genesis Wildlife Center: Safety & Finances (new info) (Scranton, Harrisburg: fence, cost)

[D Dozen]

I'm trying to educate you but you don't take what I'm saying serious. Look at it from the other side

[mbs7]

Originally Posted by D Dozen

Well if your fine city of Scranton didn't promise her that a new building would be built for her animals she never would have come here so all you have to blame is your wonderful Mayor. As I told you before Ms. Miller is very well trained to do these animals. Especially the monkeys that have come from a place that has starved, electrocuted them and neglected them so naturally she had to interact with them. Shes been doing this for over 30 years. And know one is trying to domesticate them. Where do you think they got these momnkeys from... People who got caught with them in there homes.. and who suffers then the animal does. Again your wonderful Mayor told her go ahead and get the tigers you'll have a new building.

Again, a responsible person does NOT acquire animals until they are certain that they will have the resources to care for them. I do not hold the mayor blameless in this situation. At the very least, the city did not demand enough accountability from the center. Nevertheless, whatever the mayor's part in this may be, Margaret Miller has no good excuse for having gotten those tigers. Absolutely none. In getting them, she acted incredibly irresponsibly. And what on earth was she thinking when she let the lemurs reproduce?????

I think that if Margaret Miller had behaved a lot more responsibly, she would have had a lot more donations and a lot more volunteers. It's time for the GWC to stop making excuses and trying to blame all of its problems on other people. You don't go out and get two tigers because someone has "promised" you that maybe someday there will be resources to support them. You make sure you have those resources in place BEFORE you get the tigers. And when you get the tigers, you do NOT get them from a disreputable place like the G.W. Exotic Animal Park!!!

It is the people who are running the center who need to be educated about how to care for animals, not the people who are complaining about the center.

Margaret Miller has now admitted that she is "truly sorry" for getting the tigers. I am encouraged that she at least understands, in retrospect, that she made a mistake with the tigers. I hope she will also reconsider some of the other unfortunate choices she has made in regard to the management of the center.

[D Dozen]

They don't let the Lemurs reproduce the male is fixed and if a female comes in pregnant that's not known till the birth. You blame Ms. Miller but what about all the good she has done is that just forgotten by you? Or don't people want to hear about good anymore. You have all the answers about the Mayor. Your not the one in this situation and if you were what would people say about you, and would you feel bad? Are you always a responsible person all the time ? but I forget we don't know about each other so how would we be able to tell. Your so quick to judge and cut down someone that's not your approval.

[D Dozen]

There are no people in danger weather it be there staff or especially the public. The public can not get to the animals. I don't why people say they can.

[mbs7]

Originally Posted by D Dozen

They don't let the Lemurs reproduce the male is fixed and if a female comes in pregnant that's not known till the birth. You blame Ms. Miller but what about all the good she has done is that just forgotten by you? Or don't people want to hear about good anymore. You have all the answers about the Mayor. Your not the one in this situation and if you were what would people say about you, and would you feel bad? Are you always a responsible person all the time ? but I forget we don't know about each other so how would we be able to tell. Your so quick to judge and cut down someone that's not your approval.

Here's a quote from yesterday's article in the Times-Tribune:

"She [Ms. Miller] said she does not breed animals at her center — the male tiger and monkeys are neutered, she said, and the male lemurs were 'fixed' after several reproduced."

Here's the link to the article the above quote is from:

Genesis Wildlife Center: A decent life for wildlife? | News | thetimes-tribune.com - The Times-Tribune (http://thetimes-tribune.com/articles/2009/04/05/news/sc_times_trib.20090405.a.pg1.tt05genesis_s1.242090 4_top2.txt - broken link)


Why did Ms. Miller wait until several of the lemurs had reproduced before having the males neutered? It is just not acceptable behavior for someone at an overcrowded animal "sanctuary"--a place that bills itself as a home for unwanted animals--to allow some of the sanctuary's animals to reproduce.

[scrantonluna]

Bottom line, Genesis was granted an audition by the city, and they blew it. Better management, better decisions, and better public opinion probably would have led to a new building. Who in their right mind would give these people a 10 million dollar facility?

Doherty didn't tell MIller to over crowd the place, he didn't tell her to keep it like a s***house, and he didn't tell her to have a lousy attitude. Genesis has over what, 126k in surplus?

Genesis Wildlife Center - a glorified cat lady bilking the city and the public, with the animals caught in the middle.

Even the old Nay Aug Zoo, while small, was well kept and not overcrowded. They did the best with what they had, not pass the buck and blame the city.

Prior to Chris Doherty, Genesis had to pay for building expenses, property insurance, utilities, etc. They now have all of this for FREE, PLUS a 60k bonus from the city, and they are STILL crying poverty??? How did they ever manage before?

Let's not forget that just the location alone probably brings in twenty times the amount of CASH donations.

[ACOscamper]

Genesis Wildlife center has been under attack by several individuals who do not any background on exotic animals. It is sad that people, not fully knowing the facts, would discredit a facility, which is NOT a zoo, and ruin opportunities for the children of Scranton to see exotic animals. I hope you are proud of yourselves! As a veterinary technician and wildlife biologist who studied under Margaret Miller I can tell you the impact she had on my education...not that it matters to some of you! Mrs. Miller offered, and hopefully will continue to offer, an experience of a lifetime! Genesis Wildlife Center is a small family orientated facility that provides a one -on- one education for those interested in a career in the animal profession! Kudos to you Genesis! I support you 150%

[scrantonluna]

Originally Posted by ACOscamper

Genesis Wildlife center has been under attack by several individuals who do not any background on exotic animals. It is sad that people, not fully knowing the facts, would discredit a facility, which is NOT a zoo, and ruin opportunities for the children of Scranton to see exotic animals. I hope you are proud of yourselves! As a veterinary technician and wildlife biologist who studied under Margaret Miller I can tell you the impact she had on my education...not that it matters to some of you! Mrs. Miller offered, and hopefully will continue to offer, an experience of a lifetime! Genesis Wildlife Center is a small family orientated facility that provides a one -on- one education for those interested in a career in the animal profession! Kudos to you Genesis! I support you 150%

Your opinion would be in the minority.

[mbs7]

Originally Posted by ACOscamper

Genesis Wildlife center has been under attack by several individuals who do not any background on exotic animals. It is sad that people, not fully knowing the facts, would discredit a facility, which is NOT a zoo, and ruin opportunities for the children of Scranton to see exotic animals. I hope you are proud of yourselves! As a veterinary technician and wildlife biologist who studied under Margaret Miller I can tell you the impact she had on my education...not that it matters to some of you! Mrs. Miller offered, and hopefully will continue to offer, an experience of a lifetime! Genesis Wildlife Center is a small family orientated facility that provides a one -on- one education for those interested in a career in the animal profession! Kudos to you Genesis! I support you 150%

If you have been inspired to study about animals by the GWC, then that is wonderful and I wish you all the best. I am glad that something good has come of Ms. Miller's well-intentioned, but largely misguided efforts. No one is saying that every single thing she has ever done at the center was a total mistake.

Nevertheless, it is glaringly obvious that Margaret Miller does not know how to run a truly humane animal center. No responsible director would have allowed those lemurs to reproduce. And no responsible director would have gotten the tigers cubs without having enough space or money to take care of them properly. And no responsible director would have run up the list of serious USDA violations that Margaret Miller managed to accumulate. And, frankly, no responsible director would have relied so heavily on the city for funding. I have been visiting the GWC's various websites and reading about the center in the Times for almost two years, and the GWC's fund-raising efforts appear to me to be almost non-existent in comparison to the efforts of reputable wildlife centers. The GWC's public relations efforts leave a lot to be desired too. And no responsible director would have ignored, for years, the benefits of becoming accredited. Had Ms. Miller behaved more professionally from the start, perhaps conditions at the center would be acceptable by now. But she didn't, and they aren't.

It is time for Ms. Miller and the city to admit that, though the Genesis Wildlife Center may have had its good moments, on balance the center has not worked out at all. It's an embarrassment to the city, an inhumane "home" for the animals, and a safety hazard for animals and people alike.

[scrantonluna]

It would appear as though the 'writing is on the wall'

Shelters offering to take Genesis animals | News | thetimes-tribune.com - The Times-Tribune (http://www.thetimes-tribune.com/articles/2009/04/08/news/sc_times_trib.20090408.a.pg1.tt08genesisfolo_s1.24 30613_top2.txt - broken link)

http://www.thetimes-tribune.com/articles/2009/04/08/editorial/sc_times_trib.20090408.a.pg12.tt08edit1_s1.2427629 _edi.txt (broken link)