Animals

Carole Baskin's thrilled to announce all of her big cats are in good shape after Hurricane Ian -- and she credits that to staying 2 steps ahead of the storm, something the lions and tigers can feel coming ... in the air, as they say.

Carole joined "TMZ Live" Thursday to give us a tour of her Big Cat Rescue outside Tampa. The 'Tiger King' star says she prepares for hurricanes and tornados year-round, so they are ready to shelter in place when this kinda weather hits.

Carole told us her 45 big cats have plenty of places on the grounds to keep safe ... even if they experience 6+ feet of storm surge flooding!!!

While Ian wreaked havoc across much of Florida, it didn't get that bad at her sanctuary last night. She says in the past, the tigers sometimes seem to sense there's a weather emergency coming ... and take steps to keep themselves safe.

Carole says they have lots of protocols and measures in place for the animals when the wind gets over a certain speed.

As we reported ... Carole's 21 bobcats, 8 tigers, 6 servals, jaguar, leopard (and others) rode out the hurricane, while some of her other animals -- like chickens -- have been temporarily moved to a different sanctuary.

Carole Baskin has no choice but to shelter in place as Hurricane Ian passes over her Florida sanctuary ... because places like hotels aren't down to take on 45 big cats onto their property.

Carole tells TMZ ... her 21 bobcats, 8 tigers, 6 servals, jaguar and leopard -- just to name a few -- are staying put and riding out this hurricane ... some of the other animals like chickens have been moved to a different sanctuary for the time being.

She's been working with her husband and volunteers this past week to protect them from the storm -- Carole says they've built structures, chopped down branches that could pose a threat, and loaded sandbags throughout her property.

People have donated equipment and chainsaws to help with the prep, and they've been able to collect generators and gas in case the power goes out. They also have a big propane tank just in case -- that'll help with the food prep for the cats.

Ernest Hemingway's famous home in Florida is a mess with debris after Hurricane Ian winds whipped it, but there's some really good news ... the 59 cats who live there are safe and sound.

Alexa, a rep for the Hemingway house in Key West, tells TMZ ... the estate is dealing with the hurricane aftermath, with staff cleaning up all the tree and leaf debris caused by the category 4 storm.

Fortunately, the structures from the 1930s home don't appear to be damaged ... and we're told the 59 cats who call the property home are all accounted for, and feline fine.

The Hemingway Home, where Ernest wrote roughly 70 percent of his published works, was well prepared for the hurricane ... we're told the cats were sheltered on the property before the storm hit, with some staff members staying on site to tend to the felines.

The cats are a famous part of the Hemingway house ... Ernest started the cat colony back in the day when a sailor gave him a six-toed cat, and some of the cats who live there now are direct descendants ... and all 59 cats are of the six-toed variety.

A Montana woman is in hot water after she proudly displayed the carcass of a dog she killed, and then skinned ... thinking it was a baby wolf, and the public is irate.

Her name is Amber Rose (no relation to the famous one) and she announced her kill recently on Facebook, posting a series of very graphic photos where she showed off the dead pooch -- before and after it was reduced to a fur rug in the bed of her pickup truck.

She wrote, "So this morning I set out for a solo predator hunt for a fall black bear however I got the opportunity to take another predator wolf pup 2022 was a great feeling to text my man and say I just smoked a wolf pup. #firstwolf #onelesspredatorMT."

The horrifying kill went down somewhere in Montana's Flathead County, and the local Sheriff's Office, Animal Control and Fish and Game agencies all tell us they're aware of it ... and have launched investigations that are ongoing.

There's no word yet on what, if any, legal/criminal repercussions Rose might face ... but it's clear folks in the area are already up in arms and want her to pay. Several Facebook users say they've filed complaints demanding she be held accountable. The general consensus is how could she not know this was someone's Siberian husky, and NOT a wolf???

Rose is defending herself amid all the backlash ... insisting she was in the right here.

Rose took to FB to tell everyone she did, in fact, have a wolf tag -- licensing her to hunt the animal -- while also explaining ... yes, she made a mistake. Despite that admission, she says she'd do it all over again, because she claims the husky was acting wild, aggressive and charging her. From her POV, she had every right to protect herself -- wolf or not -- so she didn't break any laws.

Still, many who are doing comparisons between huskies and wolves note the latter tend to be much larger, and have a different look than your average husky.

Get your tissues ready ... because 2 of Queen Elizabeth II's corgis were patiently waiting for their owner to arrive at her final resting place in Windsor Castle.

The royal pups, Muick and Sandy, were being walked Monday at the castle ... ahead of QE2's Committal Service, where she's being laid to rest next to her husband, Prince Philip.

One of the Queen's horses -- Emma -- was also brought out to watch her hearse go by as it arrived ... and it's clear the Internet can't handle the animals in mourning.

As we reported, there's been speculation on who will get the corgis after Her Majesty's passing -- although there have been reports that 2 of her dogs will live with Prince Andrew and Sarah "Fergie" Ferguson.

A surfer's day on the waves quickly turned into a fight for his board -- 'cause a sea otter stole it from him as he was dippin' in the Pacific Ocean, and refused to give it back!!

The wild scene all happened off the shores of California on Monday when an otter plopped itself onto Nick Ericksen's ride as he was hittin' the waves.

Video shot by one of Ericksen's friends showed despite all of the surfer's efforts to displace the animal -- it wasn't budging.

The two then engaged in a standoff for several moments -- with the otter in absolutely no mood to get back in the water.

At one point, Ericksen managed to get the otter off the board for a few seconds -- but it climbed back on and, again, didn't want to leave.

Finally, another surfer came to the rescue ... and pulled the board away long enough for Ericksen to hop back on it.

The whole thing was pretty funny -- but also a little scary, 'cause the pissed-off otter followed the surfer for a while!!!

According to one of Ericksen's friends, the surfer had considered getting an otter tattoo recently, "but this may have changed his mind."

9/14 -- A statement from the group reads, "Rescues Rock is pleased that on September 13, 2022, the Court denied Stephen and Cassandra Amells’ baseless request for an emergency injunction shutting down Rescues Rock’s important mission promoting animal welfare, education, and rescues, said founder Kristen Stavola."

They continue, "We look forward to proving, in Court, that the Amells’ claims lack merit, and that their bullying tactics have no place in our closely knit community."

Finally, they say, "We have started a GoFundMe campaign so we can pay the attorneys and experts who have been supporting our effort to keep our focus on the animals and rebuff these meritless allegations. Any support anyone can give us is so very much appreciated.”

Stephen Amell has a new target in his sights -- the guy's taking his neighbors to court over what he claims is an unpermitted animal adoption biz ... one that he says is super loud and stinky!

The "Arrow" star and his wife, Cassandra, just filed suit against Kristen Stavola and Jeremy Gardiner -- who run a company called Rescues Rock Inc. ... which they advertise as a pet adoption/foster enterprise that they run out of their home in Los Angeles.

The problem ... the Amells live next door, and they allege that not only is this operation a complete and utter nuisance ... but it's illegal too, at least according to their suit.

Per the docs, obtained by TMZ, SA spells out all the issues he and his family have had with RRI since Stavola/Gardiner moved in back in 2015. He claims they have upwards of 60 animals there, including at least 18 dogs and countless cats.

More importantly, the Amells allege that their neighbors are running the entire operation in a neighborhood zoned for residential only. The Amells claim they're at the end of their rope and felt compelled to file a lawsuit to stop it.

Stephen and co. say these animals are yapping at all hours of the day and night -- disrupting his and his wife's sleep and that of his children ... including a newborn. And, of course, he also grouses the place reeks ... and some of the pooches carry diseases to boot.

He says he's tried doing this the neighborly way, but claims these folks aren't playing ball. Now, he wants a judge to step in and force them to pump the breaks and shut down the animal shelter.

We reached out to Rescues Rock Inc. for comment ... so far, no word back.

The L.A. Rams and Buffalo Bills' season opener nearly went up in smoke on Thursday ... when protesters rushed the field with a pink flare -- with one being dragged off by security.

Two women somehow found their way onto the field during the fourth quarter at SoFi Stadium ... as many in the sold-out crowd whipped their phones out to record the debacle.

Former NFL player Emmanuel Acho was one of them -- and you can see in his footage one of the two women was holding up a pink smoke bomb while racing down the field like a running back.

SoFi security quickly caught up to her and tackled her to the ground -- right in front of the Bills' defensive huddle -- before hauling her away.

The protesters wore a RightToRescue.com shirt, which is a website that claims to help "the whistleblowers facing prison time for exposing factory farm abuses and rescuing suffering animals."

Direct Action Everywhere took responsibility for the protest and released a statement saying the two women were there to bring awareness to the upcoming trial of Smithfield Foods factory farm whistleblowers.

"The protest aims to shine a light on what DxE calls a landmark trial for animal rights, food justice and free speech, and more broadly, on the entire animal agricultural industry, which DxE says is inherently abusive and exploitative."

Queen Elizabeth II is leaving behind a trove of precious possessions, but probably none more important to her than her beloved horses and dogs. As for who gets them ... it may take nearly a century to find out.

The Queen adored her horses ... she had more than 100 at the time of her death. She rode them with pride for decades.

Ditto her dogs that were omnipresent during her reign. At the time of her death, she had 4 --Corgis Muick and Sandy, a Dorgi named Candy, and a Cocker Spaniel.

The Queen has something in common with commoners ... a last will and testament that leaves her possessions, including dogs and horses, to designated beneficiaries. More than 30 royals who have died all left behind a will, so it's SOP in England.

The question -- who gets the animals? Although her will certainly provides answers, it will probably be kept under wraps for many years.

When her husband, Prince Philip died last year, an English judge revealed Phillip's will would be sealed for 90 years.

That said, certain items may be fair game for public disclosure.

After Phillip died, it became known he left his carriage to his granddaughter Louise Windsor, the daughter of Edward.

There is one hint ... we know Prince Andrew gave his mom 2 dogs last year while Prince Philip was in the hospital, as a way to keep her spirits up ... although one died a few months later. So, it's possible Andrew will get that dog and he's in the mix for the others as well.

A Florida man has been arrested for what cops are describing as a sick obsession with school shootings and killing animals after he allegedly placed several on a memorial dedicated to the victims of the Parkland school shooting.

Detectives from the Broward County Sheriff's Office say Robert Mondragon is responsible for leaving a dead duck (with its chest cut open), raccoon and opossum at the MSD Memorial Garden over the span of 11 days last month.

Cops say once they discovered Mondragon was allegedly behind the disgusting display, they were able to locate his vehicle July 31 and pulled him over for tinted windows.

Officers say inside Mondragon's car was bird feathers and blood, and he allegedly told the deputy he had a dead bird in his car because he likes "the metal and blood smells that emit from the dead animal."

Detectives say their investigation into Mondragon further revealed photos of dead animals on his phone and text messages as well as Internet searches about school shootings.

What's more ... cops say his shocking face tattoos resemble those of Tate Langdon from "American Horror Story" -- a character based on Columbine.

Not only that, detectives claim two weeks before the end of this past school year, "Mondragon walked the path the MSD school shooter (Nikolas Cruz) took from the high school to Walmart on Feb. 14, 2018."

Cruz is currently in a sentencing trial for killing 17 people when he opened fire at MSD High School.

Kevin Bacon's musical farm just dove into the Beyhive, but he's not getting -- instead, the dude's getting mad props ... and one of his animals might be partially responsible.

The actor posted a video Sunday showing him doing a cover of Beyoncé's 'Heated' -- from her new 'Renaissance' album -- on his Connecticut property ... which is chock-full of livestock, including a crap ton of goats.

He writes, "Hot day, hot song. The goats and I are feeling Heated, @beyonce. Loving this track." Kevin also added the hashtag #GoatSongs ... part of an ongoing collection of his.

Anyway, watch this hilarious video ... one of his goats was VERY curious during KB's performance -- done on nothing but a guitar, as he's perched on what seems to be a goat playground of some sort -- and it was actually trying to nibble at some the strings!

It looks like the little guy did, in fact, pluck a string while Kevin was playing ... and his owner acknowledges it at the end.

Like we said, Kevin does this sort of thing all the time ... he's done stripped-down covers of songs by Harry Styles, Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo, Glass Animals and more. Whenever he jams out, his goats all seem to come flocking -- apparently wanting in on the fun.

Tom Cruise's son, Connor, has followed a different path than that of his old man -- and that path is one of a fisherman who reels in big catches ... really big catches.

CC was part of the Sarasota Slam fishing tournament in Florida this weekend, and it looks like he and his crew took the grand prize for a Grouper that literally ended up weighing hundreds of pounds.

To be precise, the beast ended up clocking in at 301 pounds ... which was proudly announced across the docks and got huge applause from the crowd. Word is, Connor and co. actually caught it Friday -- but kept it on ice until Saturday when they checked the poundage.

Connor writes of the haul ... "Got it done yesterday with the boys. 301# Warsaw on the hand crank."

Tom and Nicole Kidman's kid is all into the sport these days. His social media pages are plastered with photos and videos of him posing with a bunch of dead fish ... huge ones at that.

One bald eagle's giving its own wings a break, and hopping a commercial flight instead -- but even being the U.S. national bird won't get you through TSA any faster.

This particular screening eagle, named Clark, was boarding a flight in North Carolina earlier this week ... and as you might imagine, Clark caught a lot of eyes in the airport. Eat your heart out Bennifer!

While he might seem like an unlikely passenger, TSA said the airline made them aware ahead of time that Clark would be a passenger, and agents handled biz as they would for any other animal.

No favors for this guy, either. You'd think being on the cover of every U.S. Passport might get you some celeb treatment, but Clark and his handler still had to wait in line and go through TSA screening. Like everyone else.

Apparently, the eagle is trained to spread his wings on command. TSA agents tweeted about the cool moment ... saying the eagle "showed off a bit during screening" and flapped his wings briefly.

According to the World Bird Sanctuary, Clark is "one of only four bald eagles who travel to fly at different venues throughout the United States”. It's up to each airline to decide which animal is allowed on a plane ... per the FAA website.

A brawl between 2 kangaroos ended quicker than expected when one went straight WWE on the other -- shoving the opponent straight through a metal fence!!!

The 'roo rivalry went down at Canberra Nature Reserve in Australia ... a passerby started filming the animals getting into it. After a few moments of hand-to-hand combat, one delivered the crushing blow ... hurling the loser into a not-so-solid wall.

The "winner" even looked shocked ... seemingly staring down his bounding buddy to make sure it stayed down after the violent tumble.

Don't worry, the fence-crasher's doing just fine -- a witness told Storyful it was later seen jumping down the road like nothing happened, but good luck with that, buddy.

Y'know how kangaroos gossip, bro. Word's gonna get around.

Seriously, though ... don't mess with these 'roos! Remember, a man squared off with one a few months back, even grabbing a stick to defend himself ... but that didn't seem to phase the animal.

Any rabid animal -- like this fox -- is nothing to mess with ... but the woman it attacked is no slouch either, as this surveillance video shows her putting up one hell of a fight and likely saving her life.

The wild incident went down in July in Ithaca, NY ... you can see the fox doesn't even hesitate as it sneaks up on her as she's chatting on the phone in her yard, and starts chomping on her leg nonstop.

She gives the animal a powerful kick, launching it into the air, but it doesn't give up ... eventually clamping its jaws down on her hand and doesn't let go while she tries to shake it off. A neighbor eventually shows up and scares it away.

Her hand seemingly got the worst of it, as these gnarly pics after the attack show. She must've gotten some extremely painful rabies shots, too.

According to her husband, who uploaded the video, the fox attempted to do the same to someone else nearby, but it was killed ... the body was taken to the vet lab at Cornell University, where they discovered rabies was in its system.

Dallas rapper Trapboy Freddy was arrested by cops for a weapons charge ... but it might've been a good idea for officers to bring a zookeeper along, too.

Officials say they discovered a tiger cub Wednesday caged inside Freddy's Oak Cliff house. Officials seized the cat, but at this time, he hasn't been charged with anything in relation to having the animal.

The Dallas rapper was charged with one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and is due to appear in court on Friday.

As for the tiger, it was transported it to the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department.