®
LCF Photo Gallery
of Leopard Cats of
unknown subspecies
aka generic Leopard CatsIt is unfortunate that the overwhelming majority of Leopard Cats that were raised in the past have not been documented as to what subspecies they are. Though some may be of pure origins, there is still no way of knowing for sure that they are not of mixed heritage, therefor making them of no value in helping to preserve their species.
The number of Leopard Cats of unknown subspecies make the actual number of useful Leopard Cats in captivity misleading by making it appear there are sufficient numbers in captivity. In reality, they have no place in a serious Leopard Cat program. several years ago they were are the result of zoos and private breeders, carelessly breeding one Leopard Cat to another Leopard Cat without regard to what subspecies each are, simply to exploit the species for profit.
To make matters worse, it is now believed many of today's undocumented subspecies are the result of unethical importers changing known endangered subspecies to being of unknown origins just to allow easy import/export and sales of these valuable endangered cats. This practice is causing their endangered gene pools to be lost forever, adding to the endangerment of the subspecies, that is already endangered.
US Fish and Wildlife has cracked down in recent years (since 2000) by only allowing the importation of Leopard Cats of known documented subspecies to enter the US. Many undocumented Leopard Cats are being confiscated by USFW at Ports of Entry and it's only the beginning.
It is my understanding USFW will also start to crack down on all undocumented Leopard Cats in captivity. The Endangered Species Act does not allow the sale or transportation of endangered species or subspecies across state lines without an ESA special permit. Because of this requirement, Leopard Cats of unknown or of known endangered subspecies that are sold through interstate transactions can also be confiscated. Basically, if you cannot prove a Leopard Cat is not of an endangered subspecies, USFW can consider them endangered and can confiscate them.
Be warned that dealing with Leopard Cats of undocumented subspecies may lead to their confiscation even within US boarders.
Undocumented/generic Leopard Cats, are also more likely to be in need of rescue because Zoos who are working with Leopard Cats at all will only work with documented pure subspecies today. LCF had acquired several beautiful generic Leopard Cats over the years through their rescue program. Many generic Leopard Cats are sold for pets or for Bengal cat breeders who later find out they cannot keep them or that they won't breed for them. Some have been turned loose in the wild to starve to death or end up being neglected, suffering from malnutrition , confiscated by authorities, or euthanized.
Not to mention the value of an undocumented Leopard Cat is 1/10 the value of a documented one. Example: European Zoo's in poor countries who still breed highly inbred Leopard Cats without documentation and offer them to dealers for $500.00 or less each (true value). They are then resold for as much as $5,000.00 (what documented LC's are worth) to unsuspecting Bengal cat breeders. When they find out that the cat is infertile or won't breed Bengals, they quickly find out that they cannot recoup their investment and the cat ends up in need of rescue. If they were documented subspecies, they would be worth as much as $7,000.00 for use in Leopard Cat programs in zoos and breeding facilities.
LCF has never turned away a Leopard Cat in need and will provide them with life long housing, medical care, and general care, even knowing they can never be used in LCF's Leopard Cat breeding programs. In fact, most would not breed if given the chance anyway.
This means that these generic Leopard Cats are the cats in most need of donated funds through LCF's Adopt a Leopard Cat Program. These funds are desperately needed, to provide continued care, food, housing, and any medical care they may need throughout their lives. The estimated cost to provide this for each Leopard Cat is $4.00 per day, which comes to about $120.00 a month, or approximately $1500.00 annually for each Leopard Cat kept at LCF facilities.
The following articles were published in Newspapers or made available on the internet for public viewing and are available here under the
US Freedom of Information Act..Man Pleads Guilty to Cat Smuggling
Published on 5/10/2007The head of small cat organization could receive up to five years in prison for smuggling endangered subspecies of Leopard cats.
The American head of a Europe-based small cat organization has pleaded guilty to federal charges of illegally selling and transporting two endangered Asian leopard cats to Miami.
At the time of his arrest, David G. Sparandara was director of the Czech Republic-based organization European-American Consortium for Small Felines. Authorities said Sparandara shipped one Asian leopard cat through Miami International Airport in January 2005.
Another Asian leopard cat that he tried to ship through the Miami airport in December 2005 was intercepted and submitted to federal authorities. Investigators learned that proper Endangered Species Act permits were not in order for the transactions.
Paperwork showed that the first Asian leopard cat was being sold to an importer for more than $4,000.
The U.S. Attorney's Office said Sparandara could receive as many as five years in prison, a $250,000 fine, three years of supervised release and an order of restitution at his July 20 sentencing.
US Citizen Sentenced For Illegally Selling Asian Leopard Cat - US Attorney
Prosecutions
North America
Source: US Department of Justice, US Attorney's Office
US Citizen Sentenced For Illegally Selling Asian Leopard Cat - US Attorney
Posted on Friday, July 20, 2007LAWFUEL - The Law Newswire - R. Alexander Acosta, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida and Eddie McKissick, Resident Agent in Charge, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service announced today that David G. Sparandara, 46, a U.S. citizen residing in Prague, Czech Republic, was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Miami in connection with the illegal sale and transportation from the Czech Republic to Miami of a live Asian Leopard Cat, Felis (Prionailurus) bengalensis bengalensis, an endangered species, in violation of the federal Lacey Act, Title 16, United States Code, Sections 3372 and 3373.
United States District Court Judge Adalberto Jordan sentenced Sparandara to a term of six (6) months of home confinement, a fine of up to $1,500.00, and five (5) years of probation. Additionally, the leopard cat involved in the commission of the offenses charged in the Indictment was forfeited to the United States.
The feline involved in this matter, is of a taxonomic sub-species specifically listed as an endangered species of wildlife, pursuant to the list of such species promulgated by the Secretary of the Interior in Title 50, Code of Federal Regulations, Section 17.11. It was first listed in June 1976. A small wild spotted cat, weighing about 10 pounds, the nocturnal feline is generally solitary and prefers brush and forest habitat. Asian Leopard Cats are prized by afficionados for their rarity and color pattern. However, they also have substantial commercial value in the pet trade due to their susceptibility to hybridization with domestic cats, which produces the “Bengal cat” pet species. According to statements in Court, the organization run by Sparandara in fact was little more than the feline version of a “puppy mill” which sold leopard cats to private breeders in the United States to produce Bengal cats for the high end pet trade.
According to the case records and statements in Court today, in January 2005 a Fish & Wildlife Service Wildlife Inspector in Texas became aware that the defendant, and a Prague-based entity known as the European-American Consortium For Small Felines of which he was the Director, was preparing to ship two Asian Leopard Cats to the United States. Investigation by the Inspector revealed that no one associated with Defendant, the Consortium, or the named recipients held valid Endangered Species Act (ESA) permits for the importations as required by law.
Defendant was specifically advised of the restriction by the Inspector, but made no effort to acquire the necessary ESA permits, and re-routed one of the leopard cats through Miami International Airport on February 2, 2005. Paperwork accompanying the bengalensis indicated that it was being sold to the importer for in excess of $4,000. A subsequent effort by Sparandara in December 2005 to ship another bengalensis into Miami resulted in the interception and seizure of the feline.
The Division of Management Authority, within the Fish & Wildlife Service administers the ESA permit program and issues permits in accordance with as strict set of regulatory guidelines. Permits related to species designated as endangered are only issued to bona fide scientific and research facilities with the specific goal of enhancing the propagation or survival of the wildlife under consideration. The ESA list is a compilation of species which have been determined to be so depleted in numbers that they are in danger of extinction.
Mr. Acosta commended the coordinated investigative efforts of the U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service Agents and Inspectors The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Thomas Watts-FitzGerald and Certified Legal Intern Courtney R. Berman.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Source: http://lawfuel.com/show-release.asp?ID=13677
U.S. CITIZEN SENTENCED FOR ILLEGALLY SELLING AND TRANSPORTING AN ASIAN LEOPARD CAT
July 20, 2007FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
R. Alexander Acosta, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida and Eddie McKissick, Resident Agent in Charge, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service announced today that David G. Sparandara, 46, a U.S. citizen residing in Prague, Czech Republic, was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Miami in connection with the illegal sale and transportation from the Czech Republic to Miami of a live Asian Leopard Cat, Felis (Prionailurus) bengalensis bengalensis, an endangered species, in violation of the federal Lacey Act, Title 16, United States Code, Sections 3372 and 3373.
United States District Court Judge Adalberto Jordan sentenced Sparandara to a term of six (6) months of home confinement, a fine of up to $1,500.00, and five (5) years of probation. Additionally, the leopard cat involved in the commission of the offenses charged in the Indictment was forfeited to the United States.
The feline involved in this matter, is of a taxonomic sub-species specifically listed as an endangered species of wildlife, pursuant to the list of such species promulgated by the Secretary of the Interior in Title 50, Code of Federal Regulations, Section 17.11. It was first listed in June 1976. A small wild spotted cat, weighing about 10 pounds, the nocturnal feline is generally solitary and prefers brush and forest habitat. Asian Leopard Cats are prized by afficionados for their rarity and color pattern. However, they also have substantial commercial value in the pet trade due to their susceptibility to hybridization with domestic cats, which produces the "Bengal cat" pet species. According to statements in Court, the organization run by Sparandara in fact was little more than the feline version of a "puppy mill" which sold leopard cats to private breeders in the United States to produce Bengal cats for the high end pet trade.
According to the case records and statements in Court today, in January 2005 a Fish & Wildlife Service Wildlife Inspector in Texas became aware that the defendant, and a Prague-based entity known as the European-American Consortium For Small Felines of which he was the Director, was preparing to ship two Asian Leopard Cats to the United States. Investigation by the Inspector revealed that no one associated with Defendant, the Consortium, or the named recipients held valid Endangered Species Act (ESA) permits for the importations as required by law.
Defendant was specifically advised of the restriction by the Inspector, but made no effort to acquire the necessary ESA permits, and re-routed one of the leopard cats through Miami International Airport on February 2, 2005. Paperwork accompanying the bengalensis indicated that it was being sold to the importer for in excess of $4,000. A subsequent effort by Sparandara in December 2005 to ship another bengalensis into Miami resulted in the interception and seizure of the feline.
The Division of Management Authority, within the Fish & Wildlife Service administers the ESA permit program and issues permits in accordance with as strict set of regulatory guidelines. Permits related to species designated as endangered are only issued to bona fide scientific and research facilities with the specific goal of enhancing the propagation or survival of the wildlife under consideration. The ESA list is a compilation of species which have been determined to be so depleted in numbers that they are in danger of extinction.
Mr. Acosta commended the coordinated investigative efforts of the U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service Agents and Inspectors The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Thomas Watts-FitzGerald and Certified Legal Intern Courtney R. Berman.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Technical comments about this website can be e-mailed to the Webmaster. PLEASE NOTE: The United States Attorney's Office does not respond to non-technical inquiries made to this website. If you wish to make a request for information, you may contact our office at 305-961-9001, or you may send a written inquiry to the United States Attorney's Office, Southern District of Florida, 99 NE 4th Street, Miami, Fl. 33132.
Source: http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls/PressReleases/070720-02.html
Please Note: LCF has been in continued contact with the US Citizens that claim they sent David G. Sparandara, residing in Prague, Czech Republic of the European-American Consortium For Small Felines, approximately $5000.00 plus shipping expenses for a legal Leopard Cat cub. They have stated in recent emails that they still to this day (September 20, 2008) have not received a legal Leopard Cat cub nor a full refund of the money they sent. If you are also a victim of this, please contact LCF as soon as possible.
Please Note: The following photos are of Leopard Cats of unknown subspecies that had previously resided at LCF for many years. There are no longer any undocumented Leopard Cat subspecies residing at LCF.
All LCF photos are Copywrite© protected!
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4 year old male p.bengalensis subspecies unknown
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3 year old male p.bengalensis subspecies unknown
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5 years old male p.bengalensis subspecies unknown
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Young female p.bengalensis subspecies unknown
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7 year old female p.bengalensis subspecies unknown
Note: missing left front leg from accident
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Young male p.bengalensis subspecies unknown
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