Feline find in the doggone desert Published Feb. 23, 2011 By Kate Blais 95th Air Base Wing Public Affairs ROSAMOND, Calif. -- Tao and Ran, a happy couple for several years, lay by the pool and nap in the shade while waiting for their daily catered lunch. Tao and Ran, two Northern Chinese leopards, live the good life along with over 70 other exotic felines at the Exotic Feline Breeding Compound's Feline Conservation Center in Rosamond, Calif., just 25 minutes outside of Edwards' West Gate. Complemented by jungle-themed cat enclosures, the center's tree-filled outdoor viewing area resembles a park with its green grass and benches. "I call it the 'little oasis in the desert,'" said Melany Marotta, the center's head zookeeper. "It's a great place to see cats from around the world that most people have never heard of." With felines ranging from the small house-cat sized margay to the tiger, the EFBC Feline Conservation Center, aka the "Cat House," is one of a kind in the United States with the widest variety of different feline species, Ms. Marotta said. Most of the center's exotic and endangered cats were either born at the center or born at another zoo and transported to the Antelope Valley to breed. "Let's just say that we have a leopard born here at the center and another leopard born at a zoo in Europe," said Ms. Marotta. "If the cats are unrelated and they make a really good pair genetically, we could request that the cat in Europe come here and they could spend the rest of their lives together, possibly producing more offspring that might go somewhere else." While the primary objective is feline conservation through breeding, the center is also focused on education and tours. Guided tours for school groups ranging from first graders to college students, as well as public tours, are conducted year-round. The center is open to the public every day except Wednesdays for self-guided tours around the compound. "You can get eye-to-eye with a leopard," said Ms. Marotta, referring to the intimate set-up of the feline enclosures. Visitors have the chance to view these exotic cats at a closer proximity than they would at a traditional zoo. Visitors are not the only ones to get closer than usual to the cats. "Nowhere else can volunteers be this close to these cats," said Debbie Crosthwait, a volunteer at the Cat House for nearly two years. While the center has a permanent staff of six paid employees, 18-20 volunteers help augment the work it takes to care for over 70 felines. "We [volunteers] help clean the enclosures, update health and food charts and feed the cats, in addition to whatever other general upkeep needs to be done," Ms. Crosthwait said. "I love it. It's the best place to volunteer if you're a cat lover." With several annual events, members of the public have opportunities for a behind-the-scenes look at the cats not regularly on display. "We hold 'Twilight Tours' for adults three times a year in April, June and September, where we open up the whole facility so visitors can view all of the cats, including the tigers" said Ms. Marotta. "We also host 'Fabulous Feline Follies' with a catered dinner in August and 'Kids' Day' in November." As a non-profit organization, the Cat House is funded by annual events, as well as public donations accumulated through tour admission and gift shop sales and programs such as 'Adopt a Cat.' Through the 'Adopt a Cat' program interested individuals can pay a monthly fee that goes toward the animal's food and enclosure upkeep, and in return receive updates and photos of the feline, and a personalized plaque on the cat's enclosure. Public donations have made the construction of a permanent enclosure for the center's most famous residents possible. "'Project Tiger' has been in the works for quite awhile," said Ms. Marotta pointing to the large, nearly complete enclosure. "We're really looking forward to seeing this done. When that's done we'll have tigers for people to see every day." The EFBC's Feline Conservation Center has been dedicated to research and conserving endangered and threatened felines for over 25 years. "We've been around for quite awhile," said Ms. Marotta. "We're constantly building bigger and better enclosures." For more information about the Cat House, its programs and events, visit www.cathouse-fcc.org or call 661-256-3793.