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| Kaela the tiger takes a nap at the Carnivore Preservation Trust. She was found as a cub in January 2005 while wandering a highway in North Carolina. |
A nonprofit wildlife sanctuary for big cats now operates with a high-performance server, networking infrastructure and state-of-the-art technology — with more upgrades to come — thanks to a joint donation from Cisco and IBM.
The Carnivore Preservation Trust (CPT) sits on 56 acres in Pittsboro, N.C., and houses leopards, tigers, jaguars, ocelots and other big cats that have been abandoned, abused or confiscated. More than 80 big cats live at the facility.
The CPT’s operations were complicated by the nonprofit’s aging technology infrastructure, including failing servers, irregular Internet access, no voicemail system and a lack of devices to allow staff and volunteers to communicate in the field.
After hearing of the CPT’s technology struggles, representatives from IBM and Cisco visited the site and devised a technology implementation plan to fit the sanctuary’s needs. The new technology boosts processing power and provides enough storage space for all of the CPT’s databases, with room to spare. In addition, sanctuary staff and volunteers now correspond with a business-class phone, voicemail and communications system.
“With more Americans trying unsuccessfully to keep wild animals like tigers as pets, sanctuaries like the CPT end up providing the proper care and shelter the animals need,” said Pam Fulk, executive director for the CPT. “With the considerable donation of servers and networking by IBM and Cisco, the CPT has experienced a 100 percent boost in productivity. Our staff and volunteers can now focus on caring for the carnivores, while also dramatically boosting educational programs to help these amazing animals out in captivity and in the wild.”
In the next phase, the CPT will be outfitted with a video surveillance system to provide enhanced security, complete with 24-hour streaming video of the animals. The CPT will broadcast the videos from its website, allowing anyone to log on and see how the animals are doing. The video will also allow the CPT to collaborate with other veterinary facilities around the world in an effort to provide optimum care for the cats.