Carole Baskin facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Carole Baskin
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Baskin in 2019
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| Born |
Carole Ann Stairs
June 6, 1961 Bexar County, Texas, U.S.
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| Television |
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Michael Murdock
(m. 1979; div. 1990)Don Lewis
(m. 1991; legal d. 2002)Howard Baskin
(m. 2004) |
| Children | 1 |
Carole Ann Baskin (born June 6, 1961) is an American animal rights activist. She is the CEO of Big Cat Rescue, which is a non-profit animal sanctuary. She has worked to bring attention to the problems faced by big cats kept in captivity.
Baskin became widely known after appearing in the 2020 Netflix documentary series Tiger King. This series showed her ongoing disagreement with private zoo owner Joe Exotic. After the show, some people wondered about the disappearance of Don Lewis, her second husband. Baskin has denied any involvement. Her famous saying, "Hey all you cool cats and kittens!", also became a popular Internet meme because of Tiger King.
Baskin also appeared on Dancing with the Stars in 2020. She danced to a song called "Eye of the Tiger". She and her husband, Howard, were also in the 2021 documentary Louis Theroux: Shooting Joe Exotic.
Contents
Early life and beginnings
Carole Ann Stairs was born on June 6, 1961, in Bexar County, Texas. When she was nine, she became interested in helping cats. She left school early and started living on her own. She traveled a lot, sometimes sleeping in her truck with her pet cat.
When she was 17, Baskin worked at a department store in Tampa, Florida. To earn money, she started breeding show cats. She also used llamas to help trim lawns.
Career and animal activism
Helping big cats
In 1991, Carole married Don Lewis. Together, they started an animal sanctuary for big cats near Tampa in 1992. It was first called Wildlife on Easy Street. At first, they bred some small cats and leopards. However, they soon realized this was not good for the animals. They stopped all breeding by 1997.
Baskin is still the CEO of the sanctuary. She later changed its name to Big Cat Rescue. She uses social media like Facebook and YouTube, and her "The Cat Chat" podcast, to speak out against private zoos. She works to protect big cats and stop people from owning them as pets.
Dancing on TV
In 2020, Baskin was a contestant on season 29 of Dancing with the Stars.
| Week # | Dance/Song | Judges' score | Result | ||
| Inaba | Hough | Tonioli | |||
| 1 | Paso doble / "Eye of the Tiger" | 4 | 4 | 3 | No Elimination |
| 2 | Viennese waltz / "What's New Pussycat?" | 6 | 5 | 5 | Bottom two |
| 3 | Samba / "Circle of Life" | 5 | 4 | 3 | Eliminated |
Personal life
Family and relationships
Carole married Michael Murdock in 1979. They had a daughter born in 1980.
In 1981, Carole met Don Lewis. They later divorced their first spouses and married in 1991. Lewis disappeared in August 1997. He was declared legally dead in 2002.
Carole met Howard Baskin in November 2002. He soon joined Big Cat Rescue to help manage it. They got married in November 2004.
Working for laws
Carole Baskin and Big Cat Rescue have worked hard to convince the U.S. Congress to ban the private ownership and trade of exotic cats. Their efforts led to the Big Cat Public Safety Act. President Joe Biden signed this bill into law on December 20, 2022. This new law helps stop people from having contact with big cats and their cubs. It also slowly ends private ownership of big cats.
Television appearances
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Fatal Attractions | Herself | Animal Planet documentary |
| 2020–present | Tiger King | Herself | Netflix documentary |
| 2020 | Dancing with the Stars | Herself | Season 29 contestant (3 episodes) |
| 2021 | Carole Baskin's Cage Fight | Herself | Discovery+ (2 episodes) |
| 2021 | The Conservation Game | Herself | Peacock Documentary |
| 2021 | Louis Theroux: Shooting Joe Exotic | Herself | BBC documentary |
| 2023 | House of Villains | Herself | E! Reality Competition |
See also
In Spanish: Carole Baskin para niños
