Cat Tales

Cat Tales Wildlife Center
Tuga the Siberian Tiger
Interactive map of Cat Tales Wildlife Center
47°48′28.6″N 117°20′54.9″W / 47.807944°N 117.348583°W / 47.807944; -117.348583
Date opened1991
LocationMead, Washington, United States
Websitewww.cattales.org

Cat Tales Wildlife Center, formerly Cat Tales Zoological Park and known simply as Cat Tales, is a private zoo located in Mead, Washington.

History

Cat Tales Zoological Park was started by married couple Mike and Debbie Wyche in backyard of their Colbert, Washington, home when they decided to convert it as a zoo for their four big cats.[1] Mike Wyche, then an insurance salesman, and his wife, who had trained in large cat care, spent $10,000 to install cages and additional buildings in their yard.[2][1] The zoo officially opened in the summer of 1991,[3] and visitors were invited into the house after signing waivers.[1] It opened weekend public tours in November of that year and became a popular field trip destination for Mead School District students[2][4] and some patrons of the then-declining Walk in the Wild zoo.[5] However the fact that they were located near a residential area became a point of contention in the local community and a proposal was drafted to regulate exotic animal ownership.[2]

In the early 1990s, Mike Wyche was charged by the federal government with conspiracy "to keep a cougar in defiance of a state Department of Fish and Wildlife order" and making false statements in documents about the source of their cats; he pled guilty in 1994.[6]

In early 2004, Cat Tales was sued by a South Korean actress over a 2003 incident. The lawsuit claimed that the actress had been bitten and scratched by one of the zoo's tigers, Zeus, and that the zoo had been negligent. The zoo responded by saying that the actress had signed a waiver, provoked the tiger, and was exaggerating the extent of her injuries; the lawsuit was withdrawn without prejudice in November of that year and the actress ordered to pay the zoo's attorney fees.[6][7]

In 2018, the Wyches announced they might retire;[8] the following year, Mike Wyche died on August 22 and Debbie Wyche said she would ""like to see [the zoo] go another thirty years".[1]

Organization

Cat Tales is a privately-owned zoo,[3] funded by donations, admissions fees, and students at their zookeeper-training program.[9]

They had received donations from tennis player Jan-Michael Gambill.[9]

Animals

At the time of the zoo's opening, they had four cats. By 2008, they had between 40 and 50 large cats, as well as black bears, a python, a parrot, and house cats.[3]

Cat Tales acquires animals through private surrenders.[3]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Epperly, Emma (August 23, 2019). "Cat Tales founder, animal rescue advocate Mike Wyche dies at 72". The Spokesman-Review. pp. a1 - a5 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ a b c Krasnow, Bruce (January 19, 1992). "Neighbors howling about exotic animals". The Spokesman-Review. pp. B1 - B2.
  3. ^ a b c d "Big cats can be seen at Cat Tales park in Spokane". The Daily Astorian. Associated Press. October 8, 2008. p. 5. Retrieved September 19, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ Johnson, Kristina (September 4, 1992). "Legal order jeopardize big cat zoo". The Spokesman-Review. p. 11. Retrieved September 21, 2025.
  5. ^ "Spokane has history of its own zoo troubles". Spokesman-Review. January 18, 2009. Retrieved September 22, 2025.
  6. ^ a b Craig, John (November 13, 2004). "Suit against Cat Tales dropped". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved September 19, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ Blocker, Kevin (April 10, 2004). "Suit alleges tiger mauling". The Spokesman-Review. pp. B1 - B2. Retrieved September 19, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "'You will be missed': Cat Tales co-founder Mike Wyche has passed away". KREM. August 22, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  9. ^ a b Peck, Chris (October 8, 2000). "Gambill hopes to rally support for feline facility". The Spokesman-Review. p. 25. Retrieved September 19, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

Further reading

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