Finances

Sources of support. Big Cat Rescue has been a 501(c)(3) non profit entity since 1995. The two primary sources of revenue to support the cats and the educational activities are the revenue from the educational tours and donations from caring individuals, corporations and foundations. Donations to the sanctuary are tax deductible. The sanctuary receives no government funding and relies totally on private support, primarily from individuals. We pay no fund raising solicitors and the Founder and her family members who devote time to the sanctuary receive no compensation from the sanctuary for their work. As a result, our management, general and fund raising expenses together account for less than 10% of total expenses. Because tour revenue more than covers those expenses, 100% of your donations go directly to save the cats. For ways in which you can donate or other ways you can help, please click here.

Deficits through 2002. If donations made by the Founder, her former husband and his estate, and related entities are deducted, the sanctuary operated at a deficit for all of the years through 2002. In addition to covering cash deficits, the Founders donated income producing real estate to the sanctuary to provide investment income and begin to accumulate assets that could support the sanctuary in future years. During those years of deficits, the primary source of revenue to cover the shortfalls was a family business. That business has declined significantly in recent years. Fortunately, educational tour revenue and donations have filled that void.

Audited Financial Statements. In addition the IRS Form 990 that it has filed since 1995, the sanctuary has produced Audited Financial Statements since 2003. In 2004 the sanctuary had positive cash flow, and in 2005 we were able for the first time to generate enough revenue to set aside a reserve of about 3 months of expenses. Accumulating reserves to weather downturns in the economy, and eventually building an endowment, will be critical to the long term survival of the sanctuary.

Below is a summary of the audited statements. The links below the summary lead to pdf files of the complete Form 990 and Audited Statements for 2004 and 2005.

Summary of Audited Statements
(see explanatory notes below)
	2004	2005	2006
Revenues and Support
Contributions and Grants (1)	232,597	281,783	490,834
Educational Tours and Activities (1)	314,143	438,430	494,496
In-kind Donations		6,750	84,510
Special Events	45,663	85,013	61,869
Rental Income from Operations	31,718	36,787	12,749
Investment Income	85,040	100,506	85,079
Gift Shop	48,076	76,418	95,431

Total Revenues and Support	757,237	1,025,687	1,324,968

Expenses
Program Expense (1)	543,228	652,899	726,774
Management & General	19,706	23,288	31,460
Fund Raising	18,003	22,308	34,883

Total Expenses	580,937	698,495	793,117

Change in Net Assets	176,300	327,192	531,851
Amount Set Aside for Reserves (2)		200,000
Amount Set Aside for Wall Fund (3)			106,765

(1) As revenue increased in 2004, the sanctuary was able to make investments in animal care and the education program that it could not previously afford. The major components of the increases were education labor, caging materials to rebuild aging structures, software and computers, expanded distribution of the quarterly newsletter, promotion of the educational tours, building and equipment maintenance, starting an intern program, and sales taxes. In 2005 the major components of the increase in expenses included changing to an extremely nutritious but more expensive food regimen for the cats, interest on a loan from the purchase of three additional acres of land, and continued investment in the intern program, facility maintenance, expansion of the newsletter readership, improvements to the website and in activities to promote legislation to protect the cats. (2) For the first time in 2005 the sanctuary generated enough revenue to set aside reserves. Visitor traffic is sensitive to the economy and events like 9-11 that reduce travel. The reserve is to cover operating losses that may occur if visitor traffic declines. (3) As the sanctuary continues to prosper in 2006 we have been able to set aside money for a much needed concrete wall around the property to replace the current chain link.

Click here for 2007 IRS form 990 and audited financial statement and annual report.

Click here for 2006 IRS form 990 and audited financial statement and annual report.

Click here for 2005 IRS form 990 and audited financial statement and annual report.

Click here for 2004 IRS form 990 and audited financial statement and annual report.

Visitors. While the sanctuary started having a few visitors as early as 1995, the efforts to expand that as a way to educate the public began in 1998. We can only take in a small number of cats each year. We believe we can save far more cats by educating people about not getting them as pets and not supporting activities that they may not realize lead to abuse. So attracting visitors to our educational tours has become a major part of our mission. The growth in visitors over the years, heavily due to word of mouth, is evidence that we are fulfilling that mission. If you have not visited the sanctuary, we hope to see you soon!

Year	Visitors	%
1995	43
1996	85	98%
1997	398	368%
1998	4,208	957%
1999	8,913	112%
2000	10,678	20%
2001	12,455	17%
2002	10,955	-12%
2003	11,875	8%
2004	17,891	51%
2005	22,442	25%
2006	26,497	18%
2007	24,664	-7%

Questions. If you have any questions about our finances, please feel free to email Finance@BigCatRescue.org.

Donations and Other Ways to Help. For ways in which you can donate or other ways you can help, please click here.

Florida law requires that all charities soliciting donations disclose their registration number and the percentage of your donation that goes to the cause and the amount that goes to the solicitor. Our registration number is CH-11409 and 0% of your donation goes to a solicitor.

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