2007: Tiger tamer

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Tags: animals, summer-2011

Liz Bellward, Master of Animal Studies

Liz Bellward with Indah at Dreamworld's Tiger Island

When Liz Bellward was contemplating a career change, little did she know a day at the office would soon involve cuddling and caring for a dozen tigers.

With a business degree already under her belt, Ms Bellward was looking to take her passion for animals to the next level and enrolled in a Master of Animal Studies at UQ.

By mid-way through her degree, Ms Bellward was working for one of Australia’s best-known tiger tourism and conservation hotspots – Tiger Island at Dreamworld on the Gold Coast.

Ms Bellward described her time as a tiger handler as not only a professionally rewarding experience but also a personal one.

“There’s an honesty and innocence with animals that you don’t find with people,” she said.

“Having a cuddle with a 200kg tiger or having it chuff at you (a chuff is a friendly greeting) and experiencing their acceptance of you is the most incredible feeling in the world.”

Part of Ms Bellward’s work at Tiger Island was to assist with the conservation and breeding efforts of Sumatran tigers.

“There are only 300–400 of this species left in the wild and knowing I have been part of helping increase their numbers is very rewarding,” she said.

Liz Bellward swimming with Indah

Four years on and Ms Bellward is combining her skills in business and tiger handling in establishing Karma Cats – a not-for-profit organisation aimed at conserving endangered big cat species.

“I created Karma Cats because I saw an opportunity to participate in breeding programs for endangered species and raise money for conservation,” she said.

“Some zoos see ‘making money’ as a bad thing and as exploiting the animals, but you can make money without compromising the animals’ welfare and in many cases it enriches the animals’ lives in captivity.”

Since her time at UQ, Ms Bellward has maintained excellent relationships with UQ teaching staff, and her masters supervisor now joins her on the Karma Cats board.

Ms Bellward is currently looking for more funders to support her organisation.

By Caroline Bird

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