Nova’s Passing

January 10, 2026

The last few weeks have been difficult, to say the least, but we are grateful to get to give these animals the care and respect that they deserve every day in the sanctuary.

Nova Cougar was the fourth animal to pass within less than two weeks at Carolina Tiger Rescue, and her unexpected loss, combined with the three other deaths, has left us with a lot of grief. Nova, tough until the very end, gave us little indication that she wasn’t feeling well. We’d been monitoring her appetite, but Nova was never the most reliable about finishing her meals. As a cougar, it was perfectly normal for her to cache her food. Nova, in particular, loved to hide snacks in her den box. In her last week, she became even more inconsistent about eating, and she started moving slower. We started her on medicine to help with an upset stomach, but the next day her condition looked even worse. She appeared to be in pain, so we knew we needed to get her sedated in order to get a better look at her and figure out what was going on. Upon running bloodwork, we found that Nova was in end-stage kidney failure. Her body was not perfusing red blood cells appropriately to vital organs. The only treatment option was a transfusion, which just isn’t possible when you’re dealing with a wild animal, so we made the difficult but humane decision to euthanize her.

Knowing Nova, it’s no surprise that she was so good at hiding that she was in pain. She was always sassy and true to her wild nature. Nova started her life at Waccatee Zoo, a roadside zoo in South Carolina. The zoo was shut down after a PETA investigation brought to light the poor conditions and USDA violations. Nova was briefly transferred to another facility after the shutdown, but PETA ultimately coordinated with us to get her to the sanctuary in October 2024.

This little cougar with big, Disney princess eyes quickly settled into sanctuary life. Even while still in quarantine, Nova was curious about the things going on around her. She seemed comfortable around groups of people and lived along our tour path, where visitors could see her and learn her story.

Nova was a confident cougar who wasn’t shy to hiss at visitors. She was food motivated and still working on her manners with a treat stick, as she could get a little over-eager. She was also a big fan of her tether ball and scent enrichment. Her favorite smells were Axe body spray and animal urine.

Even though our time with Nova was shorter than we would’ve wished, we are grateful that we got to show her a life where she got to experience choice and to be her wild self. Though these losses weigh heavy on our hearts, especially when we experience so many in such a short amount of time, it helps to know that we have a team of amazing people doing everything they can to improve these animals’ lives.

With a heavy heart,
Kathryn Bertok
Assistant Director