Animals

Carole Baskin bought a home late last year ... with funds from her Big Cat Rescue org ... TMZ has learned.

Carole and her husband Howard got the Odessa, FL house for $895,000. The deed, obtained by TMZ, lists Big Cat Rescue as the property owner. There is no mortgage evident from the deed, so it appears the property was purchased outright with Big Cat Rescue funds.

BCR is a charitable org and Carole is the CEO. Carole tells TMZ, she bought the place after she and Howard sold their sanctuary/headquarters and moved the cats to the Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge in Arkansas.

It was otter pandemonium at a marina in Washington state, where an aggressive otter menacingly chased after a mother and her young children after allegedly nearly drowning one of the kids.

New video shows the otter running after the mom and her kids, as they try to escape down the dock.

Moments before, the otter had reportedly dragged this woman's young boy off the dock and into the water ... nearly drowning the child.

Nutria, an invasive species of rodent, has just been discovered in a new part of California ... and they're posing a threat to humans, pets livestock and an important ecosystem.

These critters are invading the Bay Area, making their way into the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta in Contra Costa County ... a critical source of water for the state.

Resembling beavers and growing up to 3 feet long with bright orange teeth, Nutria are known to carry parasites and tapeworms, among other nasty things ... which means their pee and poop can then contaminate drinking water supplies.

A popular social media influencer and OnlyFans model in Australia is finding out the hard way it's not cool to feed the wildlife for clicks ... and it may cost her some dough, 'cause it's apparently illegal there!

Here's the deal ... Jaylie Bonow posted a now-deleted vid of her feeding a chicken -- she claims it was cooked -- to a saltwater crocodile on the banks of the Russell River in Far North Queensland. Turns out ... that is a serious no-no Down Under, and now she's under investigation.

Of course, JB boasted about the experience on IG ... which backfired when it caught the attention of the Department of Environment, Science and Innovation (DESI), which confirmed she was under investigation for the bizarre clout chase stunt, according to Daily Mail.

The agency made it clear last month they were cracking down on people feeding crocs ... 'cause it's not just super dangerous -- it makes them more aggressive and less afraid of humans. She faces a fine of $2,580, per the agency.

Jaylie must know the situation is serious ... 'cause she has since posted a video apologizing ... and calling the dangerous feeding a "silly mistake."

JB is attempting to do something of a judo move with her ma culpa ... attempting to educate others on the law.

Lana Del Rey's new husband Jeremy Dufrene has a dark sense of humor ... which takes center stage in his alligator act down in the bayou.

Check it out ... the airboat captain faces off against a massive alligator during one tour down in Louisiana. Jeremy proves to be a pro at handling the large reptile ... though, he jokes he's less skilled in his personal life -- taking a jab at his ex-wife in the process.

He tells the tourists aboard his boat ... "Me and [the alligator] have been pretty tight ever since I fed him my ex-wife. I'm just kidding. I'm kidding."

Alison Eastwood has been championing animal welfare and rescue for over a decade -- and she's stepping up her game as California shelters are euthanizing cats and dogs at an alarming rate.

We chatted with Alison on "TMZ Live" Friday, and she said her Eastwood Ranch Foundation is hard at work providing a solution as shelters are putting down roughly 110,000 pets annually -- shocking figures, especially with Gov. Gavin Newsom's $50M pledge in 2020 to make California a "no-kill state."

Alison’s clearly heartbroken over the whole situation, and breaks down why this animal crisis is happening -- check out the clip to hear her full take on the devastation.

In a brutal twist of fate, a guy trying to save a lizard from getting squished on the road ended up getting smashed by a car himself.

The shocking scene was caught on camera -- Luis Ricardo Coronel steps into the middle of Paraguay's Route PY04 to scoop up a teju guasu lying on its back -- but in a split second, he glances back, and BAM, a car comes flying straight into him at full speed.

The blue Toyota IST, driven by Mirtha Tereza Delgado, slams into him with such force that Coronel -- and the poor lizard -- are carried several meters before he crashes down onto the asphalt.

An escaped rhino in India went full beast mode ... charging at a biker and leaving him dead in a terrifying rampage.

The whole wild scene was caught on camera -- the massive rhino casually gets free from the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary in Assam’s Morigaon district Sunday, spots a man on a motor-bike identified as Saddam Hussain (different spelling, weird coincidence) rolling up, and charges straight for him.

It's a pretty distressing sight ... Hussain hops off his bike and makes a desperate dash into an open field, trying to escape this hefty beast -- but he didn’t stand a chance.

A woman in Spain was tragically gored to death by a bull gone wild during a town festival, and the shocking incident was caught on camera.

In the clip, you can see the 60-year-old woman in a red outfit crossing the street in Enguera, near the city of Valencia, before the bull charges into her from behind, sending her crashing to the ground.

The unidentified woman went flying, hitting her head hard on the pavement and suffering a horrific injury to her armpit from one of the bull's horns.

Tragic news out of Malaysia -- human remains were discovered inside a massive crocodile, believed to have devoured a 6-year-old girl as she went swimming in a river.

Cecelia Julan Intik vanished after a giant croc dragged her underwater last Tuesday -- and in the search for the little girl, Sarawak Forestry Corporation experts caught and gutted 2 massive crocs ... resorting to using a tugboat and a crane to haul the heavy beasts ashore.

In the horrifying video, you can see one of the crocs being hoisted into the back of a pickup truck, and it’s enough to turn stomachs -- some of what was inside its belly spills onto the road.

Hurricane Helene has devastated the southeastern United States ... and, the U.S. Coast Guard's rescue team is working overtime -- saving both people and pups.

Video is circulating online of a dramatic rescue from Thursday, off the coast of Sanibel Island in Florida... where Helene had disabled a sailboat carrying a man and his dog.

Check out the clip ... members of the Coast Guard are dropped into the water via a rope, swimming over to the disabled ship where man and man's best friend -- both wearing rescue vests -- jump into the water to meet them.

If there's a scene in the new "Happy Gilmore" script that requires a gator to snap at a golfer's arm ... the handler for the reptile that played the part in the OG flick tells TMZ Sports it's down to reprise the role.

The alligator -- nicknamed "Morris" -- has been enjoying the sweet life at the Colorado Gators Reptile Park in Mosca ever since it gained fame for stealing Adam Sandler's golf ball in the 1996 "Happy Gilmore" movie ... but its owner, Jay Young, says it's willing to come out of retirement for the highly anticipated sequel.

Young, though, says Sandler and Co. would have to jump through some hoops to make it all work out ... as the 70ish-year-old, 500-pound beast simply can't be transported these days.

It turns out you probably don't want a hippopotamus for Christmas ... 'cause they've got some pretty dangerous chompers -- just ask the British tourist who ended up in one's mouth, and then the hospital.

Roland Cherry -- a 63-year-old Brit -- was canoeing in Zambia on part of a 5-week African safari ... when he says a hippo charged his boat and latched its teeth around him.

Cherry -- who spoke with UK-based outlet Sky News -- says his wife Shirly swam away from the animal to safety ... but, Cherry dislocated his shoulder when the hippo hit and couldn't get away from the temperamental beast.

Toad in a hole may be a popular breakfast dish, but a live toad in a bag of salad is a less-than-desirable grocery item ... shoppers in the UK learned the hard way.

Graham Martin, who works for Berkshire Reptile Rescue, was called in to consult on an odd case plaguing a Waitrose distribution center in Bracknell, England. As Martin told BBC ... he was tapped to collect a live toad from the business after it had been discovered inside a bag of salad.

Apparently, the surprise addition to the pre-packaged greens was first detected by a customer, who had purchased the item. It was reportedly returned after the live amphibian was spotted inside the bag.

Tommy Lee's wife, Brittany Furlan, was left in a panic ... shrieking for the safety of their dog Neena after a coyote swooped in and snagged her right in their own backyard!

The whole drama was caught on their home security footage and shared on Brittany's IG -- and you can see the coyote boldly snatch up Neena, and dash off like it’s no big deal.

Brittany bravely takes off after her dog, and manages to get Neena back -- but all that goes down off-camera.

A group of bulls turned the tables on a Massachusetts rodeo, busting out of their pen and turning the parking lot into a thundering stampede ... setting off a frantic chase that had everyone running for cover.

The wild scene was caught on camera ... showing North Attleboro locals dodging and weaving like they were in a bullfighting ring as 8 rambunctious bulls ran free, knocking down fences and leaping over another surrounding the event.

These bulls were not playing around ... sprinting toward U.S. Highway 1 and then galloping toward the nearby woods.