TIPPI HEDREN - HEDREN GIVEN POLICE PROTECTION AFTER DEATH THREATS

Veteran actress TIPPI HEDREN has received death threats from extremists angered by her campaign to make it illegal to own wild animals as pets in America. The Birds star, whose daughter is Melanie Griffith, owns a big cat sanctuary in California and has long fought to protect animals. But the 77-year-old was forced to seek police protection following a series of recent threats. She tells U.S. news show Access Hollywood, "I couldn't drive my own car. I had to have somebody with me. I couldn't use the mailbox, I couldn't answer the phone. We had to have the sheriff here." Hedren explains why she thinks big cats should not be allowed to be kept as pets: "What part of predator says good pet?. So I'm working on this bill - the federal ban on breeding exotic cats for personal possessions. "Another reason it is such a big business is there are over a thousand canned hunts. (There is) a facility that will take in exotic animals. For anywhere from, oh, $3,000 (GBP1,500) to $30,000 (GBP15,000) you can blow that animal away with a weapon of your choice."