Tiger Habitat Pictures-Big Cats In Confinement

Article Courtesy of Big Cat Rescue
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Did you know? That the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) estimates that only 10% of the 15,000 tigers in the U.S. are in professionally regulated zoos and sanctuaries. Add to that more than 5000 cougars and assorted other big cats and you start to see the enormity of the problem.

The U.S. State Department estimates that the market value of tiger parts at $7,000 for a set of bones. Tiger and other illegal wildlife products have reached $10 billion a year and possibly twice that. China is the largest market, with the United States a close second. Newsweek 2/4/08

That there are only 23 facilities that are accredited by The Association of Sanctuaries even though there are thousands of places that claim to be animal refuges.

There are only 1200-2000 tigers left in the wild due primarily to habitat loss and hunting. According to the World Wildlife Fund the tiger population has declined by as much as 95% in the past hundred years.

Tiger Habitat Pictures



Even though Florida has an outright ban on possessing tigers as personal pets, the state now has 1,455 tigers (according to the Palm Beach Post), a 50 percent increase in 15 months and second only to Texas in the nation. Florida also has 262 USDA exhibitors for big cats, more than any other state. There are more tiger breeders in Florida than anywhere else but there is no plan for reintroducing tigers back to the wild.

That just in the state of Florida there are 3,837 people with permits to own wild animals. Of that number 389 facilities are permitted to own tigers, gorillas and other Class I & Class II dangerous animals, but only 21 are accredited zoos and only 3 are accredited as rescue facilies. 0.0002 of FL's populations owns exotic animals and yet all of us pay the price in safety and damage to the environment when no-longer-novel pets are turned loose.

Florida issues almost 4000 exotic ownership permits each year and has to employ 18 inspectors at a cost to tax payers of 1.5 million dollars per year, just to allow people to keep, breed and sell exotic pets. Permits cost between 50. and 250. This falls 1,250,000.00 short of enough to cover the cost of administration. What can a County in Florida do to ban exotic pet ownership when FWCC says they have supreme authority and no intention of banning this inhumane practice? Click hereto see what the Attorney General has to say.

Tiger Habitat Pictures



That 98% of all exotic animals die within the first two years of being brought home as pets.

That with our existing cryobiological collection it is no longer necessary to keep breeding endangered species in captivity to preserve the species. More than 675 endangered species are preserved in the Frozen Zoo for repopulating the planet if we ever manage to set aside habitat that can sustain them.

That just since 1990 20 people have been killed in the US by captive cats. See updates.

That the illegal portion of the 15 billion dollar trade in exotic pets is third only to the market for illegal drugs and weapons? (In 2007 the U.S. assistant secretary of state for environmental affairs, Claudia McMurray, estimates that the wildlife trade is valued at anywhere from $10 to $20 billion a year.) The Coalition Against Wildlife Trafficking says the trade is often closely linked to organized crime, and follows the same routes as those used to smuggle drugs and people.

That in 2005 some 210 million wild animals were brought legally into the U.S. and many more were smuggled, because there are just 120 USFWS inspectors to cover 39 International airports and all of the border crossings. In just the legal importations that means each inspector must view and approve the health of almost 15,000 animals per day, every day of the year. See what is happening as a result here.

That for every one performing animal you see, there were 30 that were killed or discarded because they refused.

That it is still legal to raise and kill or trap and kill bobcats, cougars, lions and lynx for their fur and for the exotic meat industry.

That only 18 states ban big cats as pets in this country and most of those states have ridiculous loopholes that are exploited by those intent on breeding and selling big cats as pets.

That there are only 90 USDA inspectors who are responsible for inspecting more than 30,000 breeders, dealers and exhibitors of wildlife.

Until recently, most exotic cats seeking refuge came from pet owners, but since the 1990's the majority come from badly managed facilities operating under the guise of being non profit sanctuaries.

18.2 million Americans own exotic pets according to a recent National Pet Owners Survey. That's a 1.4 million jump since 2002, an increase that is probably understated since a good portion of this trade is illegal.

It is important that lawmakers understand how much people care about animals. New figures just released from APPMA's 2005-2006 National Pet Owners Survey (NPOS) show pet ownership is currently at its highest level, with 63 percent of all U.S. households owning a pet which equates to more than 69 million households.That's up from 64 million in 2002 and 51 million in 1988 when APPMA's tracking began .According to the 375 page survey that tracks hundreds of pet ownership trends, Americans own approximately 73 million dogs, 90 million cats, 139 million freshwater fish, 9 million saltwater fish, 16 million birds, 18 million small animals and 11 million reptiles.

There is a growing trend to prohibit the use of big cats in traveling acts and to ban their possession as pets. Read more: Big Cat Bans

If you like what Big Cat Rescue is doing to stop the suffering and abuse, please help us continue to do it:

Big Cat Rescue A permanent sanctuary to 100+ big cats
12802 Easy Street Tampa, FL 33625
SaveTheCats@BigCatRescue.org
www.BigCatRescue.org