08-01-2017, 06:36 PM
08-01-2017, 08:14 PM
I live just across the river from Wildlife In Need. Saturday PETA announced it plans to sue the facility with the goal of making Wildlife In Need divest of all of their big cats. PETA also also sued Dade City's Wild Things in Florida, and a judge granted PETA an order allowing them to inspect Dade City's big cats.
The blurb about the "sanctuary" accreditation means that LSU is at least entertaining, if not already in bed, with PETA and Big Cat Rescue. Big Cat Rescue is the one making the most noise about "accredited sanctuaries" - no breeding, no human interaction (i.e., the animal must be sedated if it is need of human handling for medical attention, etc.). Legally the USDA would see LSU, Big Cat Rescue, Wildlife in Need, and the New Orleans Zoo as all the same: as long as you follow the USDA's minimal guidelines (so minimal that different inspectors often interpret them differently), you can own a tiger if your state allows you to do so.
I would have no problem with the above, except that Big Cat Rescue has a publicly stated goal of eliminating all private ownership of big cats, including zoos. The legislation Big Cat Rescue has authored exempts members of an organization they co-founded from their own law; the Cincinnati Zoo (remember Harambe?) is actually a member of the same organization. It would be akin to the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants proposing a law prohibiting non-CPAs from preparing tax returns.
Breeding in captivity unfortunately is necessary as the population of wild tigers has dipped to few than 3,500 left worldwide. Tigers are still poached in Asia for use in traditional medicine and to make wine from tiger bones.
Here's a picture of me and a tiger cub:![[Image: 13177946_10154035875280867_3360192743428...e=59FBFB8B]](https://scontent-iad3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/13177946_10154035875280867_3360192743428225539_n.jpg?oh=24f790775cb31ceed0042e5a19eb3303&oe=59FBFB8B)
The blurb about the "sanctuary" accreditation means that LSU is at least entertaining, if not already in bed, with PETA and Big Cat Rescue. Big Cat Rescue is the one making the most noise about "accredited sanctuaries" - no breeding, no human interaction (i.e., the animal must be sedated if it is need of human handling for medical attention, etc.). Legally the USDA would see LSU, Big Cat Rescue, Wildlife in Need, and the New Orleans Zoo as all the same: as long as you follow the USDA's minimal guidelines (so minimal that different inspectors often interpret them differently), you can own a tiger if your state allows you to do so.
I would have no problem with the above, except that Big Cat Rescue has a publicly stated goal of eliminating all private ownership of big cats, including zoos. The legislation Big Cat Rescue has authored exempts members of an organization they co-founded from their own law; the Cincinnati Zoo (remember Harambe?) is actually a member of the same organization. It would be akin to the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants proposing a law prohibiting non-CPAs from preparing tax returns.
Breeding in captivity unfortunately is necessary as the population of wild tigers has dipped to few than 3,500 left worldwide. Tigers are still poached in Asia for use in traditional medicine and to make wine from tiger bones.
Here's a picture of me and a tiger cub:
08-02-2017, 06:48 AM