Big Cat Public Safety Act

A federal bill that aims to end the private possession of big cats such as tigers, lions, leopards, and pumas as pets, as well as to stop cub petting and limit exhibitors to those who do not repeatedly violate the law, has been re-introduced in the United States Senate.
Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut supported the re-introduction of the latest version of the Big Cat Public Safety Act HR1818, which was originally introduced to the House in March 2017 by Republican Congressman Jeff Denham of California.

Recent national headlines have documented public outrage at the inhumane display of a tiger at a high school prom in Miami, Florida, alarm as federal agents discovered a tiger cub in a duffel bag at the U.S. Mexico border, and confusion when a young tiger was spotted roaming a Texas neighborhood. Such examples underscore the public’s growing concern about the treatment of big cats­­ and the sponsors of the Big Cat Public Safety Act have made it clear that they are listening.

By reintroducing the BCPSA, senators from six states across the nation are joining more than 130 bipartisan members of the House of Representatives in calling for an end to the unregulated trade and nationwide abuse of captive big cats.

“This common-sense bill is an urgently needed answer to the problem of big cats kept in unsafe and abusive situations around the country,” Prashant Khetan, CEO and general counsel of Born Free USA, one of the numerous animal welfare organizations that are supporting this bill, said in a statement. “Thousands of big cats are currently owned as pets or maintained in ill-equipped roadside zoos and menageries, which pose a severe risk to the safety of people in surrounding communities, as well as the welfare of the cats themselves. It’s about time that we had a federal law that can serve to stop this inhumane practice around the country.”

The bill, if enacted, would keep dangerous big cats out of the hands of private individuals, breeders and exhibitors with egregious, ongoing Animal Welfare Act citations, and unscrupulous menageries that have historically taken advantage of loopholes to circumvent existing restrictions. The BCPSA would close these loopholes while providing exemptions for qualified wildlife sanctuaries and exhibitors licensed by the US Department of Agriculture that meet basic standards intended to protect the public and animals.

“Relying on accredited sanctuaries to take in unwanted and usually neglected big cats is not a viable solution to the big cat crisis in this country,” said Carole Baskin, founder and CEO of Big Cat Rescue. “When big cats are wrongly kept as pets or cruelly exploited in entertainment businesses, they often endure tremendous suffering for years in deplorable conditions with inadequate nutrition, and little, if any, veterinary care. Then, when the owners no longer want the cats or they are seized by the authorities, the substantial financial burden to house, feed, and provide long-term vet care for these big cats falls upon sanctuaries. The Big Cat Public Safety Act will finally address the inhumane treatment of the vast majority of big cats in America.” Baskin noted that it costs over $10,000.00 per year for food and vet care for one tiger or lion.

Christopher J. Gervais, FRGS
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Christopher@WCFF.org

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Frightened Baby Tiger Caged at Football Game

The dumbing of  America is never more present when “traditions” at High school football game in Ohio wheeled a baby tiger in a cage to thousands of screaming fans.

For 44 years, ignorance and stupidity have been the norm at Massillon Washington High School. The new “Obie,” a baby tiger is kept in a cage and wheeled around a loud stadium. He is the latest victim of a cruel tradition that violates animal cruelty and ethics. The cub stands up and puts his paws on the bars of his enclosure as ignorant people scream, shout and take pictures.

Every year Massillon Washington High School acquires a new tiger cubs and has been accused multiple times of discarding the tiger cubs after the season is over.  It is believed that after the football season is over, these “Obie” tigers are sold to private owners, wind up as caged roadside attraction, become breeding animals, pets or sold to canned hunting operations. Animal conservationists have questioned about the legal loophole for educational institutions that allows them to have exotic animals, and a number of petitions protested the tradition.

Despite this, the Massillon Tiger Football Booster Club unveiled a new cub mascot, called an “Obie”and is keeping facts about this recent appearance private, they refuse to disclose where the tiger comes from. IS THIS LEGAL?

One fans interviewed at the football game stated “We’re really glad he’s here. He’s been around forever,” (Perhaps too stupid to comprehend that each Obie has been a different tiger cub). “For people that live and breathe football, he’s a huge deal.”

Matt Keller, president of the booster club, told the CantonRep.com. “It’s a tradition we were able to continue, even if just for one game.

There is an estimated 5,000 tigers are held in captivity throughout the United States; 95% of these animals are privately owned.

* To stop this act of animal cruelty, sign the petition to end the cruel “Obie” Cycle. http://www.thepetitionsite.com/807/480/353/stop-the-yearly-tiger-cub-purchase-by-ohios-massillon-washington-high-school/

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Tigers forced to Perform at State Fair

A “show”, called the Amazing Rainforest Experience, is run by Robert Mullen of the Orlando, Florida–based PM Productions Entertainment Inc., a production group that features traveling shows with a host of exotic animals.

Hundreds of visitors have complained the tigers appear severely emaciated, with prominent spines and hip bones. The cats also appeared lethargic, or even drugged. One described them as “skeletons.”

Julie Hanan, of the Minnesota-based Wildcat Sanctuary, told The Dodo that her group has been flooded with “desperate pleas” from people who’ve visited the fair and were shocked by the state of the animals.

Abbie Knudsen, a biologist with Missouri’s National Tiger Sanctuary, has heard similar concerns from the public. “I have heard tons of accounts from people that have seen the animals, and visited the animals firsthand, that they do not look in good body condition,” she said.

Despite concern from both the public and big cat conservation groups the Missouri State Fair said that the tigers were being regularly inspected, implying that the animals were in satisfactory condition: “In accordance with the State Fair’s Animal Care policy, all animals and livestock shown, housed or displayed, shall receive care that is healthful and consistent with accepted husbandry practices and the rules and regulations set forth by the Missouri State Fair. This policy applies to animals in entertainment acts, such as the Amazing Rainforest Experience, as well. The Missouri Department of Agriculture state veterinarians monitor the tigers twice per day. These practices reflect the care and concern that Missourians have for livestock, poultry, companion animals and wildlife. ”

The state of the tigers raises concerns about food deprivation, a common method used by trainers at circuses to keep animals in line. “Of course we can’t speak to the exact issue with this exhibitor, but we have seen in the past that they will tend to keep cats hungry to perform,” Hanan said.

In an interview with a local outlet, Mullen said that he fed the tigers 13 to 14 pounds of chicken daily. Both Bass and Hanan said if this is all the tigers are getting, the diet is insufficient: They would need more food, as well as red meat, bones and organs, to thrive.

Whatever the reason, it’s evident from the photos that the animals aren’t healthy. In one photo that shows a tiger on his hind legs, the ratio between the animal’s waist and his hips is disturbing.

This mistreatment by the “Amazing Rainforest Experience”,  is not new. A 2013 video released by the International Fund for Animal Welfare appears to feature the same company and shows several disturbing interactions between a trainer and the cats.

When a tiger initially tries to exit the stage, the trainer deters him and the animal listlessly makes his way through his routine. When the trainer later tries to shut a door on him, the tiger takes a swipe at him.

YouTube/IFAW – International Fund for Animal Welfare

Another scene features a severely underweight cougar, his hip bones standing out like blades. When he’s reluctant to leave the stage, the trainer grabs him by his collar and literally drags him out as he resists.

YouTube/IFAW – International Fund for Animal Welfare

If you find these picture and video disturbing and you want to help, you can let the Missouri State Fair know how you feel, click here: https://www.facebook.com/MissouriStateFair?fref=ts

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Christopher J. Gervais, FRGS
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Christopher@WCFF.org
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Truck Stop Tiger

“Tony” is a tiger imprisoned at a Truck Stop in Grosse Tete, Louisiana. Signs posted on Tony’s cage, indicate he was born in July 2000, now making him 15-years old. It is reported that Tony was acquired by Michael Sandlin as a 6-month old cub from a Texas breeder.

The Animal Legal Defense Fund found the permit issued by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries was illegal and revoked; LDWF was blocked from issuing a new permit. Unfortunately Michael Sandlin, “Tony’s” captor, enlisted his state Senator, Rick Ward, to propose a bill, SB 250, to exempt himself from Louisiana state law banning private ownership of big cats. This outrageous bill passed both the Senate and House and was signed by Governor Jindal. Immediately the Animal Legal Defense issued a statement saying they would challenge the validity of SB 250. On June 25, 2014 ALDF filed suit against the State of Louisiana for violating the Louisiana Constitution by passing a law that exempts a single individual from existing state public safety and animal welfare laws. Defendants include the State of Louisiana, the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF), the Tiger Truck Stop, and Michael Sandlin.

Please go to Tony’s change.org petition asking the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries to enforce the 2006 law banning private ownership of big cats remains open and is nearing 49,000 signatures.

There are an estimated 10,000 to 20,000 big cats kept captive by private owners. The exact number is a unknown because of insufficient record keeping requirements. These animals are kept as pets, exhibited in roadside zoos, perform in circuses and traveling exhibitions, and bred for profit. Cubs are used in “pay-for-play” schemes and photo ops.

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Christopher J. Gervais, FRGS
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Christopher@WCFF.org
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Ohio High School Abuses Tiger Cubs

In the state of Ohio, the Massillon Washington High School’s football boosters club has purchased or leased tiger cubs from a local private exotic animal breeder each year for the past 44 years.  dubbing each “Obie,”, these cubs are separated prematurely from their mothers and declawed, the young animals are forced to experience the stresses of human contact, paraded in front of thousands of screaming crowds.

The tigers’ tenure as mascots is brief. When football season’s over, they’re sent away to endure the rigors of captivity elsewhere, only to be replaced by a new “Obie.”

Critics say that generations of these “retired” tigers routinely wind up caged as roadside attractions, or are sold into private hands as breeding animals, pets or worse, targets for canned hunting operations.

A spokeswoman for Stump Hill Exotic Animal Farm, where boosters have acquired tiger cubs for the last few years, told Cleveland.com that it’s “no one’s business” where the “Obies” are sent, “except the Massillon Boosters Club, Stump Hill and the USDA.”

While the breeder can keep some details closely guarded, USDA reports are still a matter of public record — and they hint at a dismal life for the big cats. Stump Hill has been cited on numerous occasions for welfare violations, most recently on Dec. 5, when a routine inspection uncovered an unreported tiger cub who had been seriously injured after getting stuck in an enclosure fence. The inspector believes that the cub had chewed off part of her paw in an attempt to free herself.

Stump Hill and Massillon Washington High School’s football boosters club have been the targets of multiple petitions in recent years, but none have been able to end the use of living mascots. In fact, when Ohio updated its laws regulating exotic animals in 2010, the new legislation was written in a way that allowed the school’s use of tigers to continue.

So far the schools boosters are not swayed by mounting pressure. “We talked about the petition but we really haven’t done anything as far as making a move to make any changes or do anything in the future,” said booster club historian Gary Vogt.

The World Wildlife Fund (WWF), estimates there are 5,000 tigers held in captivity throughout the United States “in backyards, urban apartments and sideshows, often by those untrained in handling tigers.” The WWF has called for a ban on private possession of big cats.

This article was written by Stephen Messenger and published by The Dodo.

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