Tigers might be the most endangered big cat in the world, but they are a common sight in captivity, often exploited for petting opportunities, circuses, or kept as exotic pets to flaunt as status symbols.
PG - Parental Guidance
9 minutes
English
Additional info
There are more tigers in the backyards of America than remain in the wild. But nobody knows the exact number in captivity, which makes the clandestine trade in both live animals and body parts both harder to police and easier to obscure. But does keeping tigers as pets actually fuel this demand? Many experts believe it does.
The captive tiger industry thrives on breeding tigers, particularly for petting facilities, where there is a constant demand to have cubs. This demand drives the out-of-control breeding of tigers, swelling an ever-increasing captive population of these expensive and dangerous-to-keep animals. These are the individuals that often get leaked into trafficking circles, and in turn, sustain the demand for consumption of their body parts in traditional medicine.
What is more, the unregulated captive breeding of tigers means that most are genetically mixed, with absolutely no conservation value. These tigers will never live in the wild. They cannot learn the necessary survival skills required to exist in nature when they have only known captivity. Equally important, if released, they would genetically interfere with the fragile and precarious bloodlines of their wild relatives.
It seems that there is a long way to go in stopping the demand for tiger parts, but controlling their domestic trade as pets seems to be a logical and necessary first step. This will help drive down demand and in turn prevent the poaching of wild tigers.
Categories
Biodiversity, Conservation, Education, Environment, Law and Justice, Life on Land, Wildlife, Wildlife Conservation
Countries
The Netherlands
Production Company
WaterBear Network, The Big Sky, Triangle Monday
Language
English
Year of Production
2021
Parental rating
PG - Parental Guidance
PG - Parental Guidance
9 minutes
English
Additional info
There are more tigers in the backyards of America than remain in the wild. But nobody knows the exact number in captivity, which makes the clandestine trade in both live animals and body parts both harder to police and easier to obscure. But does keeping tigers as pets actually fuel this demand? Many experts believe it does.
The captive tiger industry thrives on breeding tigers, particularly for petting facilities, where there is a constant demand to have cubs. This demand drives the out-of-control breeding of tigers, swelling an ever-increasing captive population of these expensive and dangerous-to-keep animals. These are the individuals that often get leaked into trafficking circles, and in turn, sustain the demand for consumption of their body parts in traditional medicine.
What is more, the unregulated captive breeding of tigers means that most are genetically mixed, with absolutely no conservation value. These tigers will never live in the wild. They cannot learn the necessary survival skills required to exist in nature when they have only known captivity. Equally important, if released, they would genetically interfere with the fragile and precarious bloodlines of their wild relatives.
It seems that there is a long way to go in stopping the demand for tiger parts, but controlling their domestic trade as pets seems to be a logical and necessary first step. This will help drive down demand and in turn prevent the poaching of wild tigers.
Categories
Biodiversity, Conservation, Education, Environment, Law and Justice, Life on Land, Wildlife, Wildlife Conservation