Having tigers as pets, however, is no laughing matter. When I recently read that there are an estimated 5,000 or more tigers being kept as pets in the United States right now—and that there are less than 3,300 in the wild—I just could not believe it. Not only is this a grotesque imbalance, it also symbolizes a strange, macho obsession with wanting to reign supreme over these mighty beasts (whom, without guns, we’d be terrified of in the wild) and use them as some sick status symbol.
The black market for tigers is actually a multi-million dollar industry that certainly isn’t helping with tiger conservation efforts or retaining the species at all. Instead, it is a sure way to help the species deplete just as rapidly—if not more so—than it has from poaching in the first place. Not only that, but the weak regulations that we have in place are causing a huge danger to the health of humans as well—not just of the tigers’ owners but also to neighboring families and their children, a problem that parents should demand attention to.
Most of the tigers in America aren’t in zoos, as some people might guess, but are kept by private citizens who are not regulated and who often treat the tigers inhumanely under unsanitary and unhealthful conditions. Tigers that get barely any room to move around in zoos get even less in private homes where they are often caged. Plus, many people opt to kill their tigers and sell their body parts for a hefty price on the black market in Asia!
In order to combat these issues and grant tigers the protection the endangered species should already be given, we need to stand up and take action for them today by asking Congress to save the tiger species. We need regulations in place to require citizens to report not only the tigers they own but also any tiger births or deaths that occur in their homes. Investigations need to take place in order to properly monitor the tigers, and their deaths need to be taken care of humanely and respectfully through cremation rather than the selling of body parts. Click here for more information and to send a letter to your representative.