WASHINGTON, April 5 (UPI) — The Humane Society and other conservation groups are applauding the latest guidance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture calling for the end of using lion, tiger and other big-cat cubs as hands-on zoo attractions.
In a recent release, the USDA said newborn and infant cubs have specific needs that call for conservative handling and protection from the general public, and that zoos and other entities who profit from providing face-to-face experiences with such cubs are violating veterinary care and handling requirements outlined in the Animal Welfare Act.
The move comes as the USDA acquiesced to significant pressure from animal welfare groups like the Humane Society, who came together to form a legal petition filed in 2012.
“We applaud USDA for taking this first step to put roadside zoos and the public on notice that federal law prohibits using infant cubs for photographic opportunities and interactive experiences,” said Anna Frostic, senior attorney for wildlife & animal research at The Humane Society, in a statement. “It is imperative that the agency take additional action to prohibit public contact with big cats, bears and nonhuman primates of any age,” she added.
The Humane Society noted that dozens of facilities in the United States breed and obtain big cats listed under the Endangered Species Act in order to provide entertainment value for visitors.
Stemming from evidence obtained from two zoos last year, the Humane Society also pointed out instances of physical abuse from professional handlers who disciplined the cats to prevent them from playfully scratching and biting people — a natural instinct for the big cats.
“We have seen substandard zoos mass breeding tigers for this kind of activity and then immediately severing the maternal bond with their mothers so they are compliant with human contact,” Frostic said. “They are regularly deprived of a regular, nutritious feeding schedule.”
“This activity is inherently inhumane. It’s not possible to convince a mother tiger that you will take her babies for a day and then given them back. That’s not how it works.”
The crackdown by the USDA will put zoos covered by the Animal Welfare Act “on notice,” Frostic said, meaning they will be prosecuted if they disobey the new ordinance.
“Until these animals can thermoregulate and are immunocompetent, they should be housed in the controlled environment of a heated, clean, and sheltered enclosure (such as a nursery), or in a clean, sheltered enclosure with the mother and any healthy siblings,” the USDA said.
This story is terribly misleading. I am over 30 years working with big cat edu and conservation worldwide. Only a few dozen baby big cats are born to zoos in N America , generally only lions and Tigers are ever used as contact animals for a few months. Nearly every licensed zoo waits for over 1 month to allow big cat cubs to make very limited contact with the public and this rule is only about Cubs under 28 days of age. This article makes it sound like this experience is common in the USA when in fact it is vey rare. This is a propaganda piece to push the Vegan world order of animal rights activists like HSUS and PETA who want to sever the human animal bond and stop all pet dogs and cats as well as the use of all animals use for meat & fiber like wool leather fur. This rule has no use in 98% of American zoos it’s another huge waste of time and money for a non existent problem