According to a press release, the animals were housed in dreary cages with no adequate activity and no natural floor. They have now been temporarily transferred to a zoo.
The animal protection organization plans to relocate the young animals to its own animal protection center “Lionsrock Big Cat Sanctuary” in South Africa as soon as possible. As part of the veterinary mission, the Four Paws team also examined two male and two female leopards as well as a male and a female tiger, the parents of the cubs. Some of them suffer from chronic health problems. After the owner’s consent, the adult males were sterilized.
“Clear signs of inbreeding”
“When examined, both parents of the tiger cubs showed clear signs of inbreeding, such as squinting. The male white tiger suffers from chronic kidney disease. The gene mutation that is responsible for the white fur occurs extremely rarely in nature and is therefore of “This white gene mutation is not a separate tiger species and should not be part of breeding programs,” reported Patricia Tiplea, wildlife expert at the animal protection organization.
Image: UNKNOWN (FOUR PAWS)
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Image: UNKNOWN (FOUR PAWS)
The adult animals are still kept legally due to an exception, although the legal situation in Slovakia would prohibit the keeping and trading of big cats by private individuals since 2022. “We must stop the cruel practice of private ownership of wild animals in the EU and beyond. Big cats are not pets. They have complex needs that are often neglected in private ownership. This can lead to malnutrition, illness, stress, stereotypical behavior and even… “Only reputable and scientifically run zoological institutions and sanctuaries that meet animal welfare standards should keep big cats,” Four Paws CEO and President Josef Pfabigan was quoted as saying.
Unlike Slovakia, some European countries still allow tigers to be kept and bred in private facilities or circuses. Some EU member states have even been among the top 30 exporters and importers of tigers worldwide for more than four decades, as CITES data from 1975 to 2018 would show. In contrast to the strict protection of wild tigers, commercial trade in captive tigers and their parts continues to take place across the EU.
Four Paws called on all member states to implement the 2023 EU tiger guidelines and introduce a “positive list” of species that can be legally kept as pets, specifying which species can be traded in private captivity for life. In the run-up to the European elections in June 2024, Four Paws called on candidates to advocate for greater animal protection in the European Union, including better regulation of wild animals.
