Exploitation of Tigers and Big Cats
Did you know that the exotic pet trade causes more suffering for big cats than all of the other atrocities combined? Every week we are called upon to rescue another exotic cat because the sanctuaries are full and there is not enough money to take care of all of the rejects of the pet and entertainment industry. We take in as many as we can, but always have to consider the needs of the animals we have already committed to first.
See video clip of some of Big Cat Rescues.
In this video http://www.bigcatrescue.org/animal_abuse.htm you will see facilities that are currently licensed and approved by the USDA and the Florida Wildlife Conservation Commission. As atrocious as it is, many have been operating at this level or worse for more than 10 years. Yet they are still permitted to remain open to the public. When you watch this video you will understand precisely why we need better laws. Join us in this effort to change the exotic pet laws!
Help us stop the breeding of wild animals for lives of confinement at CatLaws.com
<p align="leftABC did an undercover investigation, with help from Big Cat Rescue, that you can watch online HERE. Be sure to watch all of the clips listed there. They start out the same but are very different. What they do share in common is the grim truth that some people are using animals in ways that put the public in deadly contact with dangerous animals.
The Animal Protection Institute completed a one year investigation into the cause of so many exotic animals being abandoned by going undercover into the homes of members of Phoenix Exotics and the Feline Conservation Federation. Watch the shocking video HERE and then TAKE ACTION. Please help support API for the great work they have done in exposing these issues.
The following charts are just the calls that we get personally. This is only a small percentage of the overwhelming problem. The saddest news is that, as one of the world’s largest exotic cat sanctuaries, if we cannot take them, there is virtually no where else for them to go.
| Unwanted | We Took | Found | |
| Big Cats | These | Homes | |
| For These | |||
| 1999 | 55 | 13 | 0 |
| 2000 | 56 | 11 | 0 |
| 2001 | 78 | 10 | 6 |
| 2002 | 74 | 4 | 0 |
| 2003 | 312 | 8 | 4 |
| 2004 | 110 | 6 | 3 |
| 2005 | 94 | 9 | 2 |
| 2006 | 81 | 0 | 3 |
| 2007 | 72 | 14 | 1 |
| 2008 | 85 | 3 | 0 |
| 2009 | 50 | 1 | 0 |
| 1067 | 79 | 19 |
We cannot even begin to take in every exotic cat that has ended up in abusive and neglectful situations. More and more we are dedicating our time and resources to stopping the problem at it’s source, by educating people about the pet trade and entertainment industry.
Although we are taking in fewer cats each year, we are working harder toward solutions that will ultimately benefit all exotic animals.
As laws become more protective for the animals, abusers are bailing out, and as you can see there has been a huge increase in the year 2003 of abandoned animals.
Accredited facilities like ours, which meet the high standards of The Global Federation of Sanctuaries, need interim support to care for these animals and the revenue to pursue a change in perception that will ultimately end the suffering altogether.