The US Senate has unanimously approved a bill that would limit the number of people who can keep tigers, lions or other big cats, according to reports. BBC.
The Big Cat Safety Act would prohibit people from keeping the animals as pets, as well as keeping them so visitors can pet them or take pictures with them.
The subject is Netflix’s critically acclaimed docu-series, a Tiger King became the focus of attention.
The bill now only needs to be signed by President Joe Biden. Democratic Congressman Mike Quigley, who introduced the bill, wrote on social media that this means “a lot of big cats will be able to live better lives.”
Conservationists estimate that there are 7,000 tigers living in zoos or on private property in the United States—twice the number in the wild worldwide. A real breeding for profit has begun in certain places, but tigers are interesting only until they grow up from their cubs, when they can be released among the kids. According to the Animal Welfare Institute, many private facilities are known to kill tigers that can no longer be used to make money.
According to the new bill, keeping lions, tigers, cheetahs, cheetahs, jaguars, cougars, or any hybrid of these species will only be possible in accredited wildlife centers, universities and zoos. Animals must be kept at least 4.5 meters away from visitors, or they must be kept behind a barrier that prevents contact.
Those who currently own large cats can keep their animals, but only if they agree not to have direct contact with visitors and register them with the US Fish and Wildlife Service.
The Big Cat Public Safety Act “will end the appalling exploitation of big cats and enhance public safety,” said Susan Millward, executive director of the Animal Welfare Institute.
He added that “these beautiful yet powerful predators deserve to live in the wild, not be kept in captivity for human entertainment.”
