Despite public complaints, the Kane County Fair in St. Charles, Illinois, planned for July 14 – 18 this year, will continue with its plans to feature a tiger show performed by the Bengal Tiger Encounter company. Both animal control and local law enforcement are unable to step in to prevent the stunt, even with the public outcry, and only have jurisdiction to respond in the event of a dangerous incident. Illinois state law dictates that ownership of dangerous wild animals, including big cats, is illegal, except at an accredited zoo, federally licensed exhibit, for scientific purposes, or an animal sanctuary. Shockingly, shows such as the one planned for the Kane County Fair are permitted under an exhibition license.
Similar to the Bengal Tiger Encounter, which claims that their shows are “educational,” most wild animal exhibitions operate under the false pretense that they support wildlife conservation efforts, but there is absolutely no conservation value to parading sentient wild animals around in “shows” and forcing them to perform circus-style tricks for the public’s amusement and the company’s profit. While tiger populations are extremely precarious, with fewer than 2,500 individuals remaining in the wild, several studies have indicated that displaying wild animals in human-dominated settings and interacting with the public makes people less likely to think that the animals are endangered. Additionally, the cub-petting industry actively feeds the illegal wildlife trade and perpetuates keeping big cats in inhumane and unnatural conditions.
Private big cat ownership laws vary greatly across the United States, ranging from ownership being completely legal with no restrictions to strict state-wide bans, albeit with caveats for certain licensed or exempted practices. Currently, more than half of U.S. states outlaw private ownership of all big cat species, including lions, tigers, leopards, ocelots, jaguars, cheetahs, margays, mountain lions, lynx, bobcats, jaguarondis. This legislative inconsistency poses an extreme risk to public safety, as the states without ownership bans do not require owners to report their big cats or register breeding operations to local officials. Should an escape occur, the law enforcement officials required to respond would be completely unaware of the number and location of the big cats at large.
The Big Cat Public Safety Act, first proposed to Congress in 2019 and reintroduced in 2021, is a federal bill that addresses the two biggest exploitative acts against big cats by ending private ownership of and restricting public interactions with big cats. Passing this bill would significantly curb the most harmful activities that unethical wild animal exhibitions promote, including cub petting and photo opportunities.
Speak Out in Support of the Big Cat Public Safety Act
With less media exposure documenting these damaging activities, we could divert public focus and funding to real big cat conservation initiatives instead of directly supporting the individuals responsible for their repeated abuse and ultimate population decrease. Therefore, the United States must set a unified and international example by passing the Big Cat Public Safety Act to protect big cats from cruelty, safeguard public safety, and strengthen global conservation efforts.
Keep Wildlife in the Wild,
Devan
