There was a lot of talk about tiger centers when the news appeared in the press that the director of Thailand‘s Department of National Parks (DNP), Nipon Chotiban, had ordered that all tigers at the Tiger Temple be removed. This happened after many complaints from conservationists and animal rights activists who have been fighting for 15 years to close the center. You can see news about the case from FAADA.
People’s reactions, as was to be expected, were not long in coming and many took advantage of the opportunity to give their opinion. As happens when topics that especially interest me are published, in addition to reading the news, I can’t help but look at what people are saying.
People who give their point of view, their insults too often, and others who speak out just to keep quiet, and there are also many of them.
Many times some comments make me think (I promise, there are people who speak with so little education and so many spelling mistakes that it is difficult to understand what they say, it has made me question things).
But others, like many of those I read about this news and about tiger centers in general, I can only understand by getting into the head of someone whose egocentric mentality places humans at the center of the earth as masters and lords of the rest of the species and endowed with an almost divine privilege in which people are authorized to do whatever we want with the rest of the species, without even questioning whether it is ethical or not.
It seems that anyone who wants a photo with the tiger to show off when they return from their trip to Thailand only asks the typical question: are they drugged? and when the worker on duty answers no (what is he going to say?), one feels more at ease. Or perhaps they don’t want to know more so as not to have remorse. Maybe…
What does it matter if it’s true or false? What does it matter where the animals came from or where all those puppies they are playing with end up? (They grow up and there’s not room for them all there, those animals don’t stay forever in an adorable puppy state). And of course, what does it matter if they live in cages or chained up? Because someone has told them that these centers help tigers not become extinct. And they believe it.
But you only have to do a quick search on Google to find reports of mistreatment or investigations like the one by Care for The Wild. News that, at the very least, should make us reflect and question whether these centers are what they really say they are or simply profit-making zoos.
Today I wanted to share with you the comments I read most often when the debate on “tiger centers: yes or no” opens, and to reflect on them. Comments that are repeated ad nauseum, cut by the same pattern and that sometimes make me think that the person who is speaking has not even read a couple of articles on the subject or has not asked themselves many questions. Comments that worry me and raise other questions.
I am NOT trying to convince anyone, but sometimes I think that people talk about these issues without the minimum information, or at least asking any questions. They even get into absurd discussions without any solid arguments that lead nowhere. As I said in the post about “Touristy stuff” and animal abuse, by going to TripAdvisor you can read comments from people who think they are experts on felines just because they have a cat at home.
I must say that, despite being a veterinarian, I am not an expert on the subject, nor have I been to any center of this nature because I have no interest in being part of this industry, but fortunately I have done some volunteer work with animals in Thailand where I have been able to hear the opinions of people who work for the country’s fauna.
And I also ask myself questions. Because if there is one thing I am sure about, it is that, to find answers, one has to start by asking questions. Many questions. That is why I wanted to question these statements by asking questions.
“The view that they [tiger centers] are making the best of a bad situation and helping to save tigers from extinction is shared by many who visit these centers in Thailand”. Onkuri Majumdar is the regional coordinator for South Asia for Freeland, a Thai NGO concerned with the conservation and protection of wildlife around the world. Mr Onkuri believes this view is misleading and actually quite irresponsible.
“Tiger zoos do nothing to save wild tigers. Zoo tigers can never be released into the wild because —contrary to popular belief— hunting is not instinctive.” That is, animals that have not learned to hunt will not learn to do so if they are set free. Extracted from the article The Tiger’s Tale: Inside Phuket’s Tiger Kingdom on The Phuket News website.
According to Care for the Wild, “In order to be part of a conservation breeding program, the genetic makeup and history of the parents must be known. But the origin of the first animals at the Temple is unknown, and their DNA has not been tested to determine which subspecies they belong to. Given this background, the Temple cannot participate in any recognized conservation breeding program.”
According to WFFT (Wildlife Friends Foundation of Thailand), “All the tigers at the temple are hybrids that come from a farm. They do not have even a little blood of the Indo-Chinese Tiger (Panthera Tigris Corbetti).”
According to Mahendra Shrestha, director of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Save The Tiger Fund, “No captive-bred tiger has ever been successfully released into the wild.”
“Captive tigers do not contribute to the conservation of wild tigers because they cannot be reintroduced into their habitat. The world is full of captive tigers, we don’t need more.” According to Ashok Kumar, vice president of Wildlife Trust of India. Extracted from “Black market tigers linked to thai temple”, from the National Geographic website.
If you are interested in learning how tigers are protected from extinction, visit the WWWF https://www.worldwildlife.org/species/tiger
Another interesting case is that of those who make their diagnosis “by eyewitness”. I would like to see the face of my propaedeutics teacher seeing someone perform an examination of an animal so quickly and effectively…
I wonder more things.
And aside from that it seems to you that they are well cared for…
“The tigers are kept in inadequate enclosures for 21 hours a day, only to be released into the wild to be chained up in 40ºC without shade or water, to be exploited and featured in photographs by paying tourists. This is extremely unnatural for tigers because their natural habitat is the dense jungle. On top of this, the tigers at the temple are fed a diet of cooked chicken and dog food, severely compromising the health of the animals. All of these factors contribute to the docility of the tigers at the temple. These animals are no longer tigers, they are mere objects to be used in selfies, manipulated and shaped to generate income.“ Text taken from the blog A STRANGE AND TERRIBLE SAGA
You can read the full investigation into the irregularities and mistreatment of the Tiger Temple on the Care for the Wild website or the translation on the FAADA website:
“To facilitate their handling and reduce the risks of interactions between felines and people, a common practice is the declawing of the animals, which involves the removal of their claws. Far from being a harmless procedure, it is a brutal and painful process that has numerous implications for them. Declawing involves removing the claws by cutting the entire third phalanx of the animal up to the joint. Thus, not only the claw is amputated but also bone, nerves, joint capsules, ligaments and tendons.“ Text taken from the FAADA website.
Personally, I think this way of thinking is petty. In other words, for me to be able to pet a tiger for 5 minutes and have a souvenir photo, the animal has to live its whole life in a cage.
The species must be protected, yes, but keeping them in captivity does not solve anything. The development of the tiger population must be part of the development of its ecosystem. What we have to do is stop stealing their habitat and educate us to respect the planet, not breed tigers like hotcakes to keep them locked up, because saving tigers from extinction without saving their true home makes no sense.
An example from WWF on how to protect habitat:
“Tigers need landscapes to thrive, and our work to protect and connect their fragile habitat is based on rigorous scientific analysis. WWF has chosen locations to focus resources based on the best available science. (…) Our work includes building local capacity to manage protected areas or coordinating with partners to manage the core of tiger areas and corridors.“
Variants of this statement dare to even explain why: “They are well fed and not hungry”, “They are used to people and do not see them as food”. I wonder…
Even if it were confirmed that these animals were not actually drugged, we have to think that there are many other types of abuse that they may be suffering.
“They are sprayed in the face with urine, hit with rocks, sticks and other tools, while being forcibly moved by the tail to pose for photos. These are all methods of negative reinforcement. Negative reinforcement includes punishing an animal with brute force, using dominance in the hope that the animal will be so frightened that it will not repeat the action.” Text extracted from the blog ‘A Strange and Terrible Saga’.
We will surely see what they want us to see but…
And what is worse…
There are those who defend the monks by arguing that Buddhism does not allow mistreatment, but…
“Tiger farms fuel the illegal black market for animal parts, such as tiger bones and penises, used in traditional Chinese medicine.” Text taken from an article in National Geographic.
“Tiger bones have been used in food for over 1000 years. In 1993, the Chinese government banned the trade and use of tiger parts, but the popular belief in the power of tiger parts remains.” Extracted from the website Save Tigers Now.
“Your participation in the ‘experience’ actually only feeds the lucrative business of continually breeding tigers to produce a steady stream of cubs that will inevitably pass the ‘cute and cuddly’ stage and within weeks be euthanized, sold, or discarded at some sanctuary. In fact, this industry is one of the leading causes of the overpopulation of unwanted, displaced, and neglected tigers.” According to Kelly Donitan, member of IFAW Animal Rescue.
“Educational campaigns aimed at reducing demand for products made from tiger parts reduce hunting. In fact, this is what protects tigers. Taking a photo with a tiger cub and being aware that tigers are endangered will unfortunately do nothing for tiger conservation”. Kelly Donitan, member of IFAW Animal Rescue, comments:
“WWF works towards zero tolerance for poaching across Asia. We help create dedicated enforcement units in each landscape and install the best new technologies to help local agencies achieve maximum results. We insist on better law enforcement by improving the effectiveness of wildlife rangers, training agency staff, empowering community patrols and networks.”
Others say that “The facilities at the Tiger Temple are much better”, and, since the news of the seizure appeared, defenders of the Tiger Temple have been outraged saying that “now those animals will go to zoos or circuses where they will not be well cared for.”
I don’t really want to, to be honest, but I’ve done my research beforehand. I’m a great cat lover, and for that reason, and because I have a lot of respect for them, I would never in my life go to a show with tigers (needless to say, with any animal, of course). I will only collaborate with rescue centers/associations/foundations that rescue or are truly in charge of protecting the species.
Those who have been there and do not criticize the center…
“There are many centers that operate under the name of ‘sanctuary’ or ‘rescue center’ for wildlife, but there are many red flags, and you have to be careful to be sure you are not encouraging this cruelty (…) Centers that encourage taking selfies with wildlife are a huge red flag.” Extracted from the article ‘Uncovered: Tiger Kingdom sanctuary or One Green Planet scam’.
Yes, Spain is light years away from being a country where animals are respected, torture is not culture, and intensive production farms are inhumane, but…
I recently read a quote by Vicente Ferrer that said “There are many causes in the world to fight for, and you have to take some as your own,” which reaffirms my idea that even if I had only chosen to fight for this cause, you should not judge me.
This is like the previous one but in its heavier version, without a doubt the best of all, because whoever uses it can use it for everything. It doesn’t matter if you’re talking about tigers, elephants or abandoned dogs. Whenever you’re talking about animal welfare, they’ll use it. My answer-question for these comments is:
No, I don’t mean to say that I don’t give a shit about children, of course not, because I am very sure, even if they try to make us believe otherwise, that above all there are humans and their rights, but what are they talking about specifically? Maybe if they clarify a little and tell me what they are doing to solve “hunger in Africa”, I will join in their good work… Although I am afraid they are doing nothing at all… Loving animals does not exempt me from loving people, or from fighting for their rights.
I would not like anyone to see this post as an excuse to judge those who have been or intend to visit tiger centers or to see the questions as an attack. These are simply the questions I have always asked myself and with the answers I have found, and being careful with the sources, I have formed my humble opinion.
Whenever you consider going to an animal show, such as a tiger show or other animal show, ask yourself questions, look for answers and form an opinion. I have not found clear answers to many of the questions I still ask myself, but I believe that sometimes not finding any answers is the ANSWER.
