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 Legitimate and reputable animal sanctuaries, which never breed or sell animals, are struggling to take care of the many cats that are dumped, seized, abandoned or abused every year. Most sanctuaries, like AWF, reach full capacity and then struggle financially to cope with the demands of caring for the animals.
Large cats can live up to 25 years in captivity. Where will these animals go in the future as the available sanctuaries fill up? We support all legislation to halt the breeding of wild cats to be sold as pets for private ownership. We understand that this is an uphill battle since the exotic pet trade is a huge business in the U.S.; estimates place the dollar value of the exotic pet trade in the financial realm of illegal drugs.
What’s been done
Concerned animal lovers, including Tippi Hedren, worked hard to encourage Congress to pass the Captive Animal Safety Act in 2003. The legislation bars the interstate sale or transportation of lions, tigers, leopards, cheetahs, cougars or their hybrids for use as pets. This bill is a good first step but just the first step. |
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