When the hit Netflix documentary 'Tiger King' was released on the media, it immediately became an instant hit. Along with the fame brought by the millions who watched through the streaming platform are a plethora of rising issues and concerns regarding the featured animals' wellbeing.
With the rise in awareness comes serious legal repercussions.
Tim Stark's Escape and Eventual Capture
In September, Tim Stark left Indiana. For animal rights violations, his zoo owes hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines. With its baby tiger "playtime" sessions, Stark's aquarium, Wildlife in Need, raked in millions.
In an hour-long, profanity-laced Facebook Live rant while on the lam, Stark railed against prosecutors, politicians, and animal rights advocates. He was stopped at a bed-and-breakfast in upstate New York three weeks later and extradited to Indiana.
Stark isn't the only big cat owner that's knee-deep in legal trouble. Many more breeders and owners across the United States are facing criminal lawsuits. Some of them are also featured in the show.
Related Article: 2020: When Lions, Tigers, Wolves, and Other Large Carnivores Were Rescued
Legality of Breeding in the US
Though it is legal to breed and show big cats in the United States with the required permits, Tiger King shed light on shady practices in a lucrative and poorly controlled industry.
Unsafe, filthy homes, poor feeding, and little to no veterinary treatment have all been included in lawsuits and prosecutions. A slew of court decisions calls into question the legality of certain standard practices, such as separating baby cubs from their mothers.
According to Brittany Peet, deputy general counsel at the nonprofit activist organization People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), these civil and criminal court lawsuits can completely transform the industry.
Wildlife in Need
For years before it was shut down, court records and compliance findings show how horrible things were at Stark's Wildlife in Need zoo. Stark obstructs routine examinations on occasion, cursing at government authorities. USDA investigators found more than 120 violations of the Animal Welfare Act between 2012 and 2016.
The financial activities of owners of cub petting attractions are still being investigated.
According to a motion filed last July, the state of Indiana discovered "wire payments worth hundreds of thousands of dollars from Wildlife in Need's bank accounts to alleged and/or accused livestock dealers" while reviewing the organization's finances.
Similar Cases Across the US
Many roadside zoos are licensed as nonprofit "rescues" or "sanctuaries," which helps them to receive tax cuts and solicit donations. Few, however, follow the requirements, according to Lisa Wathne, director of captive wildlife conservation at the Humane Society of the United States in Washington, D.C.
Thousands of tigers are kept in captivity in the United States, often in roadside zoos like Stark's. According to experts, there are likely more in captivity in the United States than the 3,900 known to survive in the wild in Asia. Threats to tigers around the world extend beyond animal conservation in cub-petting zoos. Tiger bones and other body parts are trafficked from captive facilities in China, Vietnam, and other parts of Asia, fueling a lucrative black-market trade that is driving wild tigers to extinction. Thousands of endangered big cats have been exploited, suffered, and illegally traded in the United States due to insufficient enforcement. This could be changing now, thanks to a new flurry of legal action.
Also Read: Disney's Sumatran Tiger Relocated to San Antonio Zoo To Ensure Species' Survival
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