Tiger Farms are locally owned and operated farms in China that breed and raise tigers (Panthera tigris) comparable to livestock farms.
Background edit
In 1986 Chinese authorities went public with their plans to create a farm in which tigers would be breed for their bones [1]. By 1992 wild tigers were no longer being seen in China [1] then by 1993 China passed a ban on the trading of tigers and their parts. Citizens of China felt the ban would be short lived due to the nation's demand for tiger parts. Prior to the 1993 ban, China used tiger bone, which they believed to have healing powers, to yield tiger wine and traditional Chinese medicines [2]. Since the 1980s China as well as Thailand have farmed tigers with the idea of selling their parts to meet the demand for tiger bone [1]. However, the 1993 ban on tiger trade has made selling tiger parts illegal and has shown success. The ban is still in effect leaving tiger farmers with a surplus of tigers and unable to sell them[2]. As a result these farms have grown into tourist attractions, bringing in both locals and visitors to the nation [1]. Unable to legally sell their tigers, these privately owned tiger farms have a new purpose, to help save the tiger by raising their population numbers. In spite of this many scientists feel that tiger farms are doing more harm to the future of the tiger.
Tiger Farms as a Conservation Method edit
Tiger farms began as a means to fight the poaching of wild tigers. With an abundance of farmed tigers for sell poachers might have no reason to hunt wild tigers. Therefore the wild tigers may have a chance to grow in population. However, with China’s 1993 ban on tiger trade in place many argue the purpose of tiger farms.
| PROS | CONS |
|---|---|
| 1. Farmed tigers could some day be re-introduced into the wild | 1. Tigers from farms cannot be re-introduced into the wild due to genetic and behavioral issues |
| 2. Tiger farms educate visitors about the tiger | 2. Farmed tigers placed in the wild will have no fear of humans making them more susceptible to poachers |
| 3. Encourages tiger conservation [3] | 3. Re-introduction into the wild is expensive and takes time |
| 4. Trade of farmed tiger products could decrease demand for wild tiger parts [3] | 4. Tiger farms support tiger trade by increasing demand; tiger farms support grounds to re-open tiger trading[2] |
| 5. Tiger farms can supply tiger products at an affordable price[4] | 5. Illegal poaching and trading will not stop just because farmed products are available[2]. Tiger poaching is still cheaper than tiger farming [1] |
Current Situation edit
As of 2009, tiger farms are still operating in China and parts of Asia, the ban on the trading of tigers and their parts in still in effect
In 2007, over 4,000 tigers resided on farms in China alone and plans were already in place to harvest their parts [4] These farms are legal in China and even sponsored by the government for their effort in tiger conservation. The tiger farms have been pressing the Chinese government to uplift the ban of domestic trade of tigers and their parts [4].
Tiger farms however are not limited to China. Thailand is also known to operate such “breeding centers”. They house stockpiles of tiger carcasses and parts ready to sell [4]. No other tiger conservation group is known to store tiger carcasses and parts.
Organizations fighting to end tiger farming include:
AMUR http://amur.org.uk/home.shtml Aaranyak http://www.aaranyak.org/ American College of Traditional Chinese Medicine http://www.actcm.edu/ Animal Welfare Institute http://www.awionline.org/ Animals Asia Foundation http://www.animalsasia.org/ Association of Zoos & Aquariums http://www.aza.org/ Big Cat Rescue http://www.bigcatrescue.org/ Born Free Foundation http://www.bornfree.org.uk/ British and Irish Association of Zoos & Aquariums http://www.biaza.org.uk/ Care for the Wild International http://www.careforthewild.org/ Conservation International http://www.conservation.org/ Council of Colleges of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine http://www.ccaom.org/ David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation http://www.davidshepherd.org/ Environmental Investigation Agency http://www.eia-international.org/ Global Tiger Patrol http://www.globaltigerpatrol.org/ Humane Society International http://www.hsi.org.au/ Humane Society of the United States http://www.hsus.org/ International Fund for Animal Welfare http://www.ifaw.org/ PeunPa http://www.peunpa.org/ Ranthambhore Foundation http://business.vsnl.com/tiger/ Save The Tiger Fund www.savethetigerfund.org/ Species Survival Network http://www.ssn.org/ The Corbett Foundation http://www.corbettfoundation.org/ Tigris Foundation http://www.tigrisfoundation.nl/ TRAFFIC http://www.traffic.org/ 21st Century Tiger http://www.21stcenturytiger.org/ WildAid http://www.wildaid.org/ Wildlife Alliance http://www.wildlife-alliance.org/ Wildlife Conservation Nepal http://www.wcn.org.np/ Wildlife Conservation Society http://www.wcs.org/ Wildlife Protection Society of India http://www.wpsi-india.org/ Wildlife Trust of India http://www.wildlifetrustofindia.org/ World Association of Zoos & Aquariums http://www.waza.org/ World Society for the Protection of Animals http://wspa.org.uk/ WWF http://www.panda.org/ Zoological Society of London http://www.zsl.org/ Education for Nature – Vietnam (ENV) http://www.envietnam.org/ International Trust for Nature Conservation http://www.itnc.org/ Phoenix Fund http://www.phoenix.vl.ru/ The Fund For The Tiger[5]
References edit
- ^ a b c d e K, Norwell, 2000, 'Far From A Cure: The Tiger Trade Revisited', Traffic International, ISBN 1-85850-173-3
- ^ a b c d Traffic, 2007. Fact Sheet. http://www.worldwildlife.org/what/globalmarkets/wildlifetrade/chinatigertrade/WWFBinaryitem5194.pdf [Accessed 21 October 2009]
- ^ a b http://ipa.org.au/library/59_2_MOYLE.pdf
- ^ a b c d Dinerstein, E., Loucks, C., Wikramamayake, E., Ginsberg, J., Sanderson, Seidensticker, J., Forrest, J., Bryja, G., Heydlauff, A., Klenzendorf, S., Leimgruber, P., Mills, J., O’Brien, T., Shrestha, M., Simons, R., and Songer, M. 2007, ‘The Fate of Wild Tiger’, Bioscience, vol. 57, pp. 508-514.
- ^ http://www.tigercoalition.com/[Accessed 3 December 2009]