WASHINGTON, D.C. — Animal Wellness Action today welcomed the guilty plea by the owner of a southern Oregon wildlife park to more than 40 counts of animal neglect, calling the outcome a critical step toward accountability in the largely underregulated world of private, non-accredited zoos. Both Animal Wellness Action and Big Cat Rescue conducted prior investigations … Read more
Tigers are not pets or performers, and the probabilities are not in your favor if you have long-running interactions with tigers WASHINGTON, D.C. — Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy today expressed condolences to the family of Ryan Easley, who died while working at his Growler Pines Tiger Preserve in Choctaw … Read more
New report reveals mountain lions limit spread of brain-wasting disease in deer and elk and protecting them may save billions in outdoor recreational activities in Colorado You can listen to this article here: Mountain lions are hell on zombie deer and elk roaming the Rockies. The map below tells the story of mountain lions and … Read more
Do human hunters occupy the role of mountain lions as apex predators in Colorado? There has been long-running controversy over the trophy hunting of mountain lions in the West, and to a lesser degree, the same holds true for commercial trapping of bobcats. Polling of the general population indicates that the majority hold the view … Read more
The benefits of wild cats on the Colorado landscape and arguments for human-wild cat coexistence without trophy hunting or commercial trapping A coalition of animal sanctuaries, wildlife rehabbers, animal protectionists, scientists, veterinarians, conservationists, ethical hunters, and concerned private citizens have their sights set on mountain lions — specifically by taking aim at trophy hunting of … Read more
We secured the most important reforms ever against animal testing, while ending legal animal fighting and commercial cub-petting throughout U.S. The year 2022 turned out to be a remarkable one for the Center for a Humane Economy, Animal Wellness Action, and the Animal Wellness Foundation. We secured many tangible gains. We put a punctuation mark … Read more
Animal Wellness Action lobbied the Congress to close out abuse of dangerous big cats in our communities WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Animal Wellness Action, the Animal Wellness Foundation, and Big Cat Rescue applauded the signing of the Big Cat Public Safety Act, H.R. 263, by President Joe Biden today. The groups commend Sens. Richard Blumenthal, … Read more
All of us at Animal Wellness Action, the Animal Wellness Foundation, and the Center for a Humane Economy exhaled from the deepest recesses of our lungs Tuesday night. A grueling, often maddening, and sometimes enlightening 11-year odyssey to pass the Big Cat Public Safety Act concluded with the U.S. Senate taking up the House-passed H.R. … Read more
Legislation Now Awaits President Biden With “Tiger King” and other cub-petting enthusiasts in jail, the Congress closes out abuse of dangerous big cats in our communities Washington, D.C. – The U.S. Senate passed the Big Cat Public Safety Act, H.R. 263, today by Unanimous Consent, completing Congressional work on the subject four months after the House … Read more
With “Tiger King” and other cub-petting enthusiasts in jail, the Congress takes action Washington, D.C. – With the support of the national law enforcement, animal welfare, and conservation and mainstream zoological communities, the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed the Big Cat Public Safety Act, H.R. 263, on Friday by a vote of 278 to 134. H.R. … Read more
Washington, D.C. – With the support of the national law enforcement, animal welfare, and conservation and mainstream zoological communities, the U.S. House of Representatives is set to take up the Big Cat Public Safety Act, H.R. 263, this week. Led by Reps. Mike Quigley, D-Ill., and Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., the bill has 259 cosponsors, including about … Read more
U.S. House set to vote on Big Cat Public Safety Act, and you can help us win the vote It’s been well more than two years since the release of the salacious Netflix series “Tiger King,” the documentary that hyped a conflict between Big Cat Rescue founder Carole Baskin and Joe “Exotic” Maldonado-Passage. The self-proclaimed … Read more
Washington, D.C. – Despite pointless obstructionism today by some committee Republicans, the U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources, chaired by Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., passed the Big Cat Public Safety Act, H.R. 263, by a vote of 25 -17. The bill is cosponsored by 52 House Republicans and has the backing of the national law enforcement … Read more
Washington, D.C. – Today, the U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources, chaired by Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., heard testimony on the Big Cat Public Safety Act, H.R. 263, from Sheriff Matt Lutz of Zanesville, Ohio. The measure, led by Reps. Mike Quigley, D-Ill., and Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., passed the House in the previous Congress by … Read more
The founder of Big Cat Rescue, Carole Baskin gained fame when Netflix released the sensationalized docu-series “Tiger King” in March 2020, with pandemic-bound Americans tuning in with their newfound surplus of time. Tens of millions watched and discovered a largely hidden trade in captive big cats for roadside zoo spectacles and other forms of private … Read more
Recommends End of Trophy Hunting of Captive Lions, Ban on Commercial Trade in Their Parts, and Prohibiting Commercial Cub Petting Operations Washington, D.C. — Calling for “the ending of certain inhumane and irresponsible practices that greatly harm the reputation of South Africa and the position of South Africa as a leader in conservation,” the nation’s … Read more
Last Week’s Leaked Video of NRA Leader Shooting Elephant Shows Peril for Wildlife in Southern Africa The video released last week by The New Yorker of a hunting gambit by National Rifle Association (NRA) chief Wayne LaPierre reminds us why Botswana and South Africa have a duty to close their doors to foreign trophy hunters who care … Read more
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Susan Collins, R-Maine, Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., Tom Carper, D-Del., and Richard Burr, R-N.C., introduced the Big Cat Public Safety Act. The House bill, H.R. 263, introduced in January, has 164 cosponsors, and the same measure cleared the House by an overwhelming margin last year. The group expressed optimism that … Read more
Animal Wellness Action Says Tiger in West Houston Provides More Evidence That Congress Must Adopt the Big Cat Public Safety Act With Urgency Houston, Texas – In the latest incident involving an escaped captive big cat, amateur video was released late last night of a tiger roaming a suburban West Houston community, with one individual … Read more
Animal Wellness Action Leaders React to U.S. District Court Order Directing Seizure of Tiger Cubs from Jeff Lowe’s Unlicensed “Tiger King Park” in Thackerville, Okla. Oklahoma City, OK — Last night, U.S. District Court Judge F. Heil III, based in the Eastern District of Oklahoma, issued a devastating decision in favor of the United States and … Read more
Oklahoma City – Today, U.S. law enforcement agents, led by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, seized dozens of animals from Jeff Lowe and his Thackerville menagerie today, all but closing out the plans of Mr. Lowe to resume public exhibition of the animals in Oklahoma after he took control of them in the wake … Read more
Washington, D.C. — Today, Animal Wellness Action and its affiliates applauded U.S. Representatives Mike Quigley, D-Ill. and Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Penn., for reintroducing the Big Cat Public Safety Act about one month after the House passed the measure by a commanding vote of 272 to 114 and putting it on a path toward enactment. Quigley and … Read more
The U.S. House of Representatives roared last month when it voted to pass the Big Cat Public Safety Act (H.R. 1380). It was a giant step toward passing legislation that will ban the trade of big cats as pets and will stop their exploitation for cub petting and roadside zoos — two forms of unethical … Read more
Press Release Washington, D.C. — The U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed the Big Cat Public Safety Act tonight by a vote of 272 to 114, eight months after the salacious reality television series “Tiger King” put the animal welfare and public safety issues of private ownership of tigers and lions on the American radar … Read more
Press Release Washington, D.C. — The trade in big cats for the pet trade and for cub petting always turns out badly for the animals, and it often turns out badly for people who cross paths with them, a coalition of lawmakers, law enforcement leaders, and animal welfare groups asserted as the House prepares to … Read more
USDA Suspends Exhibition Permit for Jeff Lowe, as Joe Exotic’s Former Business Partner Announces He’s Closing the Zoo (Oklahoma City) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which enforces the federal Animal Welfare Act through an on-site inspection program, has suspended the exhibition license of Jeff Lowe, the operator of the Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park … Read more
The Zoological Association of America, the bill’s primary opponent, has withdrawn its opposition In the salacious Netflix series “Tiger King,” the public got both a magnified and distorted view of the antagonists in the debate over roadside zoos that exploit big cats. Instead of taking a deep dive into the life story of even a … Read more
Organ harvesting of bears and breeding of tigers for cub petting are matters federal lawmakers should handle without a second thought For charitable purposes only, I wish I had a dollar for every time I told a lawmaker or anyone else about some peculiar form of animal exploitation and they replied, “I had no idea … Read more
Lions in Africa and tigers in Asia are in peril in their native habitats — the victims of retribution killing, the trade in their parts (tiger penises and lion bones), human encroachment and habitat fragmentation, and, in the case of the lions, trophy hunting. But in the United States, they are strangely abundant not only at … Read more
WASHINGTON, DC —Today, the U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources, chaired by longtime champion of animal welfare, wildlife, and conservation issues, Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ), advanced a set of major animal protection bills affecting marine and terrestrial wildlife The mark-up hearing included the Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act (H.R. 737), the Big Cat Public Safety … Read more
The U.S. can play a major role by halting imports of sport-hunted trophies of threatened and endangered species According to a report issued by the non-partisan Congressional Research Service this spring, the United States granted import permits between 2013 and 2017 for 32,100 black bears, 10,122 sandhill cranes, 2,645 African lions, 2,552 Chacma baboons, and 2,148 mountain … Read more