Two tiger cubs have found sanctuary in South Africa after being confiscated in Slovakia where they were being kept illegally in cruel conditions.
Global animal welfare organisation Four Paws transferred the one-year-old female animals, one of them white, named Snow and Sky. The tigresses arrived at their new forever home under the South African sun after a 13 000km journey from Slovakia.
In mid-April, the two cubs, together with their male sibling, were confiscated by local authorities from cruel, illegal private keeping in Slovakia and temporarily accommodated at Zoo Bojnice, until they could be transferred to Lions Rock.
“The cubs are yet another shocking example that big cats should never be kept as pets. Four Paws calls for an end of the cruel keeping, breeding, and trade of big cats, which is still not regulated in many European countries and worldwide,” said the organisation’s CEO and president Josef Pfabigan.
“The sad fate of Snow and Sky has a happy ending. In their new forever home, they can roam their natural surroundings and enjoy a new sense of life. We must not forget that many big cats suffer in private keeping like Snow and Sky did.
“The protection of wild animals has been close to our hearts at Four Paws since the very beginning. We are striving to find sustainable solutions and working with our global network towards properly and strongly implemented and enforced legislation for big cats along with protecting the animals we rescue for the rest of their lives,” he said.
“Cruel private keeping can have a permanent negative impact on big cats. They are often sick, malnourished, locked up in inappropriate cages, abused as pets, or for entertainment, and killed for their fur and body parts. These two tiger cubs have been deprived of the care of their mother since a very young age,” said Patricia Tiplea, head of Wild Animal Rescue and Advocacy.
“It is amazing to watch them explore their outer enclosure and see that they are already starting to recover from their past.”
Their male sibling died at the zoo from injuries he suffered before they were rescued.
Some tigers are white because of a rare and recessive gene. The rarity of this gene makes white big cats more commercially valuable, and they are extremely sough after. Breeders often resort to inbreeding, which often leads to life-long suffering due to serious health problems.
In Slovakia, where the cubs were illegally bred, legislation prohibits the keeping, breeding and trade of big cats by private owners, however, it is still widely permitted in Europe. According to CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) data from 1975-2018, several European countries are ranked among the top 30 global exporters and importers of tigers.
Lions Rock Big Cat Sanctuary is one of the 13 wild animal sanctuaries and cooperation projects established by Four Paws worldwide. It is currently home to more than 100 rescued big cats, including lions, tigers and leopards. They were rescued from private keeping, circuses, zoos, and conflict zones all across the globe.