Big Cat Public Safety Act passed by U.S. Senate
The U.S. Senate recently passed the Big Cat Public Safety Act (H.R. 263, Senate companion bill S. 1210) by unanimous consent. This follows the bill’s passage by the U.S. House of Representatives on July 29, according to a news release from the Humane Society of the United States.
The legislation prohibits keeping tigers, lions and other big cat species as pets, and bans public contact with these species, including paid interactive experiences like cub petting. The legislation was sponsored and championed by Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), Rep. Michael Quigley (D-Ill.), and Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa).
The bill was presented on Dec. 16 to the White House to be signed into law by President Biden, who has expressed support for it.
Kitty Block, president and CEO of the Humane Society of the U.S. and CEO of Humane Society Legislative Fund, said in the news release that this marks the end of an extraordinarily cruel era for big cats in the U.S.
“We’ve been fighting for this moment for years because so many so-called ‘Tiger Kings’ have been breeding tigers and other big cats to use them for profit,” she said. “And once the cubs grow too large for cub-petting or selfies, these poor animals get dumped at roadside zoos or passed into the pet trade, which is not only a terrible wrong for the animals, but also a threat to public safety. Now that the Big Cat Public Safety Act will become law, it’s the beginning of the end of the big cat crisis in the U.S.”
According to the Humane Society, since 1990, more than 400 incidents involving captive big cats have occurred in 46 states and the District of Columbia. Five children and 19 adults have been killed and hundreds of others injured, some losing limbs or suffering other traumatic injuries.
These large, dangerous predators are often kept in small, barren cages. When sold to private owners they may be kept in basements or backyards where they have no means to express their complex behavioral needs, are deprived of veterinary care and a proper diet and are sometimes subjected to cruel procedures like declawing in misguided and unsuccessful attempts to make them safer to handle.
Sen. Blumenthal said the beautiful but powerful predators deserve to live in the wild, not be kept in captivity for people’s entertainment—even as cubs.
“I’m thrilled that, after a groundswell of public and bipartisan support, this bill I’ve long advocated for will become law,” he said in the news release.
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