Tigers are a highly endangered species, with current estimates indicating there are only 3,900 left in the wild. Ambitious, science-based conservation efforts, along with anti-poaching and community-based engagement plans, are necessary to secure a future for these majestic and elusive big cats.

Unfortunately, there are more tigers living in captivity than are left in the wild, particularly in the U.S., and this is a problem. The relentless demand for tigers – traded for their parts but also to be displayed commercially – significantly contributes to the decline of the species. Legal trade facilitates illegal trade and causes a real threat to wild tiger populations.

The commercial trade with captive tigers is legal and out of control throughout the EU. Whether performing in circus shows, bought as pets or killed and turned into traditional medicine, a lack of regulation in Europe is putting an almost extinct species at great risk. No authority or country knows how many tigers are currently kept in the European Union or what happens to them during their life or once they’re dead.

We’re fighting to change that. Help us ban the #RuthlessTrade.

FOUR PAWS has been fighting for years to end the global exploitation of big cats. Our research and undercover investigations have revealed that the lucrative commercial trade of captive tigers is happening not only in Asia, but throughout Europe as well.

Shockingly, tigers born in captivity in Europe can still be traded for commercial purposes like circuses or for private keeping and for photo opportunities. To make matters worse, no legal authority or country knows how many tigers are currently kept in the European Union; this same situation of exploitation and unknown numbers applies to the captive tiger population in America as well.

In FOUR PAWS’ most recent report, Europe’s Second-Class Tigers, we reveal a shocking discrepancy between figures held by European authorities and the results of a recent investigation. This latest research highlights that the exact number of captive tigers is unknown by the relevant authorities and reveals the gaps in data pertaining to the numbers of big cats born, what happens to them during their lifetime and after they die.

In November 2018, FOUR PAWS published its first report on the European tiger trade, Protect our tigers: ban the commercial trade, which was shared with all the EU member states and the EU Commission. 

More information on our campaign to end the tiger trade in Europe is available here.

Similar to the EU, the exploitation of tigers for profit has been common throughout America, as witnessed in Netflix’s shocking documentary-series show Tiger King. The private ownership of big cats, such as lions and tigers, is a huge animal welfare and public safety issue, and there are between 5,000 to 10,000 big cats estimated to be in private ownership in the U.S. However, the true number is unknown as there was no federal law or comprehensive regulatory system in place to document their numbers.

Thankfully, after decades of campaigning by big cat activists, the Big Cat Public Safety Act (BCPSA) was finally signed into law by President Biden on December 20, 2022! 

Prior to the BCPSA, state laws were responsible for regulating the ownership of big cats, and the laws varied wildly from one state to the next. This resulted in big cats living in deplorable and unsafe conditions without proper veterinary care, nutrition, and enrichment in substandard zoos and backyards across the country. Further, the demand for big cats as exotic pets, the use of cubs for petting displays and photo opportunities, and the lucrative trade in their pelts and body parts provide dangerous incentives for their continued exploitation. 

This federal law bans the private ownership of new big cats across all 50 states, required current owners to register their big cats if they wanted to keep them, and bans the breeding, trading, and selling of big cats. It also prohibits public interactions with big cats, helping to put an end to the incredibly cruel "cub petting" operations that were common throughout the U.S.