Help Build Congressional Support for this Vital Bill!
Repost from Born Free USA. TAKE ACTION at this link:
Keeping big cats out of private homes should be a no-brainer—but, sadly, it’s not that easy. There are thought to be 10,000 or more captive big cats living across the U.S. They’re housed in backyards, deplorable roadside zoos, and other facilities ill-equipped to care for these wild animals.
Fortunately, Representative Walter Jones (R-NC) just reintroduced the Big Cats and Public Safety Act (H.R. 3546). This commonsense piece of legislation would prohibit future possession and breeding of lions, tigers, and other big cats in the exotic pet trade. The bill would also require all current owners to register their big cats with the federal government. Please tell your U.S. representative to cosponsor this compassionate bill!
Cats are often declawed and defanged in an effort to “tame” them, and are kept in cramped cages, fed unnatural diets, and deprived of contact with other members of their species. Additionally, the big cat trade causes tremendous suffering and grave dangers to human health and safety. According to the Born Free USA Exotic Animal Incidents Database, incidents involving captive big cats have resulted in the deaths of at least 23 people since 1999… five of them children. In many cases, the animals were shot and killed, often by first responders who were neither trained nor properly equipped to handle the situation.
Big cats belong in the wild, not in someone’s backyard. Please urge your U.S. representative to cosponsor the Big Cats and Public Safety Act today!
For the animals,
Free Tony The Tiger 