Cub Petting Shame
It wasn't long ago (2013 or so) that paying to play with cute little tiger cubs, lion cubs or even liger cubs, was considered something people wanted to do and brag about, but now people know better…at least many people know better. If you have been sent to this page, after sharing your photo of you and a cub, or talking about how you want to pet a big cat, then you should thank the person who had the guts to send you here. They obviously care about you and don't want you to make a fool of yourself by perpetuating the abuse that always goes hand in paw with posing with wild cats.
Ever Wonder Why Celebrities Pet Cubs?
People who love animals just shake their heads when they see that another hapless celebrity has fallen for the temptation to show off by posing with tiger cubs, lion cubs or other baby wild animals. Even celebrities who know better, will often fall for it, when the breeders and dealers try to use their celebrity status to promote animal abuse. That may tell you something about most celebrities, but you can't blame them entirely. The people who profit off the abuse of baby animals know how to manipulate the public and know that celebrities are often the weak link that make it possible. They have studied Edward Bernays' methods. Watch the video below and then check out the celebrities who apparently fell for such manipulation beneath the video.
The only way to undo the damage that celebrities cause, when they fall victim to the animal abusers ploys, is to try and educate them about what they have done, and ask them to take a stand against the abuse. Failing that, the last resort is a public spanking.
Where do celebrities go to pet cubs? There are a few backyard breeders in the U.S. but the place that attracts the most, and ignorant celebrities is Black Jaguar White Tiger in Mexico. The best article so far to debunk BJWT as a sanctuary is at the link below and says, in part, "BJWT may appear to many to be a sanctuary, but its apparent methods of utilizing its animals for donation mongering and notoriety all but nullify its status as anything other than a playground for the rich, famous and ignorant." https://www.jacalynbeales.com/outofwilderness/2015/12/22/fooling-millions-with-false-conservation-the-black-jaguar-white-tiger-foundation
You know the public opposes cub breeding and handling when Gizmodo goes after the perpetrators of such cub petting schemes with a vengeance like this article.
Yahoo Celebrity News understands why it's wrong: https://www.yahoo.com/celebrity/celebs-favorite-animal-sanctuary-raises-serious-004456713.html
And bloggers speak out against using cub petting as a way to end cub petting. #BJWT
Spanking Celebrities for Bad Behavior
9/12/2021 Vanessa Hudgens Shamed By Her Fans For Posing With Captive Cheetahs! Vanessa Hudgens' latest date with basketballer boyfriend Cole Tucker involved some caged cheetahs that her fans aren't cool with. She was showing off for the camera in a zoo, and her fans said that was cruel, not cool.
8/24/2021. Kevin Bhagavan "doc" Antle letting Chris Brown's young daughter take a joy ride on an elephant's giant noggin wasn't just dangerous and irresponsible, but violates the Animal Welfare Act according to PETA who fired off a letter Tuesday to the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, calling on it to investigate the 'Tiger King' star's operation of his Myrtle Beach safari … alleging he's violating a number of regulations … spotlighting the most recent incident with Chris Brown's kid. PETA claims Doc has violated the Animal Welfare Act by allowing 7-year-old Royalty to swim with Bubbles, one of the elephants saying it was super dangerous for the girl to dive off the animal's giant head. https://www.tmz.com/2021/08/24/peta-calls-for-investigation-into-doc-antle-chris-brown-daughter/
1/16/2021 You would think after Tiger King, Murder, Mayhem & Madness reached more than 64 million viewers that no celebrity would ever be dumb enough to pose with a cub, but Larsa Pippen from Real Housewives did and her fans immediately reacted saying things like, "What a self indulgent prat. No way should she be encouraging the abuse these animals go through so some air head can take a selfie. Disgusting," one comment read. "So so sad. Just when I thought I couldn't dislike this woman any more than I already do. UGH…" a second added. "These poor tigers are clearly sedated and look very distressed. Shame on anyone who supports this cruel practice. This is immoral on so many levels," a third added. Pippen exposed her children to this exploitation at the Myrtle Beach Safari, which is run through The Institute for Greatly Endangered and Rare Species (T.I.G.E.R.S.) and is run by "doc" Antle who has been fined numerous times by the USDA for various instances of animal mistreatment, and in 2019 the safari was raided by law enforcement officials. In October 2020, Antle was indicted on multiple felony and misdemeanor charges for alleged wildlife trafficking, violations of the Endangered Species Act and animal cruelty.
5/29/19 Maluma deleted his Instagram account after receiving backlash for publishing a video showing him playing with a baby lion at Black Jaguar White Tiger. In the video, he is petting and playing with a baby lion named Mala Mia. This triggered a wave of criticism causing Maluma to close his favorite social media account.
Migos Rapper Quavo fans were outraged in March 2019 when he said he'd bought a tiger. The big cat is shown sitting on a white backdrop with a chain around its neck. Comments on Quavo’s post introducing the animal are mostly negative, with many pointing out that wild animals are not meant to be kept as pets and calling the rapper cruel and reckless for wanting to own a tiger. Comedian Whitney Cummings was one of many commenters to reprimand the rapper for his reported purchase. “This is not cool. It’s reckless to promote and glamorize this. You don’t need a tiger as a pet. Privately owned exotics end up in cages or in sanctuaries where other people have to care for them. Please stop. Happy to provide you information on why this was an irresponsible and poor decision,” she wrote in response to the post.
Farrah Abrahams came under attack over her 2019 photo shoot. The former Teen Mom OG star shared a behind-the-scenes video from a photo shoot that appeared to be circus themed. Fans responded saying, "That’s disgusting that poor lion this makes me so sad!" Another one said, "Poor animal. This is animal cruelty." Read the whole story at https://okmagazine.com/photos/farrah-abraham-photo-shoot-with-animal-slammed-by-peta/
Lewis Hamilton found out the hard way that it isn't cool to pose with cubs, especially from #BJWT as the poll confirms. The British Formula One driver was visiting the Black Jaguar White Tiger Foundation in Mexico earlier this week when he posted the photographs on his Snapchat account. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/08/11/lewis-hamilton-criticised-for-foolish-snapchat-tiger-selfies/
Justin Bieber won't be attractive to quality women any more, after being caught posing with a tiger on a leash in May 2016. “Justin Bieber is lucky not to have had his throat torn out by this stressed, captive tiger,” Lisa Lange said. “Tigers used for photo ops are torn away from their mothers shortly after birth.” Lange added that she believes the tiger was from Ontario’s Bowmansville Zoo — whose director was charged with five counts of animal cruelty earlier this month after video emerged of him appearing to repeatedly whip a different, young tiger. He didn't learn his lesson and went on to exploit more cubs so People Magazine called him out on it here: https://www.people.com/article/justin-bieber-alex-the-lion-peta
Floyd Mayweather posted a photo of a tiger, asking fans to name her, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook users are not happy! Mayweather, the former boxing champion, has been accused of animal cruelty after posting a picture of the 2 month old tiger cub on a leash in Dec 2015. People quickly responded to Mayweather with angry messages, while one person messaged the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, calling on him to do something about it after the tiger was taken from India. https://www.buzzfeed.com/davidmack/youre-gonna-hear-me-roar?utm_term=.pq0vV4JQp#.ucgkPX08J
https://time.com/4137867/floyd-mayweather-pet-tiger-cat-rescue/
Search "Beyonce tiger cub" and the first listing is a headline that reads: Beyonce blasted by animal rights groups over photo of her petting a tiger cub with Jay Z and Blue Ivy in Thailand Get the rest of the ugly story about how a celebrity showed her ignorance of ethics toward tigers in 2015 at https://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/travel_news/article-2899290/Beyonce-blasted-animal-rights-groups-photo-petting-tiger-cub-Jay-Z-Blue-Ivy-Thailand.html
Up next, this article starts out saying, Sorry, Beyoncé — Petting Tigers Is Not Cool https://www.thedodo.com/beyonce-tiger-thailand-tourism-916389560.html
And next, this article's headline proclaims Here's One Beyoncé and Jay Z Selfie You Shouldn't 'Like' If You Love Wildlife https://www.takepart.com/article/2015/01/07/should-beyonc%C3%A9-and-jay-z-have-taken-selfies-tiger-cub
Next headline Beyoncé tiger controversy: World Animal Protection charity disgusted as star uses endangered animal as plaything https://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/beyonc-tiger-controversy-world-animal-4926997
And even when it looks like they are going to praise the celebrity, the sub headline reads Looks Like Beyoncé and Blue Ivy Got to Hang Out With a Tiger Cub…And animal rights advocates are not happy with the photo Jan Schmidt-Burbach, a wildlife expert for animal welfare charity World Animal Protection, argues, “A tiger is not a plaything,” so animals’ “health and well-being should not be sacrificed for a photo opportunity.” https://time.com/3656727/beyonce-and-blue-ivy-with-tiger/
Next in line in the google search is a headline that reads Beyonce and Jay Z slammed by animal rights group for tiger cub snap Read more: https://metro.co.uk/2015/01/06/beyonce-and-jay-z-slammed-by-animal-rights-group-for-tiger-cub-snap-5011353/#ixzz3gGdY5g3Y
Yahoo News got in on the criticism quoting "Celebrities should set a humane example, not an exploitative one, as their potential for influence is massive," said Adam M. Roberts, CEO of Born Free USA. "Tigers can kill, whether wild or captive, and every unwitting child who chooses to pose with a tiger as a result of seeing celebrities do so is at risk. Imagine if Beyoncé and Jay Z decided to expose tigers to the world by supporting their conservation in the wild instead." https://news.yahoo.com/beyonc-jay-z-taken-selfies-tiger-cub-153534220.html
Naturally, Big Cat Rescue was one of the first to complain to the star with this open letter: https://bigcatrescue.org/open-letter-to-beyonce/
It caused enough of an uproar to give Beyonce her own page at the Celebrity Dirty Laundry site. https://www.celebdirtylaundry.com/2015/beyonce-criticized-wildlife-activists-for-petting-tiger-cub-thailand/
The star bashing headlines go on for pages and pages and are far too many to list here, but suffice it to say the public was outraged and the media went wild. But was Beyonce the first (or the last) to forego common sense and pay someone to take her picture with a big cat or their cub? No.
If you were to search "celebrity tiger cub abuse" the first name and article that comes up is Khloe Kardashian couldn't be more clueless in the Instagram selfie she took posing with a tiger cub in 2015. https://www.thedodo.com/khloe-kardashian-tiger-cub-1169547978.html
Next up for Khloe Kardashian is the headline Khloe Kardashian's Tiger Cub Pic Causes Another Selfie Controversy
that goes on to say, "After getting slammed for posting a pic of her wearing a niqab face covering during her trip to Dubai, Khloe also came under fire on Thursday when she posted a selfie of her cuddling with a tiger cub.
Fans let Khloe know how they felt posting comments like this one, "I thought you were against it? All for a photo op?" another comments reads. "Disgusting… You should be ashamed!!!" https://www.etonline.com/news/165253_khloe_kardashian_tiger_cub_selfie_causes_controversy/
Khloe Kardashian's bad behavior didn't escape the notice of the Daily Mail who announced Khloe Kardashian slammed by animal rights campaigners after she poses with tiger cub during Dubai trip Read more: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3100115/Khloe-Kardashian-slammed-animal-rights-campaigners-poses-tiger-cub-Dubai-trip.html#ixzz3gGh2jNpq
There were so many news outlets blasting the starlet for her clueless behavior that Yahoo News took note, quoting “We’re disappointed to see yet another celebrity posing with a wild animal,” Silia Smith of World Animal Protection told Daily Mail. “Tiger cubs belong in the wild, with their mothers – not in captivity for use as entertainment or photo props.” https://www.yahoo.com/tv/s/khloe-kardashians-tiger-cub-pic-161300096.html
The Huffington Post was right there too with this headline: The Ugly Truth Behind Khloe Kardashian's Tiger Cub Selfie https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/05/28/the-ugly-truth-behind-khl_n_7460810.html
Then again, maybe it is a sign of her need for attention that she did it again. Wildlife expert Dr Jan Schmidt-Burbach said: "Their health and well-being should not be sacrificed for a photo opportunity. When you look behind the scenes, holiday snaps like these support an industry that relies on animal cruelty. https://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/khloe-kardashian-set-spark-outrage-6196302
Again in 2015 Cara Delevingne slammed by wildlife charity for posing with lion cub: 'They don't belong draped over a celebrity' said the Daily Mirror to their 2.7 million readers https://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/cara-delevingne-slammed-wildlife-charity-5035579
Cara Delevingne enraged so many people world wide with her antics that Yahoo News picked it up too, saying "Cara Delevingne who is the new ambassador for TAG Heure watches got a lot of criticism after photo shoot with a lion cub." https://uk.news.yahoo.com/video/cara-delevingne-slammed-lion-cub-071504429.html
In 2013 Darnell Dockett posed with a tiger and said he bought a cub to bring to the games. Big Cat Rescue launched an alert and it turned out to have the most response of any action item that year. People were infuriated that Darnell Dockett would do, or even say, such an absurd thing, so he began back peddling. The press held him out to be a liar saying, "Dockett has claimed that he did buy a tiger cub, although it's been hard to tell whether he actually did or he's just jerkin' on our jockstraps. Now, it looks like at least part of Dockett's tale is fiction, and we wouldn't be surprised if the entire thing was just made up." https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/darnell-docketts-pet-tiger-story-unraveling-cubs-supposed-mom-is-a-dude-6627107
The celebrity spanking goes on for pages and pages and pages.
The rapper Tyga thought he was cool and posed with a tiger cub on a leash. That lead to the media frenzy that had headlines like RAPPER TYGA BUSTED FOR PET TIGER? https://www.globalanimal.org/2014/05/02/rapper-tyga-busted-for-pet-tiger/ and Authorities Seize Rapper Tyga's Pet Tiger https://www.natureworldnews.com/articles/6773/20140426/authorities-seize-rapper-tygas-pet-tiger.htm
This headline read: Stop taking 'tiger selfies' that fund animal abuse, charity says It went on to report: "Lion and tiger cubs can be found in Cancun, Mexico, while slow lorises are the latest trend in Thailand. When Rihanna posted a picture with one online last year, it sparked police raids in Phuket and the arrest of two suspected poachers." At least Rihanna's celebrity status gave the object of her desire for attention an opportunity to be rescued. https://www.independent.co.uk/environment/nature/stop-taking-tiger-selfies-that-fund-animal-abuse-charity-says-9635945.html
Sometimes it isn't just one celebrity showing their ignorance. Sometimes it's a whole team of people who don't stop and think about how it is that they could be allowed to pet a tiger cub. The Detroit Tigers were approached by one of the notorious tiger cub exploiters in 2013 in an effort to legitimize a practice that most decent people find appalling. Members of the team ignorantly posed with the cubs, who had been bred to be used as photo props, and the media latched onto the public outrage that ensued. The headline read IFAW Calls Foul on Detroit Tigers Photo Op https://www.ifaw.org/united-states/news/statement-ifaw-calls-foul-detroit-tigers-photo-op
On April 2, 2013 after being pelted with insults and calls for their shame, the Detroit Tigers removed the offensive photos from their Facebook page. Big Cat Rescue followed up saying, "GRRRREAT NEWS! The Detroit Tigers have removed from their Facebook page the photos of several players at spring training camp last week posing with a baby tiger! Thank you to everyone who posted a comment on the Tiger's page to educate them and let them know most people do NOT want to see cubs exploited. We applaud the Detroit Tigers for taking this action and doing the right thing!!" https://www.facebook.com/bigcatrescue/posts/296773597119376
Unfortunately the Toronto Blue Jays didn't learn a lesson from that and in 2014 they made their own bad press with the headline, Toronto Blue Jays under fire for posing with baby lion and tiger https://www.critterfiles.com/toronto-blue-jays-fire-posing-baby-lion-tiger/ Fans commented "Animals are not props. They are not here for our entertainment and have been known to attack and kill trainer/owners/visitors. This is disgusting and disgraceful. It isn't 1920 anymore. We know better now, so grow up and evolve already. Animals belong in the wild with their families, not in cages where they can't express their basic instincts and needs. I'm ashamed this happened in Toronto."
You don't have to be a public figure, or a celebrity to make the news with your ill conceived ideas of a good way to entertain the kids. This mother found herself making headlines after subjecting her child to a tiger mauling. We didn't follow the story, but hopefully child services got involved after she paid to let her child to pet a tiger which landed the kid in Intensive Care. https://bigcatrescue.org/mother-risks-childrens-lives-petting-tigers/
Good Morning America found themselves at the receiving end of a fire storm of rage when they promoted swimming with tiger cubs at Dade City's Wild Things. Read the comments and see that most of the commenters expressed their exasperation for the celebrity news staff that were unwittingly drawn into the fray by animal exploiters. https://www.facebook.com/GoodMorningAmerica/posts/507139979298672
Sometimes the heat for posing with wild animals is so hot the celebrities have to publicly apologize for their bad decisions.
Such was the case for Glenn McGrath who Expresses ‘Deep Regret’ Over Africa Hunting in his case he killed the wild animals and then posed with them, but the public can be pretty forgiving if they believe the celeb. https://www.buzzfeed.com/simoncrerar/mcgrath-hunting-photos#.mvzGGbxaY
Most People Figure Out Cub Handling is Wrong and Won't Condone It
More than 60 malls have pledged to never allow cub handling at their venues due to publicity that started in 2009 about how the cubs are purposely bred to be used as pay to play props and then discarded to pet homes, backyard zoos and even the black market. PetsMart made it their policy not to let these tiger pimps bring cubs onto any of their properties in the U.S., Canada or Mexico.
In 2014 New York passed a ban on Tiger Selfies and any contact with wild cats or their cubs.
When Porsche announced their Macan in 2014, one of the dealerships had the stupid idea of bringing a live tiger to the car store. Public outrage was so fast and furious that Porsche sent a letter to all of their dealers asking them to NOT make that mistake again. https://bigcatrescue.org/big-cat-rescue-gives-huge-shout-porsche/
Citi joined Porsche and PetsMart in the growing list of influential corporations that have banned the use of wild animals at their events and in their advertising. Big Cat Rescue had contacted these organization and explained to them why it is so bad to use big cats cubs for photos and ego props and they took immediate action after hearing from our supporters.
Wildlife conservation and forestry departments of northeast China’s Heilongjiang province announced in 2012 that visitors will not be allow to pay for pictures with Siberian tiger cubs in a tiger park. More at China Bans Cub Petting.
Call To Celebrities and Their Agents
You could do some good and regain your standing in the hearts of your fans if you make a public apology for not bothering to do a quick Internet search on the topic before posing with a wild animal or their cub. Celebrities have a powerful voice and a moral obligation to be thoughtful in their decisions because so many people are looking to them as role models. The best way you can help is to speak out in favor of the Big Cat and Public Safety Act which would put an end to these backyard breeders and their web of lies about how this is helping conservation.
Using celebrity power to save animals is a hit in Hollywood. We all know Leonardo DiCaprio, Ellen DeGeneres, Sarah McLachlan, Pamela Anderson and Bob Barker are staunch supporters of animals. But so are Kristin Davis, Kesha and Hayden Panettiere, January Jones, Kristin Davis, Woody Harrelson, Pink, Kellan Lutz, Twiggy, Harrison Ford, Jorga Fox, Billy McNamarra, Alison Eastwood and more.
Should YOU Pose with a Wild Animal Cub?
You can find all of the reasons why paying to pet or play with a lion cub, a tiger cub, a liger cub or any other wildcat cub or kitten is ALWAYS abuse at https://bigcatrescue.org/cubs/
We used to try and go easy on people who would proclaim to love big cats and then proceed to brag about having petted one or having their photo with one because the media used to condone the practice. For those who had been duped by the backyard breeders who use cubs to support themselves, we are sorry they took advantage of you. Now it's time to burn those photos and let others know why they should never pay to play with cubs. Once Big Cat Rescue and other non profits who are dedicated to protecting wild animals were able to saturate the media with the truth about cub handling, it's now easy to figure out that no one who loves wild animals will pay to pet or pose with them.
Now we are asking for your help. If you see someone posing with tiger cubs, lion cubs or any other wild cat, please send them a Tiger Selfie using this cool app. https://bigcatrescue.org/tiger-selfie/ It's a good way to get the message across without being cross.
For any of you who still don't care; even if you don't care about protecting wild animals, or their cubs, do you really want everyone to think you are a jerk?