Take Action: Help Big Cats in Captivity

Nearly 5,000 big cats in the U.S. are kept in facilities licensed by the USDA.

Although this might seem reassuring, the reality is that a USDA-licensed facility could be anything from a fenced-in backyard to a roadside zoo.

In a recent undercover investigation of USDA-licensed wildlife facilities, IFAW found disturbing animal welfare violations at nearly all of 42 of the locations we investigated.

Because big cats can never be introduced into the wild in the United States, and well-run sanctuaries are already overflowing with animals, IFAW needs your help to provide more humane care for big cats in captivity…as well as to protect the public from big cat attacks.

In response to a growing number of big cat attacks, IFAW is working to get “Haley’s Act” passed at the federal level after it recently became law in Kansas thanks to an IFAW campaign that began in 2004. Named after a 17-year-old Kansas teenager who was killed by a Siberian tiger at a USDA wildlife facility, it is designed to protect both the public and big cats from similar senseless tragedies in the future.

Please ask your U.S. Representative to Cosponsor “Haley’s Act”, soon to be introduced by representative Nancy Boyda, to prevent future big cat attacks at USDA wildlife facilities. The legislation follows IFAW’s recommendations to Congress, which include:

Prohibiting direct contact between the public and big cats

Increasing penalties for violations of the Animal Welfare Act, to provide a greater deterrent, creating improved welfare for these extraordinary animals.