Authorities: Tiger husbandry violates minimum requirements

What rules apply to keeping tigers?

According to the Animal Welfare Act, every animal must be housed "appropriately for its species and needs". However, the law does not specify what this means for big cats in general and tigers in particular.

The authorities therefore refer to the so-called mammal report of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture when assessing private animal husbandry. This states that for tigers, an outdoor enclosure of at least 200 square meters must be available for one or two animals. For each additional adult animal, there must be 100 square meters more.

However, the report also states that animal experts make even more far-reaching recommendations. "The question of biologically appropriate minimum enclosure sizes for individual animal species is always controversial when drawing up husbandry standards." The size of an enclosure has a significant influence on the normal behavior and well-being of an animal.

According to the district office, the private keeping of big cats must also comply with species protection regulations arising from nature conservation law.