Tigers are among the most iconic zoo animals, but their welfare in captivity requires careful attention to their large spatial needs, solitary nature, and complex behavioral repertoire.
Tiger welfare in zoos occupies a specific tension: these are wide-ranging predators whose captive environments are necessarily a small fraction of what their biology requires. The welfare challenge is to provide the most functionally enriched environment possible within those constraints — and to be honest about where those constraints are too severe. Feeding enrichment and unpredictable schedules, large and varied enclosures, scent marking opportunities, and appropriate social management all improve zoo tiger welfare. The separate welfare problem of private tiger ownership in the US — often in wholly inadequate conditions — is addressed by organizations like the Big Cat Rescue movement.