Tiger welfare in captivity, including the welfare standards that distinguish accredited conservation facilities from exploitative tourist attractions.
Tiger welfare exists on a spectrum from genuine conservation-focused accredited facilities to exploitative attractions that breed cubs for commercial petting operations and sell adults to trophy hunting when they are no longer commercially useful. Understanding this distinction is critical for consumers, donors, and advocates. Accredited zoo tigers in well-designed facilities live in appropriate social conditions, have access to complex naturalistic habitats, receive veterinary care, and contribute to population viability for subspecies in genuine danger of extinction. The contrast with cub-petting facilities — where cubs are handled continuously for profit and discarded when grown — could not be starker.