Welfare of Wild Cats Beyond Tigers and Lions

Small wild cat species — ocelots, clouded leopards, servals, and fishing cats — face significant but less-publicized welfare threats from the pet trade, habitat loss, and persecution.

Key Facts

There are 37 wild cat species globally, most receiving far less conservation attention than lions and tigers
Servals and ocelots are sold as pets in many US states, suffering severe welfare deprivation in domestic settings
Fishing cats are critically threatened by wetland destruction across South and Southeast Asia
Sand cats in the Middle East are targeted for the luxury pet trade
Wild cat road mortality affects small cat species disproportionately in fragmented habitats

Welfare Considerations

Small wild cat welfare suffers from a public attention gap: conservation funding and policy attention concentrates on charismatic megafauna, while servals in Ohio apartments and fishing cats in drained Thai wetlands receive less intervention. Small cats kept as pets — even if legal — face profound welfare failures: these are territorial, crepuscular hunters whose behavioral needs cannot be met in any domestic setting. Habitat-specific threats require species-specific conservation responses.

What You Can Do

Never support the purchase or keeping of small wild cats as pets
Support wild cat conservation through the Small Wild Cat Conservation Foundation
Advocate for comprehensive wild cat pet ownership bans in states with current legal gaps
Donate to fishing cat and clouded leopard wetland conservation programs in Southeast Asia