SAN ANTONIO – The Bexar County Sheriff’s Office, Animal Control Services and US Fish & Wildlife are investigating the recent cases of big cats being seized and discovered in Bexar County’s neighborhoods this month.
According to the ACS, an email tip about wild animal noises coming from a house on Shane Road near Southton led them to find a 14-week-old tiger and a 5-year-old bobcat on Tuesday.
The big cats caught by the authorities are not in good health, said Tim Morrow, president and CEO of the San Antonio Zoo. The zoo has temporarily taken in the animals.
“He wasn’t on a proper diet for a tiger this age, which was immediately pretty obvious to our vets and staff,” said Morrow. “The bobcat is about 5 years old. We believe he has some vision problems and some stability problems. He really looks a bit geriatric to us and there is a 5 year old bobcat. That’s not normal. “
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The animals will be looked after by the San Antonio Zoo until they are taken to a shelter, Morrow said. Click here to learn more.
A tiger cub was also taken from a house in southwest Bexar County a month ago. After spotting a cub in their backyards a few days earlier, the neighbors called the police, but the cub was not found at the time.
Animal advocates observe two state and federal laws that would make it illegal to own this type of exotic animal:
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- House Bill 4049 was introduced into Texan law that year. If enacted, the bill would make it illegal to have a list of exotic pets.
- The Big Cat Public Safety Act is currently on a subcommittee of Congress. If passed, the bill would make it illegal to pet tigers and exotic big cats.
Morgen says that when people in our communities have information about dangerous animals that are kept illegally, the people in our communities must report to keep our community and animals safe.
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