Eleven Rare Siberian Tigers Starve to Death in Chinese Zoo

[Lyric]

BEIJING - Eleven rare Siberian tigers kept in small cages and fed only chicken bones have died of malnutrition at a cash-strapped zoo in China's frigid northeast, state media said Friday.

A manager at the Shenyang Forest Wild Animal Zoo in Liaoning province, however, said the animals had died of disease.

Siberian tigers are one of the world's rarest species, with just 300 believed remaining in the wild.

Liu Xiaoqiang, vice chief of the Shenyang Wild Animal Protection Station, a local animal protection agency, was quoted by the China Daily as saying 11 of the zoo's tigers died of malnutrition in the last three months after subsisting on a meager diet of chicken bones.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35831930/

There are less than 300 Siberian Tigers left in the wild, and China lets THIRTEEN of them die--eleven starved to death, and two more were shot dead when, out of desperate hunger, they attacked a zookeeper. These idiots spent three months feeding them nothing but chicken bones, and all because the zoo was having financial problems. Why didn't they seek outside help?? Would they rather have the tigers dead than give them away to another zoo that could actually CARE for them?? If they were trying to save face by keeping their financial issues quiet, they failed in the worst possible way.

IMHO, countries with panda contracts should tell China that no pandas will be returned until China has proven that they can be TRUSTED to care for rare, endangered animals. There needs to be a comprehensive, international review of China's zoo regulations. This is not only a massive blow to conservation efforts, but it's a national and global disgrace.

Of course, China will likely profit handily from this. Tiger carcasses bring big bucks on the black market in Asia. Gee, how...coincidental.

:grr: :mad: :grr: :cry:

[LeftinOH]

1. The Panda 'no-return policy, unless' is a good idea. Furthermore, it's difficult

to believe that there was simply no food *anywhere* to feed them. Those tigers were being 'farmed' for the market value of their bones.

[Lyric]

3. It wouldn't surprise me at all.

Honestly, if affording food was the only problem, there are about ten gazillion conservation agencies that would have been GLAD to help buy them food.

:grr:

[MBS]

2. horrible story

LIke you said::grr: :mad: :grr: :cry:

[Tailormyst]

4. The truth is the bones are worth more to them then the living animals

I read somewhere that the bones of one are worth like a quarter million or some outrageous amount. They use it in traditional medicine.

[elehhhhna]

6. they make soup that's like viagra".

[BlueIris]

5. Sad. nt

[earth mom]

7. This absolutely breaks my heart.

:cry: :cry: :cry:

[Shell Beau]

8. I hate to hate on China, but they just don't give me a lot of choice here lately.

This is disgusting. So totally disgusting.

[queenjane]

9. Yet another reason to boycott Chinese-made merchandise

Their record on animals rights and treatment is horrendous. This is disgusting and unforgiveable, but doesn't surprise me in the least. I now check everything I'm thinking of buying for country of origin; if it's made in China, back on the shelf it goes. Fortunately, I'm able to buy most of my clothes at secondhand shops, and I take care of things so carefully I don't have to replace them often. I just refuse to give these animal torturers any of my money.

[closeupready]

10. Been doing that for years. I'll even try to do without a certain product, if

most or all of them are made in China.

[brentspeak]

11. Agreed -- no pandas to China