Most people have at least heard of the Netflix show Tiger King by now, even if you have not seen it yet. The show had the promise to open the world’s eyes to a number of important issues within the captive big cat world, including; exotic pet trade worldwide, not just in the USA; illegal wildlife trafficking (1); illegal breeding and trading; hybrids; behind the scenes abuse and mistreatment; what actually makes a “good zoo or sanctuary” (2)(3)(5)...I could go on...

They could have shed light on how individuals such as the now famous Joe Exotic and "Doc" Antle treat big cats within their "sanctuary" or "zoo" facilities, often using conservation as their justification for their operations (6)(10). Or on how this kind of treatment has been impacting and will continue to impact negatively on individual big cats' welfare, as well as the wider populations of big cats across the globe (7)(9)(11). For example, the show barely mentions the fact the Tiger (Panthera tigris) is currently marked as endangered on IUCN Red List, with a decreasing population trend (9). Instead, the show focused on the dramatic affairs of the individuals it followed, in what felt more like a reality TV show than a documentary, rather than touching on the important big cat welfare topics you would expect such a show to touch upon. As put by several critics of the show, "the popular Netflix series and its directors lost sight of the conservation and animal welfare problems at the heart of the story of Joe Exotic" (3)(5).

Having seen and read a number of "Free Joe Exotic" and "F**k Carol Baskin" social media posts, videos, memes and even petitions floating around on the internet, it seems some viewers may have completely missed the underlying, barely touched upon fact that the numerous species (not just the big cats) captured during the documentary within the "sanctuaries" and "zoos" will have had compromised welfare to varied degrees, at the very least (8). I feel Netflix needs to do their bit to ensure the show that has had such a huge audience (the show reached over 34 million views within the first 10 days of release (4)) uses that power to provide facts on the issues that created the possibility for such a show to exist.

I feel that Netflix is doing big cats worldwide an injustice by not, at the very least, providing background information on what conservation efforts are being carried out by accredited organisations and protection agencies to try and protect the various big cat species. Big cat welfare scientists could be asked to help educate viewers by shedding light on issues that, could have been highlighted effectively in Tiger King, but in short, were not even mentioned. 

Netflix could create a ‘prequal´ episode on what is really going on the big cat conservation world, and help paint the bigger picture to ‘Tiger King’ viewers. At the very minimum, put a simple short video at the beginning of each episode outlining what creditable organisations are doing to try and curb petting of cubs, illegal trading of big cats and the conservation efforts with wild populations and the struggles they face (12). This would help to ensure that viewers at least have a basic picture of what big cats are really up against.

With wildlife trading and animal welfare trending on social media and in the media due to our current situation with Covid-19, it is important to ensure that viewers are empowered with the whole story, not just the few dramatised facts that make for good TV (9). 

If you agree with me, please, sign the petition, share with friends and family to spread the word, so we can try and get Netflix to do its part to educate the world on the important facts that this show fails to highlight to its' viewers.

References:

(1) Actman, J., 2019. Exotic pet trade, explained. Available at: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/reference/exotic-pet-trade/ [Accessed April 17, 2020].

(2) Newer, R., 2020. Why ´Tiger King´ Is Not ´Blackfish´for Big Cats.  Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/09/science/tiger-king-joe-exotic-conservation.html [Accessed April 17, 2020].

(3) Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries, 2020. Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries. Available at: https://www.sanctuaryfederation.org/ [Accessed April 16, 2020].

(4) Shapiro, A., 2020. 34 Million People Watched ´Tiger King´In Its First Ten Days On Netflix. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/arielshapiro/2020/04/08/34-million-people-watched-tiger-king-in-its-first-10-days-on-netflix/#65df23c72a9a [Accessed April 16, 2020].

(5) Bale, R., 2020. Key facts that 'Tiger King' missed about captive tigers. Available at: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/2020/03/captive-tigers-joe-exotic-tiger-king/[Accessed April 16, 2020].

(6) Humane Society of The United States, 2020. What “Tiger King” didn’t reveal: Animal abuse and an extensive network of breeding and selling tigers led by Joe Exotic and “Doc” Antle. [Press Release]. Available at: https://www.humanesociety.org/news/what-tiger-king-didnt-reveal-animal-abuse-and-extensive-network-breeding-and-selling-tigers [Accessed April 16, 2020].

(7) Henry, L., n.d. Visiting a tiger farm in Southeast Asia-and what such places mean for wild tigers. Available at: https://www.worldwildlife.org/stories/visiting-a-tiger-farm-in-southeast-asia-and-what-such-places-mean-for-wild-tigers [Accessed April 16]

(8) Smith, Z., 2020. A Conservationist’s Guide to “Tiger King”: Keep Wildlife in the Wild. Available at: https://www.ecowatch.com/conservationists-guide-to-tiger-king-2645637392.html?rebelltitem=4#rebelltitem4 [Accessed April 16]

(9) Goodrich, J et al., 2015. Panthera tigris. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2015: e.T15955A50659951. Available at: https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/15955/50659951 [Accessed April 16, 2020].

(10) Carr, N. & Cohen, S., 2011. The Public Face of Zoos: Images of Entertainment, Education and Conservation. Anthrozoös, 24:2, 175-189, DOI: 10.2752/175303711X12998632257620

(11) Cohen, E., (Professor Emeritus), 2012. Tiger Tourism: From Shooting to Petting, Tourism Recreation Research. 37:3, 193-204, DOI: 10.1080/02508281.2012.11081708

(12) Vaidyanathan, G., 2019. India’s tigers seem to be a massive success story — many scientists aren’t sure. Nature.  574, 612-616 (2019) DOI: 10.1038/d41586-019-03267-z

Photo credit: © Marc Anderson