No more ‘Tiger Kings’: Kansas reps should support proposal to protect big cats

The Netflix series “Tiger King” made one thing abundantly clear: It is far too easy for unqualified and careless people to acquire tigers and other big cats. Kansans have learned this lesson the hard way.

In 2005, a 550-pound tiger attacked and killed high-schooler Haley Hilderbrand while she was having her senior picture taken with the animal at a private menagerie in Mound Valley. The tiger was killed by law enforcement officers. The U.S. Department of Agriculture revoked the facility’s exhibitor license, and, to their credit, state legislators quickly passed Haley’s Law, banning public contact with big cats.

I have spent countless hours during multiple legislative sessions fighting the efforts of a few operators seeking to weaken Haley’s Law. Even before “Tiger King,” some Kansas roadside zoos were eager to cash in on the tiger cub petting craze, despite all its harms and dangers. Each attempt to bring tiger encounters back to Kansas forces those who loved Haley to relive the nightmare of her death.

There are profound animal welfare and public safety issues associated with using tigers and other big cats for interactions with the public. Responsible animal care professionals condemn the practice of prematurely removing a big cat cub from its mother, standard practice at all cub petting operations, because it compromises the well-being of both cub and mother. Big cats discarded after temporary use as photo props often end up spending the rest of their sad lives confined to small, flimsy cages where they suffer from neglect.

Even in these dismal contexts, however, these captive cats continue to pose a risk to the community. Law enforcement officials tasked with protecting the citizens of Kansas already face grave dangers every day, and they are the ones who must respond to incidents involving captive wild animals. This raises a fundamental question for all Kansans: Why should these brave men and women have to face something as perilous as an escaped tiger because weak laws allow such dangerous animals to be kept by unqualified individuals?

The tragic incident that led to Haley Hilderbrand’s death was not an isolated one in our state’s history. For years, Kansas law enforcement officials have been forced to respond to numerous incidents involving wild, unpredictable predators kept by irresponsible and unqualified persons. Sheriffs in Atchison and Thomas counties, for example, had to confiscate big cats from people who had no business keeping them, and law enforcement officials in Marion and Jefferson counties shot tigers running loose or on the verge of escaping from private menageries.

Thankfully, we are holding the line here, and Kansas legislators have so far rejected efforts to loosen restrictions on public handling of big cats. However, our federal legislators ought to be at the forefront of addressing this problem on a national level by supporting the Big Cat Public Safety Act in the House and the Senate. This measure would prohibit public contact with big cats and ban private individuals from keeping them as pets.

Kansans can help by contacting U.S. Sens. Jerry Moran and Pat Roberts to urge them to co-sponsor S. 2561, the Senate version of the Big Cat Public Safety Act. The House version of the bill, H.R. 1380, enjoys bipartisan support from 229 co-sponsors, including Rep. Sharice Davids, and there is a good reason for Kansas’ other U.S. representatives to sign on to it. Her name was Haley.

This story was originally published May 18, 2020 at 3:02 PM.