10 October 2003

Can a tiger ever make a good pet?

'Even if it's been brought up in captivity, [a tiger has] still got its wild instinct to a certain extent,' says Adam Woodward, team leader of the carnivore section at Chester Zoo. 'It still needs to make a territory and_ they aren't animals to become pets.' And it's not as if the tiger needs to be feeling aggressive to do any damage. 'If it plays with you it can kill you,' says Miranda Stevenson, director of the British Federation of Zoos.

To keep a tiger as a pet, you need permission from your local authority under the Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976. You're unlikely to get it, but if you do, good luck.



Some people have no ambition. The Green Man dreams of a pet elephant.

No comments: