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Cuteness Has a Cost for the Liliger The "liliger" cubs at The Garold Wayne Interactive Zoological Park in Wynnewood, Oklahoma have been getting a lot of online attention this week, and who can blame the Internet for noticing? It's impossible to look into the eyes of that fuzzy, wide-eyed infantile feline without your heart getting all melty. Amidst a news feed rife with stories of injustice, abuse, exploitation —every social justice blog needs the occasional cute animal story to lighten the mood and remind us that the world can still be a fluffy, adorable place. However, in the case of the liliger cub, there's a much darker story than meets the enamored eye. For many readers and spectators, analysis of the liliger story begins and ends at "OMG." As a feminist, a long-time reader of Jezebel, and a wildcat advocate, I'd like to present readers with a wider-lens perspective into the case of the liliger cubs. The liliger cubs at G.W. Interactive Zoological Park are the newest invention of a man who goes by many names, but is most commonly known as Joe Exotic. Joe Exotic is a notorious douchebag who has been repeatedly exposed for his abuse and exploitation of big cats. He operates a seedy, unaccredited roadside zoo with over 1,400 animals crammed into a 16-acre lot in Oklahoma. He profits from these cats by constantly breeding tiger cubs, who are torn from their mothers shortly after they’re born, then carted around to shopping malls where people can pay admission for a photo opportunity and a cheesy magic show. Once the tigers reach 12 weeks of age, they are sold off, or condemned to a pathetic life in a tiny cage. Joe is an infamous turd who has been sued by the USDA and cited repeatedly for animal abuse. He also fancies himself a country singer, crooning about big cats with musical productions that would make Rebecca Black roll her eyes. Just look at this guy. So, Joe Exotic gets the brilliant idea to breed a new kind of big cat to cart mall-to-mall to bring in some bonus bucks, and out of his pea brain pops the idea of the liliger. To explain the circumstance of the liliger, let’s start with its predecessor, the liger. A liger is a manmade creature created from a male lion and a female tiger for purposes of entertainment and commercial profit. Ligers are exhibited solely at unaccredited roadside zoos, and the breeding of ligers is not sanctioned by the AZA or any reputable conservation organization. Being bred using two different species from different continents, ligers could never exist in nature and thus have no conservational value (as is often suggested by exhibitors). Hybridizing such distinct species greatly reduces the genetic fitness of the offspring, resulting in a number of extremely maladaptive characteristics. Ligers experience genetic abnormalities, neurological defects, emotional instability, and a markedly early death. Tiger mothers often die in labor due to the unnatural size of the cub. The list goes on and on. "Liliger" is a new name coined by Joe Exotic to describe three hybrid cubs being kept at his Oklahoma exotic animal park. These cubs are bred from a liger and a lion, resulting in a cat that is three quarters lion and one quarter tiger. Only time will tell what genetic problems will face this experimental hybrid, but one thing is clear: after their youth is used up for “pay to play” experiences in shopping malls, they will languish in a cage at a roadside zoo, confined in conditions that aren’t natural to even an unnatural being. It isn’t enough to gawk at the liliger cub without acknowledging the implications and fate of this newly created creature. Roadside zoos and other commercial profiteers of exotic wildlife rely entirely on the “OMG” factor to generate recognition and revenue. When the story ends at “OH MY GOD THEY'RE SO CUTE,” we miss the true nature of this industry, which is to capitalize on the captivity and exploitation of the very animals that make us "squee." So, Joe Exotic gets the brilliant idea to breed a new kind of big cat to cart mall-to-mall to bring in some bonus bucks, and out of his pea brain pops the idea of the liliger. To explain the circumstance of the liliger, let’s start with its predecessor, the liger. A liger is a manmade creature created from a male lion and a female tiger for purposes of entertainment and commercial profit. Ligers are exhibited solely at unaccredited roadside zoos, and the breeding of ligers is not sanctioned by the AZA or any reputable conservation organization. Being bred using two different species from different continents, ligers could never exist in nature and thus have no conservational value (as is often suggested by exhibitors). Hybridizing such distinct species greatly reduces the genetic fitness of the offspring, resulting in a number of extremely maladaptive characteristics. Ligers experience genetic abnormalities, neurological defects, emotional instability, and a markedly early death. Tiger mothers often die in labor due to the unnatural size of the cub. The list goes on and on. "Liliger" is a new name coined by Joe Exotic to describe three hybrid cubs being kept at his Oklahoma exotic animal park. These cubs are bred from a liger and a lion, resulting in a cat that is three quarters lion and one quarter tiger. Only time will tell what genetic problems will face this experimental hybrid, but one thing is clear: after their youth is used up for “pay to play” experiences in shopping malls, they will languish in a cage at a roadside zoo, confined in conditions that aren’t natural to even an unnatural being. It isn’t enough to gawk at the liliger cub without acknowledging the implications and fate of this newly created creature. Roadside zoos and other commercial profiteers of exotic wildlife rely entirely on the “OMG” factor to generate recognition and revenue. When the story ends at “OH MY GOD THEY'RE SO CUTE,” we miss the true nature of this industry, which is to capitalize on the captivity and exploitation of the very animals that make us "squee." Hannah Shaw is Executive Director of Rock to the Rescue. Daughter of Tommy Shaw, Hannah has been directing Styx‘s charitable efforts since Spring 2012, when she developed an on-the-road support team for communities across the country. CommentsComments are closed.
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