Thai 'Tiger Temple' blames government for deaths of rescued tigers

 

FILE PHOTO: A sedated tiger is seen in a cage as officials start moving tigers from Thailand's controversial Tiger Temple, a popular tourist destination which has come under fire in recent years over the welfare of its big cats in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, May 30, 2016. REUTERS/Chaiwat Subprasom

 

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand's much-criticized Tiger Temple tourist attraction on Monday blamed the government for the deaths of scores of its tigers seized by authorities in 2016, denying official accounts that the big cats died from inbreeding and disease.

 

The Buddhist temple west of Bangkok was once a tourist hotspot where visitors took photos with tigers and bottle-fed cubs until international pressure over wildlife trafficking prompted authorities to confiscate 147 tigers in 2016.

 

Since then, however, 86 of the animals living in two state-run wildlife sanctuaries have died due to immune deficiencies from inbreeding, which made the animals vulnerable to deadly diseases, state wildlife authorities said.

 

The temple's caretaker denied this on Monday. "They did not die because of inbreeding," Athithat Srimanee told Reuters.

 

"When they raided the temple three years ago, they did not say anything about infection, so this is just a blame game," he said, accusing the authorities of locking up the animals in small cages.

 

"At the temple, despite our lack of academic knowledge, we used kindness so the tigers lived in wide spaces and not in cages."

 

Despite the 2016 raid and allegations that it had links with wildlife trafficking, the temple - officially named Wat Pa Luang Ta Bua - remains a tourist attraction as a private wildlife sanctuary that allows people to feed animals for free. It has denied any connection with animal trafficking.

 

Currently, there are 400 deer, more than 300 peacocks, a lion and several other animals under its care legally.

 

Thai authorities maintained on Monday that the tigers were well taken care of at government sanctuaries and that they caught diseases like canine distemper virus or laryngeal paralysis because inbreeding had destroyed their immune system.

 

"There were six tigers (originally at the temple) and later that became 147 or even more, so there were always the risks and also we found that their health were not good to begin with," Pattarapol Maneeorn, a wildlife veterinarian for the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation said Monday.

 

"Their genetics have made their body weak and susceptible to the risk of infection," he told a news conference.

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2019-09-16

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Some people are in need of exercising detachment... (of tigers, lies and money)

1 hour ago, oldhippy said:

Some people are in need of exercising detachment... (of tigers, lies and money)

Money being the only care required, of  course their initial "saving the tigers"  hogwash is irrelevant.

1 hour ago, snoop1130 said:

"Their genetics have made their body weak and susceptible to the risk of infection,"

Best grind up the bones and sell them to China then? oh wait!!!!

And all the remains of dead tigers at the temple were planted there to make them look bad.

 

 

Pimped to death...not surprising...

Plenty of foot rugs to be sold,

the whole saga has been a despicable blight on Thailands 

lack of QA QC, on animal welfare,

2 hours ago, leeneeds said:

on animal welfare,

Only have to  look at the state of  many  dogs to see that.

How many tigers were shipped as meat from the tiger temple? Amazing hypocrisy at play here.

Thainess is implemented, looking to blame someone else.

Let's not forget they 'holy-than-thou finger pointing temple" were breeding Tigers for the explicit purpose of then killing them, and then selling their skin and body parts for profit. Not to mention the smuggling, and also drugging for tourist purposes. They're a nasty, nasty group of individuals.

12 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

Thailand's much-criticized Tiger Temple tourist attraction on Monday blamed the government for the deaths of scores of its tigers seized by authorities in 2016, denying official accounts that the big cats died from inbreeding and disease.

A bit like the kettle calling the pot black....

I'm sure the temple will say they were doing just fine drugged up to the eyeballs for the amusement of tourists.

Shameful.

The whole sorry saga has been shameful.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-49712765

Front page on their website this morning.

10 hours ago, Chazar said:

Best grind up the bones and sell them to China then? oh wait!!!!

My thoughts as well. Body parts from dead tigers covertly sold to China!

I am beginning to realise, after living here, that this country is filled with liars and blamers of other people. Such weak little souls, the people here dont have the maturity to say, I fcked up, help me not do the same again and how can I repair the damage with your help.

Oh dear this would take another two hundred years, we still have to get through Thailand 4.0?

 

all the endangered species in the temple were micro-chipped. Three male tigers vanished from there, with chips being cut out by the vet. So there is no chance they were traded in any way on a large scale.

 

after over 3 years of investigation there are only allegations of trafficking and selling body parts, no proof, arrests or prosecution.

 

those 40 dead cubs in the freezer were gathered over 5 years and were part of a project of opening a tiger museum. 

 

the fact is - in the temple they multiplied from the original 7 tigers to 147 just in 10 years. In the state custody 86 died (survived 61) just in 3 years.

 

in the temple they had space, enclosures, good food and veterinarian care. Government gave them only cages and poor food.

 

 

 

CDV ugh !!!
1 . Impossible as Tigers are feline not canine
2. Typical Lies to cover up 'I don't Know' how to care for these or other animals
When will this brilliant countries organisations accept they do not know things & ask for assistance from outside the country from those that do.
Example could have asked Either Myanmar or India
Mei Phen Rai has to go it's old fashioned outdated attitudes like using that phrase that hold back EVERYTHING THIS COUNTRY TRIES TO ACHIEVE
Get in the real world folks i'ts 2019
Start to take care & be proud to say I don't understand please explain 
then & only then can we all move forward & become great again.

54 minutes ago, londonthai said:

all the endangered species in the temple were micro-chipped. Three male tigers vanished from there, with chips being cut out by the vet. So there is no chance they were traded in any way on a large scale.

 

after over 3 years of investigation there are only allegations of trafficking and selling body parts, no proof, arrests or prosecution.

 

those 40 dead cubs in the freezer were gathered over 5 years and were part of a project of opening a tiger museum. 

 

the fact is - in the temple they multiplied from the original 7 tigers to 147 just in 10 years. In the state custody 86 died (survived 61) just in 3 years.

 

in the temple they had space, enclosures, good food and veterinarian care. Government gave them only cages and poor food.

 

 

 

Are you being serious?

 

Whilst these "attractions" are mostly geared towards Asian tourists, it's amazing how many fanangs visit these places for a photo op.  They genuinely have no idea of the suffering these creatures endure  for that photo.   The least education on the topic would keep farang away in their droves.  Not sufficient to derail demand completely, but a start.   Wouldn't take much goverment funding from various countries to run Facebook campaigns.

1 hour ago, Saint Nick said:

Are you being serious?

 

yes, and I have facts and arguments, which I put above

   Here is the New York Times' reportage on the story, in its emailed Tuesday Briefing (2019-09-17):

 

Thailand: Eighty-six of the 147 tigers seized three years ago from a Buddhist compound over concerns of maltreatment have died in the government’s care, officials said. The main cause was laryngeal paralysis, according to the Department of National Parks. Activists said the deaths could have been prevented.

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/16/world/asia/tiger-temple-deaths-thailand.html 

I was going to ask the same question but you beat me to it

There is a law in Thailand against animal cruelty .

Putting big tigers in small cages where they can not move or ev en turn at all is clearly such a case .

Thai government should be sued for acting against it's own law .

 

 

 

BtW ... There should be no more Zoo's or " tiger temples " , but wildlife sanctuaries where these beautiful animals can live a life that is worth living it .

What pleasure people can get from looking at caged in animals who suffer ...?

I once went to the Zoo in Chiang Mai ... never again ...! I do not like to see innocent creatures tortured .

 

Edited September 17, 20196 yr by nobodysfriend

I saw this same report in Canada, on Saturday night.  The people at the temple have denied all responsibility and passed the blame on to others which is a common trait among Thais.  This tragic event could have been avoided if the "keepers" had asked for it because they probably knew about it but now go into denial mode in order to look as if they were just watching over the creatures instead of rehabilitating them and releasing them into the wild so that their population could increase, unless "high profiled" people decided to kill and eat them or remove certain parts and sell them for Traditional Chinese/Thai medicine.  No sense adding more as it is an intricate and convoluted subject. 

'nuf sed.

Edited September 17, 20196 yr by wotsdermatter
added info

I see on of the Giant Pandas loaned by China has also died. The Chinese are up in arms about it.

here are 3 posts on fb from the funder of Elephants Home and Nature kraal in kanchanaburi.  In english and thai. 

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=2420432888276198&id=100009285305616 

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=2422642768055210&id=100009285305616
https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=2424006867918800&id=100009285305616

 

her place is close to the tiger temple and from there comes info which I have posted earlier.

 

In the Tiger Temple live for 10 years couple of australians. They were taking care of tigers, including running volunteers project. They still take care of hundreds of animals not confiscated by authorities.

 

the next year new project with 24 tigers will open at the same place, since february 2018 they have licence to run safari, but there are still some formal obstacles.

 

those people have fist hand info and are glad to share it, especially with journos

https://www.facebook.com/julianne.chisholm.5
https://www.facebook.com/tom.gatehouse.52