The privately run Shenyang Forest Wildlife Zoo in northeastern Liaoning province has been closed after a series of 11 Siberian tiger deaths in the previous few months.  These deaths were discovered to have been the result of starvation and malnutrition.

There is widespread outcry at the fact that the zoo remained open despite evidence suggesting that the animals were suffering at the hands of the very people who were meant to care for them.  While only an estimated 2o Siberian tigers survive in the wild, many have flourished in captivity.  This zoo, though is accused of exploiting the endangered animals for monetary gain.

There are widespread accusations that claim the tiger’s bones were being used to create tonics and wines believed to enhance virility and help cure certain diseases. These potions fetch hefty prices on the black market.  The zoo is accused of deliberately withholding food from the cats in order to harvest their bones and penises in order to profit from these brews.

Evidence of the tiger’s starvation can be seen in the last few stories that brought this zoo into the media spotlight.  Last November two tigers had to be shot when they mauled zoo keepers who were tossing food into their cages.  Prior to that a 2007 incident shocked wildlife officials when 4 tigers turned on another tiger with which they had lived peacefully for 5 years.  The four hungry animals ripped the leg off of the fifth tiger and desperately devoured the 12 year old cat.

It seems obvious then, that these animals have been suffering for some time, provoking questions as to why officials have let this continue.  The media reported an unnamed official who revealed that between 40 and 50 tigers have died since 2000 and that it was an “open secret” that the zoo was producing tiger bone wine.  This wine, he asserts, served as bribes for senior officials, such as the police and forestry commission explaining why, even with all this negative press, the zoo stayed open.

China banned trade in tiger bones and related products in 1993, and is a signatory to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), which also bars such sales.

Hopefully, this story will bring more scrutiny to other zoos which house the small number of remaining tigers.

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