Anybody know of someone raising Tigers in SA and possibly planning on releasing them?

Seems a bit far fetched to me. But someone on a FB page thinks it is about to happen.

Thanks,

John

I'm going from memory here, but I think one of the Ratray family were involved in a breeding programme with a chinese(?) woman and if I remember correctly the idea is the tigers live in a largeish area and hunt for themselves and cubs will be returned to the wild (not in Africa).

I also seem to remember there was some kind of disagreement and the whole thing went to court but don't remember what happened in the end.

I'm sure someone here will give us the low down though.

I've heard rumors of tigers in South Africa for at least thirty years.

Bill Quimby

Bill,

There's been back yard breeding and occasional shooting for donkey's years. I remember being offered some back in about 92 or so, but the thing I was referring to was a proper breeding programme backed by at least one Governemnt with the intention of returning the cubs either back into the wild in the country of origin or back to zoos in the country of origin.

One of the TV companies made at least one documentary on the subject and I remember seeing them training the adults to hunt and the celebrations when they finally managed their first kill........... Which, if I remember correctly, was a blesbok and it was caught by 2 the tiger and tigress pretty much at the same moment.

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with a chinese(?) woman

I wonderw what an Indian tiger crossed with a Chinese woman would look like?

I guess I could have phrased that better huh?

Maybe a take away with bite!

The Varty family where doing/ are doiing it close to Philipolis in the Freestate of South Africa. It is on a large private resreve bordering one of the rivers there (Andrew might be more familiar with the area), and there was a documentary on it a while back.

Thanks Karl,

Glad my memory hasn't crapped out completely, but sorry I thought it was a Rattray instead of a Varty!

Now I know it's a Varty...... here you go:

http://www.jvbigcats.co.za/

http://www.philippolisinfo.co.za/tigers.htm

When in the Eastern Cape, we visitied a "lion farm" and they had tigers as well. At the time, I thought it was great that they were raising lions. Little did I know where they were headed with the lions.

A couple of years ago there was a National Geographic program about two guys teaching tigers how to survive in the wild and it took place it RSA.. These were big cats (tigers)and they had a herd of blesbok and they ran thru the tigers or I should say tried too... After the dust settled there were around 4 or 5 dead antelope... There was great videography and the tigers in action was something to see...

Mike

When I was in the Eastern Cape, a PH I was hunting with took me in a skinning shed and dug around in a salt pile and pulled out a skin, flipping it over, he asked me, "know what this is?" It was obvious it was a bangel tiger. The hunter from somewhere in Europe had come in with a pile of cash and had shot a pile of exceptional trophies. I wasn't impressed.

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:

quote:

with a chinese(?) woman

I wonderw what an Indian tiger crossed with a Chinese woman would look like?

I can hear her say to the tiger "don't bite so hard in my neck as you do to the tiger females"

She uses rhino horn aswell

I saw only the tail end of the documentary that Karl refers to. Ed Hern of the Lion & Rhino Park near Muldersdrift in the "Cradle of Mankind" area has the biggest, by far, tiger that I've ever seen. Cuddles, that is his name, is of a monster size! I think they use, or did use, him for breeding. What happens(ed) to the offspring is anyones' guess, but a few ending up in a canned shooting event is quite probable!

In good hunting