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Stop Dangerous Big Cat Photo Encounters for Profit

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Sponsor: The Animal Rescue Site

Exploitation is violence. Big cats should not be passed around for photos, profit, or public entertainment.

Young lion cub looking through a chain-link fence with its mouth slightly open.

Big cats are not props. Lions, tigers, leopards, jaguars, cheetahs, cougars, snow leopards, clouded leopards, and their hybrids are powerful wild animals with complex physical and psychological needs.1

The Big Cat Public Safety Act was enacted in 2022 to restrict private possession of big cats and prohibit exhibitors from direct public contact, including contact with cubs.1 But public-contact schemes can survive when agencies allow vague definitions, weak oversight, or loopholes that rebrand paid encounters as education, volunteer activity, or supervised handling.

Cub Petting Creates a Profit Pipeline

Cub-petting and photo encounters create a financial reason to breed more animals. Cubs are marketable only for a short time, which can lead to early separation from mothers and a cycle of discard once they grow too large or dangerous for handling.3

Even young cubs can injure people. Direct contact also places animals under stress and can expose them to unsafe handling, excessive public interaction, and poor welfare conditions.5

USDA APHIS Has a Key Role

USDA APHIS administers and enforces the Animal Welfare Act for regulated exhibitors. Its Animal Care program conducts inspections, reviews welfare conditions, and makes compliance records available to the public through its Animal Care Search Tool.26

That authority matters. If exhibitors can still permit direct contact under alternate labels, big cats remain vulnerable. APHIS must make clear that paid cub encounters, photo sessions, bottle-feeding, and public handling are inconsistent with humane care and public safety.

Loopholes Must Be Closed

Animal welfare and legal advocates have warned that exceptions or weak definitions can reopen the door to contact-based entertainment.4 Accredited zoo standards already recognize the danger of tiger cub petting and photo sessions, while less protective programs have allowed cub encounters in some settings.5

USDA APHIS leaders must act with clarity. They should issue guidance, inspect for public-contact schemes, document violations, pursue enforcement, and prevent exhibitors from using loopholes to put big cats back into human hands.

Sign the petition to urge USDA APHIS to end public contact with big cats and close loopholes that allow cub-petting and photo encounters.

More on this issue:

  1. U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (18 April 2023), “What You Need to Know About the Big Cat Public Safety Act.”
  2. USDA APHIS, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (17 November 2025), “Animal Welfare Act Enforcement.”
  3. Animal Legal Defense Fund, Animal Legal Defense Fund (20 December 2022), “Big Cat Public Safety Act Federal.”
  4. Kitty Block and Sara Amundson, Humane World for Animals (2026), “This US Law Did Wonders to Protect Big Cats and Cubs Now It’s in Danger.”
  5. Tala M. DiBenedetto, Animal Legal & Historical Center (2020), “Detailed Discussion of Welfare Standards for Animals Used in Zoos and Exhibition.”
  6. USDA APHIS, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (17 November 2025), “USDA Animal Care Search Tool.”
  7. Brittany Peet, PETA Foundation (29 April 2020), “Petition for Emergency Rulemaking and/or an Interpretive Rule.”

The Petition

To the Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS),

I am writing to urge USDA APHIS to close loopholes that allow direct public contact with big cats, including cub-petting, paid photo encounters, bottle-feeding sessions, “volunteer” contact, and any other form of public handling used for entertainment or profit.

The Big Cat Public Safety Act made major progress by restricting private possession of big cats and prohibiting exhibitors from allowing public contact with these animals, including cubs. USDA APHIS also has an essential role under the Animal Welfare Act. Through inspections, compliance oversight, public records, and enforcement, APHIS can help ensure that regulated exhibitors do not evade the law through vague labels or weak contact policies.

Big cats are wild animals. They are not safe props for photos, social media content, or visitor experiences. Even cubs have teeth, claws, strength, and stress responses that make public handling dangerous for both the animals and the people involved. These encounters can also fuel a cycle of breeding, early separation, repeated handling, and discard once animals are too large to be used safely.

Humanity and compassion require more than minimum care after harm occurs. They require policies that prevent exploitation before it starts. No exhibitor should be allowed to profit from direct contact with lions, tigers, leopards, jaguars, cheetahs, cougars, snow leopards, clouded leopards, or their hybrids under the guise of education, training, volunteering, or supervised interaction.

I urge USDA APHIS to issue clear guidance that prohibits public-contact schemes involving big cats; inspect licensed exhibitors for any form of direct visitor handling; document violations in public compliance records; coordinate with federal partners where Big Cat Public Safety Act violations may exist; and pursue meaningful enforcement when facilities put animals or the public at risk.

These actions will protect captive big cats, support responsible facilities, help the public understand that wild animals do not belong in human hands, and ensure a better future for all.

Sincerely,

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