On Friday the DNP opened the doors of the Khao Pratap Chang facility to the media, following the recent reports of 86 of the Tiger Temple tigers that have died since they were confiscated in 2016. Whilst the exact cause of the tiger’s deaths has not been confirmed, the DNP have now noted that there is no proof that the sickness originated from the Temple.
A representative of For Tigers was present during the short tour of the facility, which showed the media the living conditions of the tigers – the cages, the For Tiger’s enclosures and new enclosures funded by the government. However, the day started off with a gruesome and sad display. The Abbot of the Temple recently implied that the DNP may have sold tiger parts into the trade – to prove otherwise, the DNP felt compelled to show the media the body of a tiger.
The tigers that died were stored in barrels of formaldehyde to preserve the carcass.
One tiger, Payu, was shown in his dismembered state, but with all of his body parts present. This was obviously very hard for us to see, having known him most of his life. Payu was a big softy, very friendly and sneaky smart as he managed to unbolt gates. As we could see from the barrel, we could see that he had passed away in August this year. Whilst we did document the event yesterday, we have chosen not to publish the photo of his body out of respect for him. R.I.P Payu all of the other Temple tigers who have passed.
Once all the legalities have been completed, the DNP will incinerate the carcasses in accordance with Thai
Whilst this whole situation is incredibly sad, we choose to focus on the future and the 61 tigers that are still alive. We remained committed to fundraising to provide direct aid for these tigers to improve their quality of life through cage upgrades and providing enrichment items. Please consider a donation today to help us with our work in helping the remaining Temple tigers have better days. No donation is too small. Thank you.
Comments