Are 20,000 Big Cats Caged in the U.S.? Highly Unlikely.

 Are 20,000 Big Cats Caged in the U.S.?  Highly Unlikely

For as many years as I've been working with animals, I've heard the statistic about how many big cats are kept hidden in various corners of the country.  At times, I've heard it said that there were more tigers in Texas than there were in India.  Heck, I've probably used that stat myself in a keeper talk.  Is the initial source of the statement correct?  Hard to say... but a new study seems to suggest that we aren't as likely to be overrun by rogue lions and leopards as one might suspect.

(Also, for what it's worth, I've been hearing the stats about the number of big cats for many years.  It's entirely possible that there were historically a lot more privately kept big cats decades ago before regulations - such as the Big Cat Public Safety Act - made the ownership of pet big cats in backyards much less common).