James Debono
The Bengal tiger found recently in a Mosta warehouse was bred in captivity in another EU member state, but no documents were presented to the authorities when the tiger entered Malta, MaltaToday has learnt.
“The Bengal tiger was imported from another member state, thus qualifying as intra-community trade,” a spokesperson for the Malta Environment and Planning Authority said.
But MEPA has refused to reveal the name of the person responsible of importing the three-month-old tiger into Malta.
EU law specifies that any movement of endangered animals requires the issuance of a certificate by the management authority of the member state where the specimen is located.
This certificate can only be granted when the competent scientific authority of the member state is satisfied that the intended accommodation for the animal at the place of destination, is adequately equipped to conserve and care for it properly. MEPA is also bound by international conventions to ensure adequate housing for the tiger.
According to experts in the field, the roof of a warehouse cannot by any stretch of imagination qualify as adequate housing for a Bengal tiger. Despite specific questions sent by this newspaper, MEPA refused to confirm whether it had issued the owner any permit to keep the tiger in a warehouse.
Animal Welfare director Mario Spiteri, who found the tiger in the warehouse, was more frank, saying the veterinary services was not informed when the animal reached Malta as required by law.
But according to Spiteri, the tiger’s owner possessed all the documentation on the animal’s lineage in captivity, the vaccines it had received, and that the tiger was well taken care of.
MEPA is still requesting further information and clarification from its counterparts in the EU state from which the tiger originated.
Experts contacted by MaltaToday confirmed it would be impossible for the owner to keep his tiger in a warehouse when it grows to maturity at two years of age. “The howl of a tiger on heat would be heard over the whole of Mosta. Not to mention the fact that a grown-up Bengal tiger can jump five metres in the air with its prey in its mouth.”
Grown-up tigers need to eat 30kg of meat a week and each tiger presides over a 20km radius. In the wild Bengal tigers are known to eat animals as huge as buffalos.
Apart from regulation of the trade in endangered animals, other EU countries also regulate the trade in dangerous animals. Under the Dangerous Wild Animal Act 1976, private owners of all animals deemed to be dangerous in the UK are required to buy an annual licence from their local authority. The authority inspects the owner’s premises, setting standards and confirming that the owner carries third party liability insurance for the animal.
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