Maze of ownership rules

A dizzying array of federal, state and local laws regulate who can and cannot possess exotic animals like tigers. The Endangered Species Act makes it illegal to possess, sell or buy an endangered animal like a Bengal tiger. Except many of the tigers in the United States are "generic," or mixed breeds like Bobo, and can be legally bred and possessed. The Lacey Act provides for prosecution of those who possess animals illegally obtained in a foreign country or another state.

But with thousands of breeders in America , no one needs to cross a U.S. or state border to own a tiger. State laws vary, with 13 states banning private ownership altogether; seven, including Florida, having a partial ban; 14 requiring a license or permit and 16 having no permit requirements at all.

Thus, in most states, "You only need a license if you're dealing, breeding, exhibiting or conducting medical research," says Howard, the captive wildlife specialist. "Unless there's a municipal or state law prohibiting that, you're home free."

The USDA issues licenses to people who buy exotic animals with the intent to sell, or for exhibitors such as zoos and circuses. "You have to fill out an application, pay a fee and pass a prelicense inspection," says USDA spokesman Jim Rogers. "We come out, look at your facility to see if you're in compliance.... With Bobo or that guy in N ew York with a tiger in his apartment, we have no authority."

Florida does have authority. It passed a law in 1980 that outlaws the possession of tigers and 21 other exotic animals as pets. Yet, wildlife activists say the state and federal requirements are easily dodged.

"All you need is 40 bucks in your pocket to get a USDA license," says Lewis, of Tampa 's Big Cat Rescue. She says getting around the state law is equally simple. " Florida is known nationwide for having the toughest laws," Lewis says. "It went from $5 to $150 for a permit to have a tiger. All you have to do is say you're an educator, a breeder, or you're open to the public like a zoo. Anything except, 'I want the tiger as a pet.' "

You also must have 5 acres of land, a perimeter fence and 1,000 hours of experience handling the species you want to be licensed for, says Willie Puz, spokesman for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, which is charged with enforcing the law.

"You can have your mother or brother write the letter," Lewis says. "It's a giant loophole."

Three years ago, Carol Asvestas , operator of the Wild Animal Orphanage in San Antonio , had 25 big cats in her compound. N ow she has 200, including the cats from the N ew Jersey woman who kept them in her back yard. "I have animals that have bitten children, bitten models in photo shoots, that have gotten loose," she says. "Most of the states and counties are faced with such a huge crisis with displaced exotics, that they have nowhere to put the animals. So they're not enforcing the laws."

What's needed, animal experts say, is a federal law that prohibits the possession of exotic animals like tigers and the money and manpower to enforce it.

"We've been screaming at the top of our lungs that we need a federal law," says Asvestas. "You can't allow people to have these animals, whether they're operating a sanctuary or not. This problem is absolutely going to be devastating in the next five years unless a government entity has got the guts to stand up, put their foot down and say this is not going to continue to happen."

mark_schwed@pbpost.com

ht tp://www.palmbeachpost.com/localnews/content/auto/

epaper/editions/sunday/local_news_049f8ea 0417d2190000b.html

Dear Mark

I just wanted to thank you for writing such a well informed article. So much of the drivel that has been posted about "Tarzan's Tiger" missed the point. The bigger issue of how little this industry is regulated, despite the illusion of being governed, is the important story and you covered it well. It was obvious that you really dug beneath the surface and found the discrepancies in the way things really are, vs the way the public thinks they are. It is this sort of wake up call that educates people and I appreciate you doing your part to inform the public about these issues that are important from a safety standpoint as much as from a compassionate perspective. If you are ever in Tampa , feel free to give me a call on the cell and I will give you a behind the scenes tour of the result of so many people making ill informed decisions.

Posted on Tue, Oct. 26, 2004

No charges filed against Tarzan actor in escaped tiger case

Associated Press

WEST PALM BEACH , Fla. - Prosecutors have decided not to charge a former Tarzan actor in the escape of a 600-pound tiger last July.

A Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officer shot and killed the tiger July 13 after the big cat allegedly lunged at him following a 26-hour hunt for his capture.

Commission investigators had filed a probable cause affidavit charging Steve Sipek with allowing captive wildlife to escape and causing a threat to the public.

But prosecutors filed a court document Monday saying it was unable to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Sipek negligently left his tiger in an unsafe situation which allowed it to escape, The Miami Herald reported.

The state also couldn't disprove Sipek's allegation that a third party let the tiger out of the compound, Palm Beach County Assistant State Attorney Paul Zacks wrote in the document.

Sipek, who played Tarzan in B-movies decades ago, lives with five other big cats in a compound about 10 miles west of West Palm Beach .

Information from: The Miami Herald, http://www.herald.com

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/state/10021505.htm?1c

Shooting of escaped tiger justified agency says in report

Posted on Mon, Jul. 26, 2004 Herald Staff Report

A state wildlife officers issued a report today that concluded an officer used sound judgment and complied with the agency's procedures when he fatally wounded an escaped Bengal tiger named Bobo on July 13 in Loxahatchee.

After the death of the escaped, 600-pound tiger, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission received so many death threats that employees who were not sworn officers were urged not to wear their uniforms.

The incident set off public outcry from people who are calling the shooting ''murder,'' including the tiger's owner, former Tarzan actor Steve Sipek.

The critical incident review issued today was described by the agency as a routine measure to determine if an officer followed agency protocol during a high-profile event and whether the FWC should change current policies.

According to the news release from agency spokesman Willie Puz, ``The tiger escaped from its compound at Loxahatchee July 12, and remained at large for 26 hours before FWC officers moved into position to tranquilize the highly agitated and disoriented cat. Three previous encounters with the escaped animal failed to return it safely to its owner, despite the owner's attempts to calm the tiger.

'On the fourth attempt, the tiger lunged toward an FWC officer while the tranquilizer team sped to the scene, and the officer fired five rounds to end the threat to himself and other officers at the scene. `` `People have second-guessed the officer from an emotional vantage point,' said FWC Capt. John West. `But place yourself in the officer's position. You're face to face with a 600-pound tiger. The cat is hungry, disoriented and agitated. The tiger turns to you, pins its ears back, bares its teeth and moves toward you. You have a fraction of a second to decide what action to take. What would you do?'

``In a similar situation at the Knoxville Zoo in 1974, an escaped tiger killed a veterinarian, even after the veterinarian had hit the cat with a tranquilizer dart. Tranquilizer darts, even with the appropriate dosage and a direct hit, take a minute or more to take effect on an animal that can break a human's neck with one swipe of its paws.

' `There should be no mistake about these large, carnivorous predators,' said Lt. Col. Don Holway, deputy director of the FWC Division of Law Enforcement. 'These are not pets that can be treated like a house cat. These are dangerous animals, capable of killing a human. They do not have control over their innate, basic instincts. This should be clearly obvious in light of the documented attacks that have occurred.' ''

The incidents listed by the agency in its report include:

. Orlando -- In 1977, a female lion cub was seized from an unlicensed individual and turned over to a permitted handler in the Orlando area. Three years later the same lion attacked and killed the handler, while the handler fed the animal.

. Miami -- In 1993, a zookeeper entered the paddock area of an exhibit thinking he had secured all the animals. A tiger appeared from the moat area, about 50-60 feet away. The keeper attempted to retreat to safety, however, the tiger quickly closed distance and attacked the man, resulting in his instant death.

. Webster -- In 1996, an FWC officer saved a man from an attack by a tiger. The tiger had pounced on the man, in a paddock area, knocking him to the ground and critically injuring him. The man remained still and the tiger left him on the ground while it paced 20 feet away. The tiger occasionally moved to the man and pawed at him. The officer, armed with only his service pistol, maneuvered a vehicle between the two and successfully rescued the handler.

. Alachua -- In 1998, while attempting to maintain control of a tiger, an assistant slipped and fell. The tiger attacked and killed the man.

. Alachua -- One month later, the same tiger attacked and killed the owner. She had raised the tiger since birth.

. Bushnell -- In 2001, a tiger attacked and killed a maintenance worker who was completing repairs on an adjoining cage. The animal lunged at a small hole in the chain link separating the two areas. This tore the fencing open and allowed the tiger to gain access to the area where the man was working.

The agency's statement continued:

``Meanwhile, a criminal investigation into conditions that led to the tiger's escape from its compound still is in progress to determine whether the cat's owner was negligent in keeping the animal in unsafe conditions. Investigators will turn their findings over to the State Attorney's Office for review.

``This was the third time dangerous large cats have escaped from the compound owned by Steve Sipek. On the two previous occasions, the state wildlife agency managed to return the escaped animals safely. ``In another incident the same tiger attacked a woman and crushed her skull inside Sipek's compound. The victim survived. Sipek is one of three people in Florida who have permits to possess extremely dangerous cats as personal pets. The FWC no longer issues such permits but allows current permit holders to retain their pets.''

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/ 9247745.htm?1c

Rules followed in tiger's death, inquiry finds

By Akilah Johnson

Staff Writer

Posted July 27 2004

The officer who shot and killed Bobo waited more than 20 minutes for backup officers equipped with tranquilizer guns before he opened fire on the nearly 600-pound tiger that escaped from a former Tarzan actor's home, a preliminary state investigation concluded Monday.

During that time, Officer Jesse C. Lee told investigators that he worried that surrounding noises -- his radio, a hovering helicopter and loud passers-by -- were upsetting the tiger, which began to roar, pinned his ears back and show his teeth.

He asked the team to hurry but was forced to shoot the cat twice in the head before backup arrived.

State investigators determined that Lee, whose name had been previously withheld because of death threats, acted "in good faith" and complied with agency use of force standards in the July 13 shooting.

Still, the investigation revealed there were several factors that contributed to the outcome. One was the delay in getting the tranquilizer team on the scene. The second was Lee's lack of training in dealing with what the state classifies as "dangerous species." And the third was Lee's proximity to the animal, which the report determined was too close.

Bobo's owner, Steve Sipek, doesn't believe the report.

"The lying continues. It just never stops," Sipek said. "Jesse Lee was trigger happy, had no common sense and had no reason to go near that tiger. He just freaked out and started shooting."

Lee, 24, has been a Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission officer since April 2002. He is a member of the special operations group, skilled in such things as close quarters combat, man tracking and land navigation, according to wildlife officials. The group is a quasi-military, reconnaissance team trained to deal with anti-terrorism efforts in Florida 's swamps and marshes, not to capture escaped tigers, officials said.

"Only certain officers in the division of law are certified in handling exotic animals. N one of our [special operations group] team are," Capt. Lee Beach, southeast commander of the team said Monday.

Lee was given the location of a paw print, which was to be his assigned post. He spotted another paw print and got in his truck and headed north toward Kimberly McLain's property. As he looked for additional tracks, McLain showed up.

Lee asked whether there was water on the property, and the two began to walk north along a fence toward a pond. They approached a clearing and saw Bobo's hindquarters sticking out from some undergrowth. They backed out of the area.

"Because of his contact with this person, he ended up in a little bit closer position," wildlife spokesman Officer Jorge Pino said. "Should he have? Yes. That's his job. He needs to intervene whenever he feels there is something there."

Back at their trucks, he told McLain to get back in her vehicle while he radioed for assistance. As he waited for other wildlife officers to arrive, Lee grabbed his M-4 rifle. Lee was to keep an eye on the tiger, and Officer Scott Van Buren arrived to back him up. Both were to wait for the tranquilizer team.

The request for the tranquilizer went out at 5:02 p.m.

About 15 to 20 minutes passed "when Lee gave him a gesture indicating, `Where are they?'" the report says. As Van Buren tried to find out, Lee told him Bobo was moving. Van Buren called it in and moved forward, shouldering his shotgun. As he did that, the report said Lee began moving back, "repeatedly saying, `Scott, Scott, Scott.'"

Lee told investigators that he took three steps back, the tiger lunged, and he opened fire.

"It all happened so fast. I remember backing up, and after everything was said and done, I shot until the cat was down," Lee told investigators. Lee fired five times; Bobo was struck twice.

The "shots fired" call came in about 5:20 p.m. , and officers armed with tranquilizer guns still had not arrived.

"The area where this whole thing happened is not like running 300 or 400 yards in the middle of the street," Pino said Monday. Besides struggling through heavy terrain, the officers were trying to position themselves around Bobo in case he did not respond to the sedative, he said.

According to necropsy reports, the cat died from "massive hard and soft tissue damage in the head and neck region." Upon impact, the bullets "mushroomed and fragmented," the report says. There were extensive skull fractures, and hundreds of metal fragments were removed from Bobo's head area, the report said.

Akilah Johnson can be reached at akjohnson@sun-sentinel.com or 561-243-6645.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/ news/local/broward/sfl-cpbobo27jul27,0,270496.stor y?coll=sfla-news-broward

Shouldnt house pets actually fit in the house?

Posted on Mon, Jul. 26, 2004

By KEVI N COWHERD

The Baltimore Sun

Let's begin with this hypothetical situation: you've just moved into a new house and now it's time to meet the neighbors.

Which is when you discover the neighbors have a pet.

But this pet isn't a golden retriever or a Siamese cat or a cockatiel, or something like that.

No, this pet is a tiger.

And not some cute little tiger cub that weighs 20 pounds and gets fed with a baby bottle and makes everyone laugh when he claws the drapes.

No, this is a 600-pound tiger.

With a head the size of a microwave oven and big teeth that look like they could rip through bank vaults.

Would you have a problem with this?

If your answer is something like: '' N o, that would be fine, I love animals and would have no problem living next door to a large jungle cat that could kill and strip the carcass of a water buffalo in 20 minutes,'' there is no point in you reading any further.

Because there's obviously something wrong with you.

And you probably subscribe to the philosophy espoused by the lunatic fringe of pet owners, a philosophy that seems to be: N o matter how big or how dangerous an animal is, if I want it in my home, I should be able to have it.

In fact, our hypothetical example above closely mirrors the case of Steve Sipek, the Florida man who, until last week, owned a tiger named Bobo.

Bobo, you may have heard, is now deceased.

The reason Bobo is no longer with us is that he escaped from Sipek's home in a rural area 10 miles from West Palm Beach and was shot after he lunged at wildlife officers who cornered him after a 26-hour search.

The officers were hoping to get close enough to fire a tranquilizer dart and capture him alive, but things didn't go according to plan.

They often don't when you're dealing with wild animals.

Generally, when a tiger sees a bunch of guys with rifles and badges creeping up on him, he's not thinking: Well, the jig's up. Might as well go quietly.

Instead, if he's hungry, he's thinking: Yo, my take-out order just arrived!

I'm not going to get into whether the shooting of Bobo could have been prevented -- although if I were an armed wildlife officer and a 600-pound tiger lunged at me, I don't think yelling ''Bad Bobo!'' would be enough to save me.

And there's no doubt that Sipek, a former actor who played Tarzan in two movies in the late '60s and '70s, genuinely loved Bobo and was grief-stricken over his death.

But the question is: what in God's name is a homeowner doing with a pet tiger?

Rural Sumatra -- now that's a good place for tigers.

Not rural Florida .

According to the Florida newspapers, though, Sipek is one of only two people in the state to have a permit to keep large cats as pets.

And I'm sure his neighbors will be comforted to know that Sipek has another tiger at home, along with a panther, a cougar and a pair of lions.

But just because you have a permit for these animals, that doesn't make the whole situation right.

Sipek told The Palm Beach Post that Bobo probably escaped when a woman Sipek had a ''bad relationship'' with broke into his compound and left the gate open.

At my house, if someone leaves the gate open, you got an 11-pound Shih-Tzu running around the streets, ready to lick someone to death.

A gate gets left open at Sipek's place and half of South Florida 's law enforcement agencies get called out for a safari.

Of course, it's not just Florida where idiot pet owners are keeping animals that are too big and dangerous for the environment.

It's everywhere.

In Carroll County , Md. , animal control officers were called to remove a pet African lion from a home in Finksburg four years ago.

I know, I know hasn't everyone had a pet lion at one time or another?

Sure they have.

You start with the box turtle and goldfish, move up to the gerbils and hamsters, go through rabbits and parrots and into the puppy and kitten phase.

Then next thing you know, you're leafing through Exotic Animals Today and thinking: ''Boy, wouldn't it be cool to have a lion around here? The back yard's big enough, don't you think?''

By the way, Carroll County Animal Control has also received calls to remove pet jaguars, orangutans, boa constrictors and giant lizards from homes.

And I used to think people were nuts to own ferrets.

http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/living/9245242.htm

mheditor@montereyherald.com

Shoul dn't house pets fit in the house?

I thought the article was right on target, but there was a quote from the Florida Department of Game and Fish that was misleading to the press; ie that Steve Sipek is one of two people in Florida licensed to have a pet tiger. The key word there is "pet" but the fact is that there are over 400 places in Florida that are licensed to have tigers and other big cats in their back yard. Three are accredited sanctuaries and five or six are accredited zoos. The rest are people who claim to be sanctuaries, but who breed and sell big cats as pets, places who admittedly are breeding facilities who say all their tigers go to zoos, when in fact most are sold as pets and people who charge a fee for you to come see their private collections who are referred to as road side zoos. There are 4700 such exotic pet licenses floating about Florida that include animals up to the size of cougars.

The scary thing is that all of these people qualified for a license by having someone (anyone) write a letter saying they had 1000 hours experience with a big cat, a $150.00 permit fee and a cage that was 12 x 15 for a tiger. The permit fee was only 5.00 until last year and you can have as many animals as you want for that one fee. No one counts your animals. N o one is notified when you buy and sell. You may see an inspector once in a year, or five. They are underpaid and understaffed and cannot handle the enormity of the problem.

The biggest issue is that there is no need for all of this breeding. The Tiger Species Survival Plan calls for 2 cubs to be born in Florida this year and they are to be the pairing from two accredited zoos. Everyone else who is breeding is doing so to profit from the sale of the cubs to people who are ill prepared to care for nature's most powerful predator.

Big Cat Rescue is an accredited rescue facility and had to turn away 312 big cats last year and over 100 already this year. Each year that number has been doubling. People love the cubs, but don't want what they become. Amazingly, there are a huge number that still don't know that cubs grow up to be big cats. That is where the media can play such an important role. Dry up the demand and the suppliers go away.

The following is a partial listing of incidents involving captive big cats since 1990. These incidents have resulted in the killing or deaths of 178 big cats, 55 human deaths, and more than 185 human injuries.

Since April 2003, big cat incidents include, 4 human fatalities, 18 human injuries, 124 animal fatalities, 28 animal escapes & 224 confiscations. http://www.bigcatrescue.org/big_cat_news.htm

150 attend slain tiger's elaborate public funeral

By Shahien N asiripour

Staff Writer

Posted July 19 2004

LOXAHATCHEE -- More than 150 people -- some mournful, others curious -- gathered at Steve Sipek's C Road compound Sunday evening for one final memorial to the former Tarzan's slain tiger, Bobo.

Buried on the property during a private funeral the previous day, Sunday's public funeral was replete with flowers, songs, poems, prayer and a eulogy for the slain feline.

Guests gathered near the many petitions and donation buckets around the compound.

Before rain scattered the crowd and ended the memorial, Sipek, wearing a white T-shirt with Bobo's picture, passed out pictures the Bengal-Siberian tiger.

Similar to Thursday's vigil, questions swirled about why the escaped tiger was shot Tuesday by a Florida Fish and Wildlife officer.

But Sipek, exhausted from the Bobo blitz that has been his life since the feline escaped his compound Monday, addressed the crowd in a much more subdued tone, choosing to memorialize Bobo rather than rail against the state wildlife agency.

Still, after a week of coping with the tiger's loss, Sipek said he and his supporters, many of whom he had not met until this week, will continue to fight for their justice.

It's never going to stop. We want justice for Bobo," Sipek said. "Bobo had to die to bring all of us together and fight for our rights. He did not die in vain. The people have spoken."

Sipek and his army of full-time supporters will focus on fund raising by holding a few concert benefits, a race at Moroso Motorsports Park and starting a national foundation in Bobo's name to raise money for exotic cat sanctuaries.

There are also petitions to persuade the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to allow Sipek to keep his felines.

The one-time actor, who portrayed Tarzan in Spanish-language films, still has several big cats on his compound.

"The movement hasn't even started," said Jessica Laurain, a Sipek friend. "We've only just begun."

The state wildlife commission investigation into the tiger's escape and subsequent shooting death will not be completed for several weeks, but Sipek has hired private investigators because he said he doesn't trust the agency.

The memorial, though, did not focus on Bobo's death. It focused on Bobo and Sipek, who has become a tragic figure to many in the neighborhood.

"He's been through so much. We're just here to support Steve," said Josie Otero, of West Palm Beach . "He's doing a wonderful thing with these cats, and Bobo never should have happened. He needs all the love and support he can get right now."

While many of the guests were animal activists wearing tiger print clothing or recently made Bobo T-shirts, some neighbors were there just to support a fellow Loxahatchee resident.

"The community bonded together because of [Bobo's death]. We're a family now," said Jeffrey Bohorquez, 20, of Loxahatchee.

Bohorquez moved from West Palm Beach eight months ago.

"We have to show our support for Loxahatchee," he said.

Shahien Nasiripour can be reached at snasiripour@sun-sentinel.com or 561-243-6690.

Copyright © 2004, South Florida Sun-Sentinel

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-

pbobo19jul19,0,7956723.story?coll=sfla-home-headlines

Dear Shahien

I too am outraged at this senseless loss of life, but it is obviously the fault of any person who would make a pet of a wild animal. I would go a step further and say that stupid people can't be held entirely responsible when our government allows them the right to own nature's top predator. I would also find fault with the general population who is so apathetic to the situation that legislation is driven more by those who breed and sell tigers than those who think there is no good reason to do that. If not for people like Sipek who portray these animals as pets there would be no market for the breeders.

There are laws (finally) against selling big cats across state lines as pets and in the state of Florida you cannot get a permit to own a big cat as a pet, but the loopholes in both laws are so gaping that even someone with the IQ of Tarzan could leap through them. All you have to do is say that you are a tiger breeder to avoid both laws. Why is that OK?

Ron Tilson , the head of the tiger species survival plan, that is carried out via accredited zoos, says that the state of Florida needs to produce 2 or 3 tigers this year for the plan to work and that those pairings are already planned in two major zoos. N o one else needs to be breeding tigers, or any other exotic cat, so why is that allowed?

The following is a partial listing of incidents involving captive big cats since 1990. These incidents have resulted in the killing or deaths of 178 big cats, 55 human deaths, and more than 185 human injuries.

According to the Captive Wild Animal Protection Coalition, since April 2003, big cat incidents include, 4 human fatalities, 18 human injuries, 124 animal fatalities, 28 animal escapes & 223 confiscations. http://www.bigcatrescue.org/big_cat_news.htm

I hope your article about Steve Sipek using this tragedy to line his own pockets and to encourage ownership of big cats as pets, despite the fact that he has proven himself unable to deal with them in a responsible manner, will outrage enough people with some intelligence that this sort of trade in exotic cats is finally stopped.