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Ligers and Tigons, Oh My!
Over the years there have been a number of things that people have done that can be used to make people pause. Many of these things are things worth noting, that have made our lives better such as health care and electricity. However, there are also things that can make others pause because of their oddity or their awesomeness (though not necessarily in a good way). One such thing is big cat hybrids. They come in a number of forms, but the most common of these forms is the liger and the tigon. The Liger.
A liger is the offspring of a female tiger and a male lion. This is a hybrid that never occurs in the wild and can only be seen in unique situations throughout the world. This can happen without the owners realizing it when lions and tigers are placed together in captivity with the thoughts that they will not breed together. However, in many cases this animal is created on purpose. The liger is prone to lean toward giantism making it the world's largest cat often weighing in at 800-1200 pounds. This animal looks much like a cross of his parents with faint striping, a tiger shaped face, a tawny "lion" colored background, and often a small ruff instead of a full fledged mane. The Tigon.
While very similar the tigon is the offspring of a female lion and a male tiger. This creates a small cat that rarely gets to be as large as either of his or her parents. This cat often fallows many of the characteristics of the liger and has striping (though usually more bold) on a tawny lion colored background and many of the physical features of the tiger. This animal was more popular in the 1800's and early 1900's, however over time it has decreased greatly due to the excitement surrounding the giant liger and the fact that the tigon is more difficult to breed because the male tiger often misses the cues of the lioness that she is ready to breed. Personalities.
Many of those who work ligers and or tigons describe these hybrid animals as being gentle and loving creatures. They are often said to have the best of both their parents. They are often social creatures like that of the lion but playful like a tiger. They even love the water (much like tigers). Handlers often report confusion in the cats though, like they don't know what characteristics to show. It is also reported that their mothers often become distressed when they show odd (for her type of cat) behaviors and can get very upset when their cubs act out of sync with how other lions or tigers would act. History.
The history of these large cats is a fairly long one. It is possible that it goes back even farther then we know, however our first record of these animals is in 1837 when a princess of India gave Queen Victoria a tigon for a gift. About that same time a traveling circus in Great Brittan had several litters of hybrid cats produced by their lion and tiger. Originally these animals were used to draw in great crowds of people. Sometimes they were said to be newly discovered cats, and other times they were said to be hybrids of lions and tigers. Either way they drew in great crowds to zoos and circuses. We now have much better laws in protecting animals in zoos and circuses and these animals aren't bred for bringing in the crowds (though crowds still come in!). Sometimes they are bred in the name of science. However, more and more often these animals are found in the collections of private owners and confiscated. These rescue animals then have to go somewhere and they often find homes in zoos and animal reserves. There are also a few accidental breedings where animals are housed together (sometimes for short periods of time) and then are found to have bred. Offspring.
While many thought that all ligers and tigons were sterile it has been found that many female ligers and tigons are not and can produce healthy and fertile offspring with lions and or tigers. Many of these breedings were on accident when ligers and tigons were housed with lions and or tigers thinking that they were infertile (till 1983). These animals are named for their father the lion (li) or the tiger (ti) and then their mother the liger or the tigon producing an exotic creature labeled a li-liger, li-tigon, ti-liger, or ti-tigon. These offspring show the characteristics of their father being about 75% of that type of cat and are healthy and fertile. The Issues.
One of the largest issues is the fact that many private animal owners continue to breed these animals. Often they have poor health and the private owners no longer wish to pay for medical care. Many animals are found to be sick, injured, and or in general poor health. In addition to these issues there are moral ones behind breeding hybrid animals, after all, these animals don't breed together in the wild. |
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February, 2012
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