People are not realizing the pain and suffering these animals go through. China already has some 200 tiger farms, with more than 5,000 big cats kept in often cramped conditions for public exhibition and to feed a thriving underground industry in tiger-bone wine and pelts. Conservationists say, “the tiger-farming industry is stimulating demand for tiger-bone wine - which is used to treat rheumatism and impotence - as well as for tiger-skin rugs, a status symbol for the wealthy. That, in turn, encourages more poaching of wild tigers in neighboring countries.”(Denyer). Already, Chinese demand for wildlife parts and products has pushed many animals close to extinction. Among them is the Chinese pangolin, a scaly anteater whose meat is considered a delicacy and whose scales are used in traditional medicine in China and
People are not realizing the pain and suffering these animals go through. China already has some 200 tiger farms, with more than 5,000 big cats kept in often cramped conditions for public exhibition and to feed a thriving underground industry in tiger-bone wine and pelts. Conservationists say, “the tiger-farming industry is stimulating demand for tiger-bone wine - which is used to treat rheumatism and impotence - as well as for tiger-skin rugs, a status symbol for the wealthy. That, in turn, encourages more poaching of wild tigers in neighboring countries.”(Denyer). Already, Chinese demand for wildlife parts and products has pushed many animals close to extinction. Among them is the Chinese pangolin, a scaly anteater whose meat is considered a delicacy and whose scales are used in traditional medicine in China and