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TIGER KING UPDATE: Jan 12, 2021 - Jeff Lowe’s lawyer filed a brief in opposition of the government's motion to obtain a temporary restraining order against Jeff and Lauren Lowe and Tiger King Park in Thackerville, OK. The government is asking to remove all the big cats one-year-old or younger, and their mothers, from the Lowes. The cats would be temporarily placed at reputable facilities selected by the United States, according to documents.
The temporary restraining order was brought after a young tiger cub named Daniel was euthanized Dec. 22, 2020, due to metabolic bone disease caused by malnutrition. The disease resulted in painful fractures throughout Daniel’s small body and is frequently caused by an improper diet low in calcium. The government asserts Daniel’s condition could have been treated and his euthanasia was improper.
Yesterday, lawyer Daniel Card, representing the Lowes, filed arguments against the government’s request, claiming Tiger King Park is not subject to the Endangered Species Act because the lions and tigers at the facility are hybrid species. He argued Tiger King Park is also not subject to USDA regulations because the Lowe’s are not exhibiting the animals, he claims, they are taking and posting photos of their household pets.
Card also made statements and filed several affidavits seeking to prove Daniel the cub did not suffer from malnutrition. The Lowe’s claim Daniel was not being bottle fed and was being fed by his mother who is reportedly in good health, therefore the diet the cub was eating should have had adequate nutrition. The brief included a declaration from veterinarian Dr. Danner, asserting the cub died of a genetic form of metabolic bone disease, rather than a form caused by malnutrition.
The government immediately filed responses to those claims today, effectively showing Dr. Danner was misled by false information, and showing evidence Daniel’s metabolic bone disease was, in fact, caused by malnutrition.
An investigator spoke to Dr. Danner and determined he was only working as a consultant to the Lowes and based most of his information on what he was told by Eric Yano, a business partner of the Lowes, who brought the cub in to a different veterinarian in Dec. and authorized his euthanasia, according to documents.
The government also filed a seven page declaration by a veterinarian showing evidence that Daniel was being bottle fed, including a photo of Daniel in a small kennel with other tiger cubs, with his mother nowhere in sight.
The veterinarian’s statement also included information about an eight-month-old tiger named Bubbles, in the Lowes possession, who choked to death on a chicken bone on December 16, 2020. According to documents, “There is no evidence of any veterinary assistance for this animal.”
For full court documents visit: https://www.roadsidezoonews.org/post/jeff-lowe-lawsuit