Lahore, Jan 27 (IANS) The wildlife authorities in Pakistan’s Punjab province have seized 59 big cats from private farms, exposing once again the scale of country’s troubling exotic pet culture, the local media has highlighted.
The crackdown, leading Pakistani English-language daily newspaper ‘The Nation’ wrote in an editorial, follows intensified inspections and enforcement of new regulations governing the private possession and breeding of dangerous wildlife, with officials citing public safety risks and animal welfare concerns as key drivers of the operation.
“Pakistan is a signatory to multiple international conventions on wildlife protection, yet domestic enforcement has historically been lax, allowing a parallel economy of exotic breeding and private display to flourish. The seizure of these animals should be viewed not as an isolated enforcement exercise, but as the beginning of a broader recalibration of how wildlife is treated in the country,” the Lahore-based daily opined in a piece titled ‘Endangered Ethics’.
The newspaper highlighted that the private ownership of apex predators is not a harmless eccentricity, but a “reckless indulgence” rooted in status signalling rather than stewardship. Lions and tigers, ‘The Nation’ stated, are not ornamental accessories for farmhouses or social media spectacles.
“Beyond the spectacle lies a more disturbing reality: private zoos and breeding facilities in Pakistan rarely meet even the most basic international standards for animal welfare. Enclosures are often inadequate, veterinary care inconsistent, and enrichment non-existent. These animals are deprived of natural behaviours, social structures, and ecological contexts, reduced instead to living trophies. The result is chronic stress, health complications, and, in many cases, premature death, an outcome that should be morally indefensible in any society that claims to value biodiversity,” the newspaper mentioned.
It made it clear that Pakistan, if not serious about conservation, must dismantle the culture of exotic pet ownership, strengthen licensing regimes, and invest in sanctuaries that prioritise rehabilitation over exhibition.
“Wildlife is not a luxury commodity; it is a shared ecological heritage. Treating it otherwise is not merely tasteless, it is dangerously irresponsible,” The Nation’s editorial concluded.
–IANS
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