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US petition to stop ‘frankencat’ breeding
liger
Ligers are the result of breeding a male lion with a female tiger.
Calls to stop the creation of tiger and lion hybrids

A petition has been delivered to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) calling for action to stop the breeding of so-called ‘frankencats’, or tiger-lion hybrids.

A coalition of US animal welfare groups is campaigning against the practice of breeding white tigers, ligers, tigons and liligers, which often suffer from debilitating health problems and shortened lifespans.

Ligers are the result of breeding a male lion with a female tiger and, as they are usually larger than both parents, many are delivered by Caesarian section. Ligers often suffer from neurological defects, sterility, cancer, arthritis and diminished lifespan.

Some are then further bred to create ‘liligers’, which are a cross between a male lion and a ligress.

Tigons, meanwhile, are the result of breeding male tigers with female lions. For those that survive infancy, there is a greater risk of various neurological and physical conditions.

Lions and tigers do not exist in the same areas in the wild and so would not naturally breed, but some exhibitors deliberately breed them in captivity.

Similarly, white tigers are created by breeding two Bengal tigers with the same recessive gene. They are reported to have neonatal mortality rates or more than 80 per cent and face significant risk of facial deformities, impaired depth perception, retinal degeneration, abnormal cranial structure, cataracts, cleft palates, mental impairment, kidney problems, cardiac defects, Parkinson’s disease, scoliosis and other spinal problems.

US groups campaigning against the breeding of these animals include The Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries, The Wildcat Sanctuary, Big Cat Rescue, Keepers of the Wild, Lions, Tigers and Bears, the Animal Legal Defence Fund, Performing Animal Welfare Society and Peta.

Together they are calling on the USDA to ‘take proactive steps to curtail the practice by some licensees who purposefully breed tigers and other big cats for deleterious mutations and to create interspecies hybrids’.

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Vets to run marathon for World Animal Protection

News Story 1
 Two recently graduated veterinary surgeons will be running the London Marathon in April to raise money for the charity World Animal Protection.

Alex Bartlett and Maeve O'Neill plan to run the race together if they are given the same start times.

Dr O'Neill said: "You're always limited in what you can do to help animals, so it is nice to raise money for a charity that helps animals around the world."

Dr Bartlett added: "I have never run a marathon before and am excited to run my first one for such a good cause!"

Both Dr Bartlett and Dr O'Neill have fundraising pages online. 

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News Shorts
BSAVA releases new Guide to Procedures

The British Small Animal Veterinary Association (BSAVA) has published a new edition of its Guide to Procedures for Small Animal Practice.

It has added four new procedures; cystostomy tube placement, endotracheal intubation, point-of-care ultrasound and wet-to-dry dressings.

BSAVA says that it is an essential step-by-step guide to diagnostic and therapeutic procedures performed in practice. The textbook includes new images and illustrations, as well as high-definition videos for use prior to procedures.

Nick Bexfield and Julia Riggs, editors of the new edition, said: "We have built upon the success of the previous editions by responding to the feedback received from the BSAVA readership, and hope this new guide helps to further increase the confidence and accuracy with which these procedures are performed."

Print copies are available in the BSAVA store, with a digital version in the BSAVA library.