72 Tiger Deaths Raises Concerns

On Friday, tragic news broke from northern Thailand where 72 captive tigers have died from a suspected viral outbreak in two tourism facilities. At this time, the cause of these tiger deaths is still unclear, with various news channels reporting feline distemper, canine distemper and avian bird flu as potential causes for the deaths.

Government agencies investigating the cases have stated that they performed a range of diagnostic tests including necropsies and laboratory testing on some of the deceased animals, with results pointing toward distemper viruses—though speculation continues to swirl about other potential causes, including avian influenza.

Such a swift and high mortality rate highlights a crucial lesson for captive wildlife care. High densities of inadequately housed animals can enable disease to spread rapidly, with devastating consequences. When dozens of large carnivores share limited indoor and outdoor spaces, even a mildly contagious virus can sweep through the population before clinical signs become apparent. Stress from overcrowding, suboptimal nutrition and insufficient enrichment and poor breeding practices further compromises immune defenses, creating the perfect storm for an outbreak.

At For Tigers, we advocate for high welfare standards, careful veterinary oversight, including vaccinations and responsible management of captive tigers to prevent situations such as this. That means:  

• Maintaining low population densities and providing spacious, species-appropriate enclosures.

• Implementing rigorous quarantine and health-screening protocols including vaccinations for all incoming and resident animals.

• Secure food products from trusted suppliers, and carefully check for freshness and proper handling to reduce the risk of diseases such as avian influenza. Ensuring regular, independent welfare audits and transparent reporting of disease incidents.  

  
  

We hope that animal facilities use this opportunity to reflect on their husbandry and biosecurity practices, because the costs, both in lives lost and public trust, are simply too high.