How to Play With a Pet Tiger

Tigers are large, beautiful and sometimes dangerous animals. People who want to play with a pet tiger should take very serious precautions before attempting physical interaction with the animal.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

1. Ensure that the pet tiger is healthy and disease free. An unhealthy tiger can be irritable and more likely to strike out at a person. Also, tigers can carry diseases that can be transferred to humans, so make sure that your pet tiger is healthy before playing with it.

2. Only attempt to play with a tiger once it has been properly trained. A tiger will never be truly domesticated but it can eventually learn to trust its handler enough to respond to commands, making a positive encounter more likely.

3. Always interact with a pet tiger in the presence of another person, preferably a professional trainer. A professional trainer will know how to keep a tiger calm and can understand signs expressing the tiger's mood.

4. Stay calm and relaxed when you're with the tiger. Jittery or sudden movement can alarm a tiger, while calm and fluid movement will help to keep the tiger relaxed.

Tips & Warnings

• A tiger is not a pet in the sense that a dog or cat is: it is a wild animal that acts on its instincts and is not domesticated like a house animal. Make sure a professional trainer is present at all times when interacting with a tiger.