April 22, 2008

BUCHAREST, Romania –- The question of whether wild animals should be kept in private homes, a hot button issue in the United States, is at the center of a case in Romania, where a man was charged with housing a three-year-old lioness in his rear garden.

Rompres state news agency says police found the lioness caged on the man’s property after neighbors called police to complain about the roaring. On the premises police also found two deer, a stag and two peacocks roaming the garden, according to the report. The residence is in the southern village of Pietrosita.

The 28-year-old man is charged with illegal possession of wild animals and could face up to a year in jail, the report says.

Restrictions are limited in the U.S. on purchases of large exotic cats, like lions and tigers. Laws concerning the ownership of such animals vary by state. Experts estimate that between 10,000 and 15,000 tigers in the U.S. are kept as pets or live in private facilities. In contrast, conservationists estimate that fewer than 5,000 tigers live in the wild -- worldwide.

A representative at New York City’s Romanian Cultural Institute told Pet Pulse that only recently did Romania implement laws prohibiting the housing of wild animals on private property.

“Many people in larger cities used to keep animals in their backyards,” the rep said. “Like roosters, or hens or pigs.”

Private ownership of such animals requires special approval, according to Romania’s Deputy Consul General, Andreea Berechet.

“I can tell you that the Romanian law on the protection of animals stipulates that in order to hold a wild animal, you need the approval of the (Romanian National Sanitary Veterinary and Food Safety Authority),” Berechet told Pet Pulse.

Attorney Augustin Zabraupanu, who practices in Bucharest, the Romanian capital, told zootoo.com that private ownership of such large cats is unusual in Romania.

“There are only a few people who have lions, tigers, etc.,” he said.

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