--- title: "Bones exposed, limbs mutilated, tiger found in agony at North West breeding facility and euthanised" description: "The owners left the injured tiger to begin tearing her legs apart, trying to relieve the stress or pain. An NSPCA inspector reports widespread neglect at the facility." type: "NewsArticle" publisher: "Daily Maverick" site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za" section: "ANIMAL CRUELTY" author: "Don Pinnock" author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/donpinnock/" canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-03-27-bones-exposed-limbs-mutilated-tiger-found-in-agony-at-north-west-breeding-facility-and-euthanised/" published: "2025-03-27T21:50:17" updated: "2025-03-27T21:50:21" lang: "en-ZA" word_count: 603 --- # Bones exposed, limbs mutilated, tiger found in agony at North West breeding facility and euthanised > The owners left the injured tiger to begin tearing her legs apart, trying to relieve the stress or pain. An NSPCA inspector reports widespread neglect at the facility. By Don Pinnock · Published 27 March 2025, 23:50 SAST · Updated 27 March 2025, 23:50 SAST ## Key points - In a heart-wrenching exposé, NSPCA inspectors discovered a tiger at a North West breeding facility in such a state of despair that she had resorted to gnawing her own limbs, only to be met with indifference from her owners who prioritised profit over compassion, leaving a trail of regulatory failures and ethical nightmares in their wake. - NSPCA inspectors discovered a severely injured tiger at a North West breeding facility, suffering from extreme neglect and mutilation. - The tiger, unable to stand and in immense pain, was euthanised after inspectors found no veterinary care had been provided. - Facility owner obstructed the removal of the carcass, prioritising profit over veterinary examination, while conditions for other tigers were equally appalling. - The case highlights systemic failures in regulatory oversight of South Africa's captive predator industry, prompting NSPCA to pursue legal action against the facility. ## Content #### **Warning**: *This report contains images of a graphic nature that may upset sensitive readers.* Her bones were exposed. Her paws mutilated, tendons raw and visible, claws worn down to a single splinter. The tiger lay in the dust, unable to stand and had to crawl to reach food placed before her. This is the condition in which inspectors from the NSPCA found her on 24 January at a notorious predator breeding facility in North West – a scene described by an NSPCA inspector as “unimaginable suffering.” “It was one of the worst things I’ve ever seen,” said Duán Matthee, a senior NSPCA inspector who was part of the Wildlife Protection Unit team that conducted the inspection. “She had gnawed her own front legs to the second set of joints. She didn’t even have claws left to tear meat.” The tiger had been mauled by another tiger at the facility three weeks earlier, during which she sustained injuries to her throat, torso and neck. The NSPCA had returned to the farm to ensure she was receiving adequate care. Instead, they found an animal in severe pain with no evidence of veterinary follow-up. ![The famle tiger had chewed away parts of its front legs. (Photo: NSPCA)](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/Waekj1mZAndy3uxRxbz4y6qnces=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/The-famle-tiger-had-chewed-away-parts-of-its-front-legs-NSPCA.jpg) *The female tiger had chewed away part of its front legs. (Photo: NSPCA)* ![The female tiger had chewed off her claws and was unable to walk. (Photo: NSPCA)](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/x6WPSFmZ8opbWx76x6Mhu0vt5sM=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/The-famle-tiger-had-chewed-off-her-claws-and-was-unable-to-walk-NSPCA.jpg) *The female tiger had chewed off her claws and was unable to walk. (Photo: NSPCA)* ![The tiger had chewed her paws to the bone. (Photo: NSPCA)](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/lPDw9bLLsoDqzH2H0eozVKRrI48=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/The-tiger-had-chewed-her-paws-to-the-bone-NSPCA.jpg) *The tiger had chewed her paws to the bone. (Photo: NSPCA)* “We had to force the owners to get a vet out the first time,” Matthee said. “Then they just left her in an isolated camp and abandoned her.” #### **‘That’s money’** Faced with no viable alternatives due to the extent of the tiger’s injuries and suffering, the NSPCA had the animal humanely euthanised. However, when inspectors attempted to remove the carcass for veterinary examination, the facility’s owner refused, saying bluntly: “That’s money.” The team was then locked inside the enclosure, with the owner refusing to open the gates. Prioritising their safety, the inspectors had to leave the carcass behind. The facility is home to at least 81 tigers, crammed into overcrowded, fetid management camps. “Seven juvenile tigers in a 10-by-5 metre camp — it’s shocking,” Matthee said. “They live in their own faeces and the only water available is like sewage, full of decomposing meat and waste. They throw meat into the same dam water they’re expected to drink. It smells like death.” While the owner claims the tigers are not being sold or hunted, the NSPCA [has long suspected](https://nspca.co.za/nspca-lays-cruelty-charges-against-game-farm-hawks-involved-in-investigation/) the facility is linked to the illegal predator bone trade. Matthee confirmed that the owner could not produce permits for the animals when asked. #### **Regulatory failure** The NSPCA’s findings have raised alarm bells over regulatory enforcement. The North West Department of Economic Development, Environment, Conservation and Tourism reportedly conducted an inspection just 10 days before the NSPCA visit, raising serious concerns about oversight and possible complicity. “This isn’t just about one tiger,” the NSPCA said in its statement. “It’s about a broken system that allows profit-driven cruelty to continue under the guise of legal breeding.” The organisation is now compiling a legal docket and intends to prosecute the facility, which cannot yet be named due to legal proceedings. #### **Grim industry** The case underscores the broader issues in South Africa’s captive predator industry, where legal grey areas allow facilities to operate with minimal oversight. Tigers, though not native to South Africa, are bred in large numbers for profit, often ending up in bone trade markets abroad. “We can’t allow animals to suffer like this behind closed gates,” Matthee said. “This tiger was dying slowly in agony and silence. That should haunt us all.” **DM** [YouTube video: "YouTube video"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=REeWvTRUpMk)