Thoughts on Michael Jamison

An ardent animal lover, as is evident from the fact that he is able to devote a lot of time to numerous cats, dogs, chickens, rabbits, monkeys, three peacocks and two tigers.

Owning a tiger could be a controversial decision; people have a predilection for passing value judgments on that account. “They belong to the wild,” preaches an illumined preceptor, as if a person handling two of them would not know that. “Why not leave them at a sanctuary?” preaches another, disregardful of the close relationship Michael has developed with the tigers. Having watched several of his videos, I conclude the following:

1. He treats the tigers very well, and does not venture into the commodious enclosure he has built for them, showing thus that he is practical enough to not let his fondness for them affect his respect for and caution towards them.
2. His tigers are rescues, and they can therefore not be released into the wild. Tigers are not native to Africa and there do not appear to be many well-funded sanctuaries from what I gather.
3. He is affluent, and is able to afford them a pool and an abundance of food.
4. His tigers have grown up in the company of dogs and cats, and have learnt not to view them as food. But, cognizant of the unintentional death that the tigers could be responsible for, he does not permit the dogs and cats to venture into the tiger enclosure. The tigers are content to chuff at them from behind the fence.
5. He periodically treats them for fleas and ticks without sedating them.

He maintains that it is naivete to presume perfection. Anything could go wrong. On one occasion, one of his dogs, Zach, somehow managed to enter the tiger enclosure. Neither tiger so much as touched him, and only chuffed at him when he barked at them. He is prepared to confront them to rescue his smaller pets. It is extremely risky, but it is evident from his videos that he does his best.

He has had Enzo the tiger for a decade and Diego for six years. Not once has either of them attacked him, but he takes no chances. I do enjoy watching his videos. It would be imprudent to assume perfection, as he asserts himself, but I have no ground to call him naïve, rash or needlessly intrepid either. I trust he knows what he is engaged in. I find it unnecessary to pass value judgments.

In conclusion, I have no reason to agree with nigh-apocalyptic predictions. So far, I repeat, he has been demonstrably cautious and sagacious in his handling of them.

One of the comments on one of his videos captured that which is very much my opinion of the fact that he handles tigers:

Had the tigers been born and raised in the wild, it would have been villainous to capture them, but Enzo and Diego were not born and raised in the wild. They had already been captured, and had no mother tigers to look to.

A point of criticism that I encounter often is that Michael is but an attention seeker who exploits the tigers. None has ever cared to elucidate the precise manner in which he supposedly exploits them. It is not as if he makes them perform circus tricks for entertainment. The tigers often do not pay much heed to his wishes as is evident in many videos, which indicates how free of a life theirs is. And yet, they also chuff at him, implying that they are happy with him. The tigers do what they want, not what he wants.

Following are the photos of these felines of regal magnificence, if I may.

Enzo:

Diego:

Perhaps I am biased; I am truly fascinated with these graceful lords of the jungle, but that instead bolsters my stance given how evidently well-fed, well-cared-for they are.