A Brazilian man who rescued two tigers from a traveling circus now faces a legal battle after authorities demanded he give them up, citing concerns for public safety.
Ary Borges saved the tiger brothers, Dan and Tom, from an abusive circus environment in 2005 and brought them to live with his family in Maringa, southern Brazil.
As cubs, the tigers shared beds with his daughters and roamed freely with the family’s other pets, including two lions, a monkey, and a Chihuahua named Little.
Over the years, Borges bred the two tigers, resulting in nine tigers living at his home. However, authorities now argue that the fully-grown 700-pound animals pose a significant risk in Borges’s industrial area.
Brazil’s environmental protection agency, Ibama, has accused him of illegal breeding and is pushing for the male tigers to be neutered to prevent further reproduction.
“Many animals are suffering in zoos without proper care,” Borges said, defending his actions. “My animals receive the best care possible. We are preserving the species, but we are being persecuted.”
Ibama is also seeking to revoke Borges’ caretaker license and take custody of the tigers. The case is under review in federal court, and the agency has not commented.
Borges’ daughters, Nayara and Uyara, grew up alongside the tigers and feared that the animals would suffer at the hands of others.
“Taking them away would devastate our family,” said Nayara, 20, who used to let the cubs sleep in her bed. “We would fall into deep depression.”
Her sister Uyara, 23, echoed these sentiments, explaining that the tigers have become part of the family after living with them for so long.
“At first, we were scared of them, but over time, we fed them, bathed them, and fell in love with them,” she said. Uyara trusts the tigers enough for her two-year-old daughter to sit on them.
Despite the Borges family’s attachment to the animals, experts have expressed concern. Patty Finch, executive director of the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries, described the situation as dangerous, especially with young children.
“Wild animals like tigers can have their hunting instincts triggered at any time. It’s only a matter of time before an accident occurs,” Finch said.
Finch also questioned the family’s role in conservation, arguing that breeding tigers in captivity, especially outside their native habitat, does little to preserve the species. “They’re condemning these tigers to a life in captivity,” she said.
The Borges family remains undeterred. Ary continues interacting with the tigers as if they were regular pets, even playing rough with them in a fenced area.
His daughter Uyara insists that losing the tigers would be devastating. “My father wouldn’t survive if they were taken away,” she said. “They are everything to us—they are like brothers. We’ve lived with them day and night for eight years.”
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