The Plush Tiger and the Use of Tiger Bones

The Plush Tiger and the Use of Tiger Bones

Sometimes it's difficult to make choices when it comes to a child's next stuffed animal. With so many [to choose from], it can be a daunting task. If you're looking to move away from yet another teddy bear, why not move instead toward animals that live in the jungle the plush tiger, for example. The plush tiger is not only interesting to look at and learn about, but it's completely different from a teddy [bear].

The illegal trade of big cat products in Asia, in particular wild tigers, is all too real. However, in March 2010, the World Federation of Chinese Medicine Societies, released a statement urging all its members to refrain from using tiger bones or any other part of the endangered cat and other wildlife. The WFCMS is based in Beijing and is an international academic organization, that includes 195 member organizations which span 57 nations where traditional Chinese medicine is used. The primary form of healthcare in China is traditional [Chinese] medicine and the overall aim of the WFCMS is to promote its development.

At the March 2010 symposium held in Beijing, China, in part of the statement released by WFCMS, it also stated that "some of the claimed medicinal benefits of tiger bone have no basis." In fact, in 1993, tiger bone use was removed from the traditional Chinese medicine pharmacopeia and it was also at this time, that the domestic ban on the tiger trade was first introduced [in China].

Deputy secretary of the WFCMS, Huang Jianyin said "tiger conservation has become a political issue in the world. Therefore, it's necessary for the traditional Chinese medicine industry to support the conservation of endangered species, including tigers."

One of the key issues discussed in Doha, Quatar at the Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, is the illegal trade going on in Asia of big cat products, such as tiger bones; China is just one of 175 countries bound by a signed agreement in this international treaty which governs trade in wildlife. As Dr. Colman O'Criodain Wildlife Trade Analyst with WWF International puts it, the governments of CITES should seize the opportunity at their meeting to put in place measures which, if enforced as they should be, would end the tiger trade of bones and other parts, altogether. In addition, CITES governments have been called upon to not only abide by both international and national regulations on trade in wildlife, but to also promote tiger conservation. With the first public declaration of The Societies' backing of wild tigers, it has sent a very clear signal that the traditional Chinese medicinal community is on board with ending the practice of trade in illegal tiger parts.

The plush tiger has no worries when it comes to the use of tiger bones and other parts used in Asian medicines given it's a soft toy with no discernible anatomy. It's also not aware of just how lucky it is to be a plush tiger as compared to the wild cat, which, is out there, just trying to survive on a daily basis.

plush tiger toy

giant stuffed tiger

Copyright Shelley Vassall, 2010. Contact the author to obtain permission for republication.

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