Grosse Tete, Louisiana: Tony the Truck Stop Tiger (Gone)

The tiger is, in fact, still there. He was hard to find because he was relaxing inside one of the buildings inside the cage (which was actually larger than I thought it would be).

We were here two weeks ago. The tiger is gone. He has been (finally) moved to a proper home.

Tony is 11 years old -- that is a long life for a tiger. Born in 2000, the live tiger truck stop has been the birthplace of 13 tiger cubs, 10 of which survived and are now living in zoos.

Better see him soon. A judge has decided that once the truck stops permit expires, this coming fall, they will not renew the permit.

We stumbled across this by mistake. It's a disturbing attraction. Tony the Tiger is on display at a 2-bit road side gas station in Grosse Tete. The stench of fuel drifts across his small caged area, sounds of non-stop trucks trundle past and thoughtless and/or heartless people point, giggle and gawp!

On returning home we learned that there has been a campaign for quite some years to move Tony to a sanctuary where he could live out the remainder of his life in peace and quiet. This was stymied by the owner and government officials who showed little care in their response to international complaints.

We ourselves complained to local officials about this cruel spectacle, but all calls and emails went unanswered. This in itself says a lot about the archaic attitude to this beautiful creature's predicament.