A viral video of a captive tiger is ranking up tens of thousands of views – and hundreds of angry comments.
In a video shared last week, a tourist waits while zookeepers lure a tiger onto his shoulders in order to pose for a photo. As a photographer, it should go without saying that I love photos, but the viral video proves that some photos cause more harm than good.
The latest video doing the rounds comes from Tiger World Thailand, located roughly two hours south of Bangkok in Ratchaburi Province.
In the clip, we see a tourist, purportedly from the US, sitting rigidly with a tense look on his face. Climbing onto his shoulders is a huge tiger, enticed by a milk bottle held by an equally nervous-looking zookeeper.
Tayland’a giden ABD’li turist, kaplanlarla çekildiği fotoğrafın kamera arkasını paylaştı. pic.twitter.com/DAOyYILU1TMay 20, 2026
ABOVE: The latest video to have come out of Tiger World
Tourists posing with captive tigers at zoos in Thailand isn’t breaking news. This issue is well documented and has reared its ugly head several times over the years, perhaps most horrendously when 40 dead tiger cubs, some no older than two days, were found at Tiger Temple west of Bangkok in 2016.
Unfortunately, it seems the sad story that transpired at Tiger Temple hasn’t stopped tourists from taking questionable photos with animals being held in captivity at zoos in other parts of the country.
I want to state that, to my knowledge, no official allegations of animal abuse, trafficking or illegal operations have ever been specifically made against Tiger World Thailand. But, to me, that doesn’t change how sick the whole thing is.
Tiger World says that it’s an “officially licensed facility,” distinguishing itself from traditional zoos by not selling its tigers. It says that the “welfare of these majestic animals” is paramount.
Tourists seem to love this place. With just a quick search I found tons of other tourists, seemingly from all over the world, posing with the captive big cats. And when I clicked through to some of their social media profiles, a number of these people even claimed to be animal lovers.
Regardless of whether these tigers were ever truly wild (it’s reported that the majority of tigers in zoos across Thailand are born in captivity), as a lover and occasional photographer of wildlife, it’s disheartening and enraging to see incredible animals reduced to living forms of entertainment.
Pictures with Tiger World's captive felines are big business; at the time of writing, prices for its “premium” tiger-on-shoulders experience start at ฿7,200 (about $220 / £164 / AU$309).
You can only imagine how many tourists these tigers are made to pose with every day. For ฿70 ($2 / £1.60 / AU$4), you can even feed a tiger a piece of meat through the bars of its enclosure.
Notable animal welfare organizations and news outlets have conducted numerous investigations into tiger tourism in Thai zoos carried out over the years. But I just want to put across my disdain for tourists taking photos with captive animals – and I don’t need undercover journalism to justify that opinion.
I’ll never understand why tourists would even think of posing for photos like these, let alone part with their money to do so.
Wildlife photography is about seeing animals in their natural habitats. As someone who’s traveled extensively and been lucky enough to encounter a range of species in their native locations, I can tell you there aren’t many things more majestic, especially with your camera in hand.
Hopefully, this latest video from will spark the internet into working its magic – the video has already amassed a number of critical comments (though, to my chagrin, several are suggesting just recreating the photo with generative AI).
Wildlife photography – the practice of photographing animals that are actually in the wild – is essential to bolstering conservation efforts. Posing with captive animals isn't just dangerous, it's unethical.
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