Can India’s tigers survive against the huge odds stacked against them? Do they really stand a chance against rampant poaching, habitat destruction, loss of prey and killings by villagers? Nearly a century ago there were over forty thousand tigers in India. True many were hunted by Westerners and Indian lords decades ago but India still had thousands left at the time of its independence in 1947. Still they continued to be shot down by anybody who owned a rifle and could buy a bait to attract the tiger. Villagers grazing their herds through forests ensured that the natural prey of tiger starved to death and thus so did tigers. As a result, by early 1970’s less than two thousand tigers remained in the jungles of India.

Fortunately for the striped sufferer, the Indian prime minister at that time, Indira Gandhi, took action and founded Project Tiger, to save her country’s most valued asset from total extinction. For the next two decades there was a lull and tigers flourished under renewed protection in designated reserves. As a result their numbers reportedly increased to four thousand. But that was all to change in the nineties. Tiger poaching picked up. Organized gangs took advantage of the inherent laziness and corruption that ran through the ranks of park rangers and officials. As a result, tigers started disappearing. Some of the most well known, photographed and magnificent animals faded away. Some reserves like the famous ‘Sariska’ reserve, just a couple of hours drive from the Indian capital New Delhi, protected by three hundred rangers, was wiped clean of its dozens of tigers. Similarly tigers began vanishing from internationally renowned parks like Ranthambore and Kanha, visited by thousands of tourists yearly from around the world!

While all this was going on and calls were being made by respected scientists and conservationists like Valmik Thapar and Belinda Wright to urgently protect the tiger, the administration of Project Tiger, relying on obsolete methods of tiger counting like pug mark identification, continued to deny that any tigers were missing. hereafter newer initiatives have been taken by the Indian government and newer guidelines created, further weakening the power of tiger preservation organizations of India. Politicians are now trying to facilitate people back into tiger reserves, bringing further catastrophe to the delicate ecosystems of India’s shrinking tiger reserves.

The problems that tigers face are many. First is the issue of poaching that continues unchecked owing to the negligence of underpaid, ill-equipped, outnumbered and unfit forest guards. Laws protecting the wildlife are weak. Furthermore there is a huge demand for tiger skins and parts in China, Far eastern Asia including Hong Kong, Thailand and Burma, and Tibet. Each individual tiger can bring hundreds of dollars to the poor villagers and people of India, many of which live at under a dollar a day.

Then there is the issue of human encroachment into tiger territory. Indian economy is expanding and population is increasing. It already has around one billion people and is set to become the most populous country in the world in coming years. Farmers and villagers are living at the borders of, and often right inside, parks. They graze their herds through jungles resulting in the depletion of natural food for the ungulates of forests that are chief components of a tiger’s diet. As a result the starving tigers take to attacking cattle and at times humans. This brings them into conflict with locals who take no time in poisoning partially eaten tiger kills. When the big cat returns to feed upon the carcass, it dies.

Thirdly and perhaps most importantly is the attitude of Indian administration. Not sufficient concrete and long term measures are being taken by the government while tigers continue to be slaughtered in most of the so-called ‘protected areas’ of Indian tiger reserves. In the end, this may prove to be the final nail in the coffin of the Bengal Tiger.

All of this brings one to a single rational derivation - do tigers really stand a realistic chance in India? The latest census reports a total figure of around fourteen hundred animals. Nearly two hundred and fifty animals are being killed yearly. So in all probability, at the current rate of extinction, the Royal Bengal Tiger will be lost forever from Indian wilderness in the next decade. Unless of course there is a miraculous turn around in the way that conservation efforts are being run.

Obviously it will continue to be featured in zoos around the world. Acting as a spectacle for the human race. Rewilding projects will be talked about, planned and even possibly undertaken but will certainly be near impossible to conduct on a large scale. If the people of India don’t wake up now to save their most sublime asset, they must realize that they will lose it forever in the blink of an eye.

Every pet owner wants to keep his or her beloved cat or dog as safe as possible. You do everything you can do make sure your pet is well cared for and healthy. If you have an indoor pet, you may not think that keeping identification tags is important, but it is. What if your fuzzy feline accidentally slips out of the door at night and you search to no avail? What do you do, especially if your dog or cat has no identification? Placing a collar with an identification tag is important, but collars sometimes become lost. When you consider the fact that many animal shelters only keep dogs and cats for seven days, you want to make sure that your pet is properly identified. That is where the microchip comes in handy. The microchip is the newest way to identify lost pets and helps ensure that your lost pooch or feline finds his or her way back home.

The technology of the microchip has become so popular that most animal clinics and animal shelters have the ability to scan a cat or dog for microchip identification. If you opt for the microchip, you should know that it is a painless procedure for your pet. Your vet will insert a tiny microchip about the size of a grain of rice directly under your pet’s skin using a hypodermic needle. The microchip is usually placed behind the neck. The microchip contains special digital number that has been entered on a national microchip database. That information will give the person your contact information. When you pet is lost, a veterinarian or animal shelter can use a special scanner to retrieve the microchip information. It is that easy.

Pet owners love the idea of the microchip because it is permanent. You cannot remove the microchip and unlike a collar or tags, it cannot be lost or destroyed. This is one of the best features of pet microchip, especially for cats. If you place a collar on a cat, more than likely it will be a breakaway collar. If your cat climbs a tree, or is caught on something, the collar breaks off. If your cat does not have a microchip, it will be very difficult to identify your cat if it is found.

There are a few important things to remember about pet microchips. First, if your pet gets lost, you should never just sit back and wait for a call, even if your pet has a microchip. Not all veterinarians and shelters are equipped with this technology. You need to take the time to call around and place “lost pet” flyers around your neighborhood. In addition, you need to make sure you take the time to update your contact information should you move. It does little to no good to have your pet implanted with the microchip if the information on the national database is incorrect. Your veterinarian can give you information on how to update this information.

It is important to get your pet implanted with the microchip at a young age. Puppies can have the microchip at age six weeks. Even small breeds of dogs can handle this procedure. Kittens can also undergo this procedure at six weeks. The insertion of the microchip is not painful and feels like a regular vaccination shot. You can have your pet implanted with the microchip at your veterinarian office and can expect to pay between $30 and $50 for this service.