# life of pi \[actually surviving with tiger on boat\]

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-of-pi-actually-surviving-with-tiger-on-boat/658654>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [May 18, 2013, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-of-pi-actually-surviving-with-tiger-on-boat/658654 "2013-05-18T02:54:44Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![e.fred](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@e.fred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/e.fred)\
**Post date:** [May 18, 2013, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-of-pi-actually-surviving-with-tiger-on-boat/658654/1 "2013-05-18T02:54:44Z")

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What would be the best way to survive with a tiger on a small boat? Could you try to pet it like a cat or would it get it mad and kill you? Do you think you could catch fish and feed it and become friends? Or would he just jump off the boat into the ocean because he’s confused

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**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\
**Post date:** [May 18, 2013, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-of-pi-actually-surviving-with-tiger-on-boat/658654/2 "2013-05-18T03:00:42Z")

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Depends on you, the tiger, the boat and just about everything else.

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**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\
**Post date:** [May 18, 2013, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-of-pi-actually-surviving-with-tiger-on-boat/658654/3 "2013-05-18T05:29:23Z")

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Basically, you would kiss your ass goodbye. Tigers are killing machines; you’d be better off in the water, where there may or may not be sharks.

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**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\
**Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-of-pi-actually-surviving-with-tiger-on-boat/658654/4 "2013-05-19T03:22:15Z")

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> [@panache45](#):
>
> Basically, you would kiss your ass goodbye. Tigers are killing machines; you’d be better off in the water, where there may or may not be sharks.

Tiger sharks.

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**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\
**Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-of-pi-actually-surviving-with-tiger-on-boat/658654/5 "2013-05-20T04:52:48Z")

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The book did an excellent job of inviting the reader to suspend disbelief. The author brought in information about animal training and zookeeping, to lend his premise a semblance of credibility.

In reality? Who can guess? “The only difference between reality and fiction is that fiction needs to be credible.” Mark Twain. The kid might manage to placate the tiger for a year at sea, fishing to feed him, collecting rainwater for him, etc. Really damn weird things have happened!

Personally, I suspect the tiger would go insane from sensory deprivation. It might kill the kid. Or it might jump overboard and try to swim home!