# That's what you get for beating off a tiger **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [October 4, 2003, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570 "2003-10-04T17:50:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Cerri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3bc359/32.png) [@Cerri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cerri)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2003, 11:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/41 "2003-10-05T11:15:33Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Rhum Runner \* > \*\*My understanding is that the white coloring is the result of some mutation that has been preserved through inbreeding. The white color is not ‘natural’ in the sense that it is not, and never was, found in the wild. \*\* It’s the result of a recessive gene that must be found in both parents to manifest in the child. White tiger mothers can have white and normal-colored babies in the same litter, IIRC. It can happen in the wild, but it is exceedlingly rare, due to the drastically reduced number of tigers that remain in the wild today. Less than 4500 Indian tigers (which includes the subspecies Bengal, which can carry the recessive white genes), 200 Siberians, between 1k and 1850 Indo-Chinese tigers alive in Thailand and Vietnam, and only 500 Sumatran tigers remain in the wild today. (Information from WWF at [http://www.wwf.org.uk/core/wildlife/fs\_0000000034.asp](http://www.wwf.org.uk/core/wildlife/fs_0000000034.asp)) ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2003, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/42 "2003-10-05T12:20:25Z")
Sorry, I find nothing funny about this. Nothing at all. These two guys made it in a tough business. They earned every penny in their velvet pockets. They did it while taking great care of the animals. They are as gutsy as hell, and made it look easy. I do not mock bravery when I see it and I appreciate showmanship too. ---
**Author:** ![Beagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/85f322/32.png) [@Beagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beagle)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2003, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/43 "2003-10-05T14:52:23Z")
Ditto. I’m pretty sure they run a big – quality – breeding program. Eh, no excuses, this is the internet. [_KAZAM_](http://www.pettribune.com/1999/090199/celebrities.html) If it wasn’t for the showmanship and bullshit, tigers would not exist at all. Sorry, that’s reality. Try to tell the Siberians and Indians they should not shoot tigers as their kids get carried off, by whatever. Could be wolves or humans, but tigers will always top the suspect list in those areas. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2003, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/44 "2003-10-05T17:49:32Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by Paul in Saudi_ > \*\*Sorry, I find nothing funny about this. Nothing at all. > > These two guys made it in a tough business. They earned every penny in their velvet pockets. They did it while taking great care of the animals. > > They are as gutsy as hell, and made it look easy. > > I do not mock bravery when I see it and I appreciate showmanship too.\*\* I prefer to mock excessively earnest posts by humor-impaired Dopers who need to lighten up. 🙂 Sorry, dude, but if you get in a cage with a 600lb killing machine with three inch claws and long pointy teeth, and crack a whip in its face, then don’t be too surprised if it gets pissed off and tries to take a ham-sized chunk out you. Furthermore, don’t be too shocked if some people find this vaguely amusing, or even ironic, in an Alanis Morrisette sort of way. And no-one, as far as i can see, was wishing harm on Roy. People were just pointing out what Roy probably knew all along: if you do this sort of dangerous shit, you’re likely to have it bite you on the ass eventually–in the case of tigers, maybe literally. Laughing at something like this does not signify callousness or indifference to suffering. It’s similar to laughing at people who take a fall while doing stupid things on those TV shows like “Funniest Home Videos” or “Maximum Exposure.” When someone whom you don’t know personally does something stupid and dangerous, and suffers the predictable result, then plenty of people find it funny. And it’s possible to find it funny while also hoping that the person suffers no serious, lasting harm. > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Beagle \* > \*\*Try to tell the Siberians and Indians they should not shoot tigers as their kids get carried off, by whatever. Could be wolves or humans, but tigers will always top the suspect list in those areas. \*\* If you think that villagers knocking off tigers suspected of eating children is the main reason for the drastic decline in the world’s tiger population, may i suggest that you look a little more closely into the issue. The WWF link provided by **Cerri** is a good start. A major cause of tiger decline is habitat encroachment, which forces tigers into ever smaller areas, where they encounter one another more often than necessary and have problems finding enough food. And, of course, expanding towns and villages also brings tigers into contact with more people, increasing the chances for death–of both the tigers and the people. New wildlife reserves in India are attmepting to address the porblem, but i a country of almost a billion people, it’s going to be difficult. Even without habitat encroachment, many tigers die at the hands of poachers, who supply the fur to the tourist trade, so that some wealthy fuckwad can walk all over the thing in his living room, or hang it on the wall. Poachers also supply the bones, teeth and other body parts for use in compunds and tonics sold in Taiwan, China and Korea, so that other fuckwads can pretend they have a tiger’s strength by ingesting some of its body. [on preview, i see from your earlier posts that you have worked with tigers before, so you probably already knew all that anyway. :)] As far as Siegfried and Roy are concerned, i’m somewhat conflicted. Their breeding program is a good thing, especially when so few tigers are left in the wild. I also have little doubt that they love the animals and care for them well. I still don’t have much time, however, for the idea of making these creatures jump through hoops. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2003, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/45 "2003-10-05T18:05:13Z")
[http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=215552](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=215552) ---
**Author:** ![vanilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/f19dbf/32.png) [@vanilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vanilla)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2003, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/46 "2003-10-05T20:18:38Z")
I am offended! Really, this poor man puts on a show for people, and the OP insinuates that Roy “beats off” tigers. huff! he does That to Sigfreid! ---
**Author:** ![Beagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/85f322/32.png) [@Beagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beagle)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2003, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/47 "2003-10-05T20:38:34Z")
Making fun of Siegfried and Roy is like shooting ducks in your bathtub. We all do it? Bad example. Anyway… I hope he pulls through. Tiger mauling is one predictible result of their jobs, but Siegfried and Roy have a pretty amazing track record with tigers. The “hoops” part pays for the “breeding” part. I’m not saying tigers love doing shows, but I can’t say they would necessarily hate it. Tigers pretty much have their own ideas about what they want to do, subject to change without further notice. I would love to save tiger habitat. Of course, I live _here._ 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Blonde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@Blonde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blonde)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2003, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/48 "2003-10-05T23:47:33Z")
I’m of the mind that tigers don’t enjoy performing, although they do love playing. Again, while I haven’t heard anything to the effect that S&R abused their tigers, let’s get serious and admit that they are millionaires because of these magnificant felines. It’s sad that we have to keep them in captivity because we’re destroying their natural habitat. ---
**Author:** ![vivalostwages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d07c76/32.png) [@vivalostwages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vivalostwages)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2003, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/49 "2003-10-06T01:14:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by vanilla \* > \*\*I am offended! > Really, this poor man puts on a show for people, and the OP insinuates that Roy “beats off” tigers. > huff! > > he does That to Sigfreid! \*\* My goodness, **vanilla**! He USED to do that. Now they’re just friends and business partners. 😉 Still living in the same house, I believe. Sigmund and Freud? ---
**Author:** ![OxyMoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e9a140/32.png) [@OxyMoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OxyMoron)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2003, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/50 "2003-10-06T03:57:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by mhendo \* > **Furthermore, don’t be too shocked if some people find this vaguely amusing, or even ironic, in an Alanis Morrisette sort of way.** Would that be the way that has **nothing whatsoever to do with any literate person’s definition of irony**?! Sorry, pet peeve. 😃 That song **still** chaps my ass; the only irony is how someone so pretentious could be so skull-crackingly stupid. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Cid\_Viscoso](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/41988e/32.png) [@El\_Cid\_Viscoso](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Cid_Viscoso)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2003, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/51 "2003-10-06T05:40:03Z")
_It’s a black fly in your Chardonnay…isn’t it ironic?_ What _would_ that be anyway? My best guess is cross-chromatic entomo-metaphoric, in the context of the song. Meh. What would be ironic is for Roy to work a long and fruitful career with his cats, then one night after his retirement be suffocated by a tiger rolling over in its sleep. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2003, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/52 "2003-10-06T12:42:46Z")
> [@](#): > > Would that be the way that has nothing whatsoever to do with any literate person’s definition of irony?! Yup! How ironic. ---
**Author:** ![bobkitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c67d28/32.png) [@bobkitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobkitty)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2003, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/53 "2003-10-06T12:43:10Z")
Looks like he’s doing better, in case anyone is still keeping up… [http://www.cnn.com/2003/SHOWBIZ/10/05/roy.attacked/index.html](http://www.cnn.com/2003/SHOWBIZ/10/05/roy.attacked/index.html) As all the other tigers, not in quarantine, sit around quietly singing \*Roy, Roy, Roy, Roy… Roy, Roy, Roy, Roy… Roy, Roy, Roy, Roy Roy Roy Roy Roy… \* ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2003, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/54 "2003-10-06T13:53:11Z")
[Beck] He should have kicked him in the turntables! [/Beck] ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2003, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/55 "2003-10-06T16:56:45Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by OxyMoron \* > **Would that be the way that has nothing whatsoever to do with any literate person’s definition of irony**?! Yup, that’s exactly the way. > [@](#): > > \*\*Sorry, pet peeve. 😃 That song **still** chaps my ass; the only irony is how someone so pretentious could be so skull-crackingly stupid. \*\* Me too. That’s why i take the opportunity to have a dig at her every now and again. ---
**Author:** ![OxyMoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e9a140/32.png) [@OxyMoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OxyMoron)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2003, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/56 "2003-10-06T18:52:24Z")
Oh, good. I assumed that’s what you meant, but I really did want to make sure. And **Matt** got it in one… ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2003, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/57 "2003-10-06T21:29:33Z")
> [@](#): > > Sounds perfectly reasonable to me, except for the part about being in close proximity to a fucking tiger. Well _now_ I understand why the tiger was so pissed off at Roy. ---
**Author:** ![Ms2001](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ms2001/32/18463_2.png) [@Ms2001](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ms2001)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2003, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/58 "2003-10-07T02:50:13Z")
After seeing the Amazing Johnathan’s act and learning, through the magic of puppetry, how close Siegfried and Roy are to their tigers at night, the thread title seems like old news. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Cid\_Viscoso](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/41988e/32.png) [@El\_Cid\_Viscoso](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Cid_Viscoso)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2003, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/59 "2003-10-07T04:54:00Z")
\*\*An update on Roy Horn \*\*[ul]_The tragic incident has left Siegfried without Roy for the first time in more than [30 years](http://story.news.yahoo.com/fc?cid=34&tmpl=fc&in=Entertainment&cat=Siegfried_and_Roy), and now the resort faces tough choices to plug the hole. An MGM Mirage spokesman said the hotel and casino has not yet found a headliner to keep visitors flowing into this prized Las Vegas property. Company officials said [Horn](http://www.kron4.com/Global/story.asp?S=1469292)’s recovery would be long and hard._[/ul]I speak for many Dopers when I wish you a speedy return to the stage, [Roy](http://www.siegfriedandroy.com)! ---
**Author:** ![BoBettie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@BoBettie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BoBettie)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2003, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570/60 "2003-10-07T12:10:01Z")
Larry King did a special on them last night and interviewed other Vegas legends (Penn Gillette, Wayne Newton), as well as employees of the show. It really was heartbreaking- the guy is in bad shape for sure. Sigfried is going to be on King tomorrow night, FYI. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thats-what-you-get-for-beating-off-a-tiger/205570.md?page=2)