Lions and Tigers Can Legally Live in Ontario Backyards, but No One Knows How Many Big Cats the Province Has

TORONTO — Residents of Ontario can legally keep lions and tigers in their backyards, but neither the province nor federal authorities can say how many of the dangerous predators are being kept in captivity, a CBC News investigation has found.

Ontario is the only province in Canada with no licensing or permit system for keeping non-native wild animals. That leaves individual municipalities to decide which species residents may own.

The result is a patchwork of local rules that critics say allows dangerous animals to move from town to town with little oversight.

'Leave my vehicle running'

In Wainfleet, a rural township about 43 kilometers (27 miles) southwest of Niagara Falls, exotic animals became such a persistent problem that local officials wrote their own rules in 2018.

Enforcing those rules falls to Mark Tardif, the township's chief bylaw officer. He said he has dealt with a wide range of exotic animals, including about five or six tigers, a jaguar, lemurs, kangaroos and water buffalo.

"Snakes, unfortunately, lots of snakes," Tardif told CBC News.

Among his cases were dozens of animal escapes from a roadside zoo called Ringtail Ranch. This spring, he dealt with a resident who kept several tigers on a local property.

Tardif said he plans an escape route whenever he responds to calls involving big cats.

"I usually leave my vehicle running and the door open, in case I have to bolt," he said.

He said his protective vest was not designed for such encounters. "I don't know how well this would hold up on a tiger bite," he said.

No provincewide records

Wainfleet requires owners to register exotic animals with provincial animal welfare authorities. However, CBC News found it difficult to get a clear picture of exotic animal ownership across the province.

When CBC News requested records of complaints and seizures involving privately owned big cats from January 2020 to May 2026, Ontario's Ministry of the Solicitor General said the information was not kept in a single database. The ministry estimated it would cost 1,050 Canadian dollars, equal to 35 hours of search time, to gather the records.

The ministry also said the Ontario Provincial Police has no classification system for incidents involving "exotic or dangerous animals."

A freedom-of-information request to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police returned no records.

The only federal agency that tracks big cats, Environment and Climate Change Canada, said two live tigers were imported into Ontario between 2022 and October 2026. The department said tracking ownership transfers, births and deaths after import is typically the responsibility of provincial authorities.

Critics warn that emergency responders could arrive at a property without knowing a lion or tiger is present.

'A giant gap'

Kendra Coulter, a professor at Western University's Huron University College who leads its Animal Ethics and Sustainability Leadership program, said Ontario has no system to track who keeps big cats, where they go or how many are born in the province.

"This is a giant gap that needs to be addressed," Coulter said.

Coulter said the lack of rules has allowed "covert networks" to develop, in which people buy, sell and give away dangerous animals. She said law enforcement officials have told her some of the trading happens online, often in code. CBC News said it had not independently confirmed that animals are traded through coded listings.

In 2020, Coulter and her research team reviewed the bylaws of all 444 Ontario municipalities. They found that half made no mention of owning non-native wild animals.

"You move 15 minutes west into the next county and there's no prohibitions," she said. "You can keep a tiger in your backyard."

Moving from town to town

Critics say local bans often push the problem elsewhere rather than solving it.

Ringtail Ranch's animals left Wainfleet in 2018. The owner resurfaced in Grand Bend, in southwestern Ontario, in 2019, and moved to Maynooth, in southeastern Ontario, the following year after clashing with local officials.

In 2022, four of the ranch's lions killed and ate a tiger. The owners were allowed to choose where the surviving animals would be relocated.

Ministry spokesperson Brent Ross said the animals "were rehomed in appropriate settings to ensure their well-being," adding that their location remains confidential.

Erin Ryan, wildlife campaign manager at the animal welfare group World Animal Protection, said municipal bylaws cannot ensure animals end up somewhere safe.

"They simply pack up shop and just move somewhere else where there isn't a bylaw," Ryan said. "Municipal rules can force an owner to move. They don't establish whether the next property is equipped to take the animals."

Owners reluctant to speak

Exotic animal owners rarely discuss the issue publicly. CBC News contacted two private owners and Bervie Zoological Park, a roadside zoo near Kincardine, all of which recently had big cats seized by provincial authorities. None agreed to speak on the record.

Seized animals are often handed over to accredited zoos. Some zoo representatives said they feared confrontations with owners trying to reclaim their animals.

Peter Klose, owner of Jungle Cat World Wildlife Park in Clarington, said in an email that zoos and wildlife facilities "should be subject to provincial third-party oversight to ensure high animal welfare standards."

Stalled legislation

In 2025, Liberal lawmaker Karen McCrimmon introduced Bill 35, a private member's bill that would require zoo licenses, annual inspections and records of births, deaths and transfers of non-native animals. Existing owners would be allowed to keep their animals but would have to register them.

The bill has not moved past first reading since May 29, 2025, according to the Ontario legislature's website. McCrimmon's office told CBC News the bill remains "in limbo."

Tardif declined to say whether Ontario needs new rules.

"It makes everyone's job hard, but these are the tools we have to work with and the legislation we have to work under," he said.