We’ve all heard about emotional support animals—dogs, cats, maybe even the occasional parrot or miniature horse. These animals provide comfort to people struggling with mental health issues like anxiety or PTSD. But in Nevada, one man took that concept to a whole new level.
On Wednesday, April 3, authorities in Nye County, Nevada, executed a raid on the property of 71-year-old Karl Mitchell in the unincorporated town of Pahrump, about 50 miles west of Las Vegas. A SWAT team entered the property after Mitchell refused to voluntarily release the tigers. He was arrested that morning on charges of resisting arrest and being a felon in possession of a firearm, according to the Nye County Sheriff’s Office.
A handgun was reportedly discovered in his bedroom, and Mitchell was taken into custody just before 8 a.m. Records show he was released later that evening.
Sheriff Joe McGill told KSNV, that the investigation had been ongoing for months, but that county officials had been aware for years that Mitchell was housing big cats. However, McGill clarified that Mitchell had been without proper permits for at least two years. “We have known for several years he has had big cats on his property,” McGill said, “and for the last two years, this has been in violation because he had no permits for those cats.”
In an interview with The New York Times conducted over the phone on Sunday, April 7, Mitchell said he is a veteran with PTSD and that a Department of Veterans Affairs doctor had authorized the tigers as emotional support animals . He even shared what appeared to be a letter from the VA doctor. However, these claims couldn’t be confirmed.
“They give me calmness, peace,” Mitchell further, told the New York Times. “They are our whole life, and they’re our children.”
The Nye County Sheriff’s Office declined to confirm whether the animals were indeed designated as emotional support animals, nor would they comment on the condition in which the tigers were found. However, some reporters have quoted activists present at the site, saying that the tigers were living in poor conditions.
Mitchell also claimed that three or four of the tigers came from Joe Exotic—the infamous Oklahoma zookeeper featured in Netflix’s 2020 docuseries Tiger King. But Joe Exotic, whose real name is Joseph Maldonado-Passage, denied the claim in a public statement posted to social media: “None of these tigers came from me.”
Maldonado-Passage is currently serving a 21-year federal prison sentence for attempting to orchestrate a murder-for-hire plot against animal rights activist Carole Baskin.
Mitchell’s history with big cats goes back decades. He said he once ran an operation called Big Cat Encounters, which trained tigers for film and television ads. That business, he told the New York Times, hasn’t been active in over 20 years.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture repeatedly cited Mitchell for violating cease-and-desist orders, including instances where he allegedly charged visitors for photos or petting sessions with the animals. In 2009, one of his tigers appeared on a Paris Hilton reality show, where it was filmed being petted by cast members. By 2010, Mitchell and his business had racked up $68,000 in federal fines.
As of now, the final fate of the tigers rests with the courts. But their rescue marks another flashpoint in the long and controversial saga of private big cat ownership in America.
On Wednesday, April 3, authorities in Nye County, Nevada, executed a raid on the property of 71-year-old Karl Mitchell in the unincorporated town of Pahrump, about 50 miles west of Las Vegas. A SWAT team entered the property after Mitchell refused to voluntarily release the tigers. He was arrested that morning on charges of resisting arrest and being a felon in possession of a firearm, according to the Nye County Sheriff’s Office.
A handgun was reportedly discovered in his bedroom, and Mitchell was taken into custody just before 8 a.m. Records show he was released later that evening.
Sheriff Joe McGill told KSNV, that the investigation had been ongoing for months, but that county officials had been aware for years that Mitchell was housing big cats. However, McGill clarified that Mitchell had been without proper permits for at least two years. “We have known for several years he has had big cats on his property,” McGill said, “and for the last two years, this has been in violation because he had no permits for those cats.”
In an interview with The New York Times conducted over the phone on Sunday, April 7, Mitchell said he is a veteran with PTSD and that a Department of Veterans Affairs doctor had authorized the tigers as emotional support animals . He even shared what appeared to be a letter from the VA doctor. However, these claims couldn’t be confirmed.
“They give me calmness, peace,” Mitchell further, told the New York Times. “They are our whole life, and they’re our children.”
The Nye County Sheriff’s Office declined to confirm whether the animals were indeed designated as emotional support animals, nor would they comment on the condition in which the tigers were found. However, some reporters have quoted activists present at the site, saying that the tigers were living in poor conditions.
Mitchell also claimed that three or four of the tigers came from Joe Exotic—the infamous Oklahoma zookeeper featured in Netflix’s 2020 docuseries Tiger King. But Joe Exotic, whose real name is Joseph Maldonado-Passage, denied the claim in a public statement posted to social media: “None of these tigers came from me.”
Maldonado-Passage is currently serving a 21-year federal prison sentence for attempting to orchestrate a murder-for-hire plot against animal rights activist Carole Baskin.
Mitchell’s history with big cats goes back decades. He said he once ran an operation called Big Cat Encounters, which trained tigers for film and television ads. That business, he told the New York Times, hasn’t been active in over 20 years.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture repeatedly cited Mitchell for violating cease-and-desist orders, including instances where he allegedly charged visitors for photos or petting sessions with the animals. In 2009, one of his tigers appeared on a Paris Hilton reality show, where it was filmed being petted by cast members. By 2010, Mitchell and his business had racked up $68,000 in federal fines.
As of now, the final fate of the tigers rests with the courts. But their rescue marks another flashpoint in the long and controversial saga of private big cat ownership in America.
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