Ontario zookeeper under investigation for allegedly whipping Siberian tiger

The owner of the zoo wherethe tiger in the film Life of Piwas trained is being investigated after video surfaced of him swearing at and allegedly whipping a Siberian tiger at Ontario'sBowmanville Zoo during a training session.

The U.S.-based animal rights group PETA has asked the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals to investigate Michael Hackenberger after a volunteer at the zoo recorded footage that it says constitutes animal abuse.

A three-minute long video posted by PETA on its websiteand a shorter version posted on YouTube on Dec. 22consists of several segments edited together. In it, Hackenberger is seen in a performance ring swearing at and appearing to whipthe tiger named Unowhen it does not comply with the commands of a trainer who he identifies as Madison.PETA alleges he whipped the tiger 19 times.

PETA: Bowmanville zoo owner shown allegedly whipping tiger

"I like hitting him in the face," Hackenbergersaysat one point in the video acomment he says is misrepresented by PETA.

In a response video posted online,Hackenberger acknowledged that the footage of him lashing the animal appears incriminating but disputes PETA's conclusions.

He saidhe whipped the tiger only twice and that the subsequent lashes were tothe ground not the tiger's body.

"A tiger will not lay on the ground and allow itself to be struck as this videotape suggests," he saidin his response. "They'll turn around, they'll try to kill you."

The number of times that the animal was whipped is irrelevant, said PETA'sdeputy director of captive animal law enforcement, BrittanyPeet.

"There is never any excuse for hitting an animal once or 19times. It's cruelty and that's whyPETAis calling on theOSPCAto bring both federal and provincial cruelty-to-animal charges to MichaelHackenberger," she told CBC Newsin an interview.

But Hackenberger saidtheclips don't tell the whole story, adding that volunteer recorded 90 minutes of footage and selectively spliced together only three minutes in which he was disciplining the tiger.

Michael Hackenberger responds to allegations by PETA

"I challenge PETA to release the other footage that they didn't put up," Hackenberger said.

PETA has nowgiven the entire video over to theOSPCA, which confirms it is investigating the allegations. While the OSPCA does not have the power to shut down the zoo, it can remove Uno if itdetermines that the tigeris at risk of immediateharm.

Peetsaidthe behaviour depicted in the video isn't the first instance of alleged animal abuse byHackenberger. TheBowmanvillezoo-owner attracted widespread attention in August for swearing at a baboon during a live televisionappearance.

"Training wild animals to perform silly tricks for human amusement has nothing to do with conservation and everything to do with lining the pockets of cruel opportunists,"Peetsaid.

"It's not about the entertainment value,"Hackenbergersaid. "By bringing these animals out we're able to expand their minds, we're able to expand their environments. And that ultimately is the most important thing we can do for animals in a captive environment."

Canada's Accredited Zoos and Aquariums, which standardizes professional conduct in the industry,says it has seen the edited video and brought the issue to its ethics committee for investigation. It has the power to revoke the Bowmanville Zoo'saccreditation which could mean it could lose itsrelationships with other member zoos.

"The issues raised by the video are serious and require a thorough and fair review," CAZAsaid.

An animal cruelty charge can take up to six months to be laid.

No one from the Bowmanville Zoo was available to speak with CBC News and it is closed for much of the winter. Its website isadvertising30-minute"tiger cub encounters" on weekends until the end of December.