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WATCH: Tiger Jumps National Geographic Photographer In Broken Arrow

BROKEN ARROW, Okla. (KFSM) —  On Thursday (Dec. 26), National Geographic released a video on their Instagram showing a tiger-mix at Safari Sanctuary in Broken A...

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BROKEN ARROW, Okla. (KFSM) —  On Thursday (Dec. 26), National Geographic released a video on their Instagram showing a tiger-mix at Safari Sanctuary in Broken Arrow jumping a photographer.

Steve Winter was on assignment in Oklahoma working on a project called "The Tiger Next Door," a story on captive tigers in the U.S.

Winter was taking photos of Langely, an 18-month-old lion-tiger mix, who was discarded after he grew too big and dangerous at Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park in Wynnewood, Oklahoma.

During the photoshoot, Langely charged Winter in a playful manner.

Winter was not hurt.

Safari Sanctuary is no longer open to the public.

View this post on Instagram

Video of @stevewinterphoto by Nick Ruggia | I was jumped by a 275-pound "ti-liger” on assignment in Oklahoma while working on “The Tiger Next Door," a story on captive tigers in the U.S. for the December issue. Langely, an 18-month-old lion-tiger mix was discarded after he grew too big and dangerous for cub-petting and photo ops at Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park. He was adopted by Safari Sanctuary in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, where he's lived inside a house and is walked around the property on a leash like a pet. He was still young and playful—and charged me when I was squatting to photograph him. I was unhurt. Safari Sanctuary is no longer open to the public. My experiences with shooting this story raised many questions. Most people don’t know that there are more tigers living in captivity in the United States than still survive in the wild; visitors are wrongly led to believe they’re helping conservation when they visit these attractions. Tigers that are crossed with lions have very serious health problems; these two species do not interbreed in nature, and this is done strictly to attract tourists. There are also public safety issues: there is no national law on big cat ownership and Oklahoma has no state law on owning big cats. The Big Cat Public Safety Act, currently in the U.S. Senate and the House, would better protect both animals and the public. Words by @stevewinterphoto.

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