awwwwwww poor baby :<

Yeah. But I just posted an "after"photo, too. at http://www.furaffinity.net/view/6358505/. He's a "happily ever after" boy now. :)

its so cute

Baby tigers always are! (Even when they're going through some rough times, they still seem to maintain the Cute™). :)

What is a photobooth cub?

Have you ever seen one of these roadside carnivals or some place where you can pay your $20 and get your photo taken with a baby tiger or lion? They'll hand you the cub, often hand you a bottle to keep it distracted (and not biting you), and take a photo of you. There are a few places that do this in a humane and reputable way, but many do not.

A cub can "work" like this for 3 months or so before being capable of doing too much damage to an unsuspecting hand. For places that make their living on photo cubs, they have to keep replacing them rapidly. What happens to all those leftover cubs? Bad scene.

Arthur (the cub in the photo) was starved to keep him smaller and more bottle-focused, so he could work longer. He lucked out that the USDA came to inspect the facility that had him while this was going on. When he came to us as a rescue, he was skin and bones, with horribly poor behavior with people due to bad handling. And he was lucky.

I feel horrible now, when I was like 9 there was a huge tiger that got pictures taken with.

It's possible that you had a photo with a very well-loved and cared for animal. Even if not, no use blaming yourself for what happened years ago. :) I have a photo with a young tiger myself that was a prized possession ... until I learned more about where she came from and how she was exploited. Most people are ignorant of the seedy side of the animal photos trade; that's how it's survives.

Going forward, I tend to ask the hard questions of people I meet who allow public photos with cubs -- even apparently reputable facilities. Where are the cubs from? How long do they work a day? What kind of proper socialization and training are they provided? Where will they go upon retirement? If you're placing them off-site, what standards do you have for retirement sites and how often do you inspect? How often do you bring in new cubs? If they don't have good answers, stay away and save your money. And spread the word that such practices exist so other animal-loving people don't inadvertently contribute to cruelty or neglect.

Poor little guy looks hungry..

He was -- at least a day or two prior he ate half his body weight in meat! We think it was his first experience of actual meat (as opposed to formula).