Do tigers like catnip? The answer depends upon the individual tiger. Some domestic cats don’t respond to catnip and most tigers do not respond to catnip. Big Cat Rescue (BCR) state that tigers respond to catnip but they do mention that some tigers don’t. They give their big cats catnip and see their reaction and therefore they have first-hand experience.
“One of the best times of the week is when we give the cats a paper bag with a handful of catnip inside and watch them rip it apart for the aroma. Our cats act dizzy, just like yours.” – Big Cat Rescue.
A research study published on BMC Veterinary Research says that most of the Pantherinae respond to catnip when it produces a euphoric reaction. In terms of the classification of the wild cat species Pantherinae are a subfamily of cat which includes: the tiger, lion, jaguar, leopard, snow leopard, clouded leopard and Sunda clouded leopard. Therefore on the basis of this study all these cats may respond euphorically to catnip. BCR also state that bobcats, pumas, lynx also respond to catnip. They also refer to the ‘jungle lion’ liking catnip but this must be slang of some sort. I don’t know of a jungle lion and I know the wild cats.
The point though is that some individual cats don’t like catnip and that would apply across the board whether one is referring to wild or domestic cats.
