Meet Colorado’s Newest Resident: an Adorable Tiger Cub

If there's one thing we can all agree on, it's that the COVID-19 Pandemic is the only reason we have ever heard of Netflix's Tiger King. The smash-hit documentary about professional tiger keeper and amateur murder-for-hire-er, Joe Exotic, captured the minds of a world with very little else to do during COVID-related lockdowns, becoming one of the first cultural touchstones of the decade.

Say what you want to about giving the illegal exotic animal trade and the sketchy folks who keep it running a platform, but there is one positive that came out of Tiger King's success: increased awareness of the plight of exotic animals kept illegally around the world.

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That's my hypothesis as to why we're hearing about a new resident here in Colorado, even as migration to the Centennial State continues to slow. His name is Duke, and he is an adorable, 4-month-old tiger cub who was recently rescued, after being kept illegally in New Mexico. The Bengal cub was found in a dog crate in Albuquerque last month and has now found a new home here in Colorado.

According to 9News in Denver, our new friend Duke was transferred to the Wild Animal Sanctuary in Keenesburg. If you're curious where his name comes from, well, it turns out that it comes from Albuquerque's city nickname. It's nice to know that, even with all this press coverage, old Duke hasn't gotten too big of a head and forgotten where he came from. Truly, this baby tiger is the exact kind of new celebrity that we can all look up to.

All jokes aside, this is great news. Everyone involved, from the crew at the ABQ BioPark Zoo to the Wild Animal Sanctuary caretakers, deserves major recognition for making this happen. These pros are really looking out for wildlife in the west.