A hidden camera secretly filmed his living conditions, which prompted law enforcement to intervene, and free him from his life in captivity.
No one deserves a comfortable sanctuary more than this tiger, who reportedly survived a lifetime of abuse with other tigers all within close quarters.
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Hoover was once one of 12 tigers living in a circus in Lima, Peru.
They can be seen in a video by Animal Defenders International living in small cages, and being trained with whips and sticks.
Though sick and emaciated, Hoover soon became the only survivor of his group. According to an Animal Defenders International statement, rescuers believed he would have died if he remained under the care of the circus much longer.
But a hidden camera secretly filmed his living conditions, and it soon became known that the circus was allegedly in violation of Peru's wild animal laws.
The statement reported that the circus workers then went into hiding.
They disappeared into the mountains for eight months until they were reportedly caught in a surprise raid by Peru's wildlife department and Animal Defenders International.
"Hoover was very lucky to survive, his last cage mate had died before we could get to him," Animal Defenders International President Jan Creamer said in a statement.
Hoover was nursed back to health at a nearby rescue as he waited for a permit to be moved to the Big Cat Rescue in Tampa, Florida.
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In the video, he can be seen in a cage loaded onto a plane — the last time this 12-year-old tiger would be living in such a tight space.
Instead, Hoover was welcomed to his new sanctuary, where lounging in plush grass and swimming in a lake would become his new way of life.
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