Panthera Tigris

Shennong the 28th century BCE
We are told
In wine and plasters
Said to be a cure
Arthritis and joint problems
Twas tiger bones then pure
Torrid historic memories
A crisis over bones
So few still roam wild forests
Can you hear their moans and groans
Others kept in cages
In China but we know
Captives medicinally
Their efficacy is low
In 1993 China banned the use
The official pharmacopoeia
And what we have seen
Is lion bones from South Africa
Mis declared, obscene
Practice trophy hunting
Evil criminal gangs
Managing these animals
Which on their evil hangs