Protesters picketed outside a South Portland video production company’s offices Saturday, saying a reality television show the company produces glorifies the breeding of captive big cats.

The protesters are upset with the show “Yankee Jungle,” on the Animal Planet channel, which chronicles activities at DEW Haven, an animal sanctuary in Mount Vernon. The sanctuary made headlines last year when tiger triplets were born there.

Protesters picket outside Lone Wolf Media in South Portland on Saturday, objecting to a show on the Animal Planet channel. Gordon Chibroski/Staff Photographer

Kristina Snyder, one of the organizers of the protest, said the show glorifies the breeding of lions, tigers and other big cats.

“They’re just destined to spend their lives in captivity,” she said. “This is not a good thing to be promoting.”

The show is produced by Lone Wolf Media on Cottage Road in South Portland.

In a statement, Lone Wolf Media spokesman Jed Rauscher said DEW Haven is a licensed, not-for-profit animal home.

Rauscher said the owners of DEW Haven, Bob and Julie Miner, have a “profound love of animals” that led them “to dedicate their lives to providing homes for unwanted and discarded domestic, exotic and wild animals, which they’ve been doing successfully for more than 30 years.”

Rauscher said the company’s offices were closed Saturday, and production of the show was not disrupted by the protest.

Snyder, of Concord, New Hampshire, said protesters have also started an online petition asking Animal Planet to drop the show. The petition, which had been signed by 80,780 people as of Saturday afternoon, called DEW Haven “a breeding roadside zoo.” The goal of the petition is to get the backing of 100,000 people by Sept. 30.

A phone call seeking comment from the Miners was not returned Saturday.

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