The Laohu Valley Reserve was created in 2002 out of 17 defunct sheep farms,[3][4][5] and efforts to return the overgrazed land to natural status are ongoing.

[7] However, Li Quan and her husband, investment banker Stuart Bray, became concerned that the Vartys were misusing the project's funds to buy land for themselves.

There are people who oppose the project because they are afraid that the tigers, being considered an alien species, will affect the South African biodiversity negatively.

However, the project organisers argue it will not cause such a problem as Laohu Valley Reserve has been converted from 17 pieces of defunct sheep farms that were overgrazed; thus no healthy ecosystems existed there at all.

This is because the defunct sheep farms have been restored and converted into a wildlife reserve that is beneficial to the South African ecosystem.

It takes in land near Philippolis in the Free State section, which consists of approximately 232 square kilometres (90 sq mi) on the northern side, and spans part of the Orange River (including the upper reaches of the Vanderkloof Dam) in the Northern Cape section, which consists of approximately 146 square kilometres (56 sq mi) on the southern side.

[11] At some point in that year, the South China tigers made a quick recovery with the birth of six healthy cubs at Laohu Valley Reserve, most of which are confirmed to be males.

[12] Other than tigers, predators such as African wild dogs (Lycaon pictus), lions (Panthera leo), African leopards (Panthera pardus pardus), spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta), cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus), Nile crocodiles (Crocodylus niloticus), African wildcats (Felis silvestris), caracals (Caracal caracal), bat-eared foxes (Otocyon megalotis megalotis) and black-backed jackals (Canis mesomelas), and herbivorous mammals such as Blesbuck, and plains zebras (Equus quagga), live within the reserve too.

It is also home to birds such as crested guineafowl (Guttera pucherani), Egyptian geese (Alopochen aegyptiaca) and South African ostriches (Struthio camelus australis).

The South China tigers prey on blesboks (Damaliscus pygargus phillipsi), springboks (Antidorcas marsupialis), gemsboks (Oryx gazella), black wildebeest (Connochaetes gnou), blue wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus), common elands (Taurotragus oryx), impalas (Aepyceros melampus), waterbucks (Kobus ellipsiprymnus), common warthogs (Phacochoerus africanus) and cape hares (Lepus capensis).