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Tigress who came out of the woods to seek help can be a pet who escaped owners or was thrown out

By Svetlana Skarbo, Olga Gertcyk
27 May 2020

The rare predator was caught after weeks of wandering into a village in Russian Far East.

The rescued Amur tiger cub is 9 to 10 months old. Picture from a trail camera courtesy PRNCO 'Tiger Center'

The young Amur tigress was seen walking close to houses and resting for long hours in back yards of Gornovodnoye village in Primorsky district, and on a side of a motorway. 

The big cat showed no aggression, and no pets or livestock were missing, but the tiger’s presence around humans for nearly three weeks was unnerving for the residents and signalled serious health issues with the animal. The endangered animal was also an easy target for poachers. 

Experts from the regional Hunting Surveillance department hoped that mother tiger would appear, but after two weeks of air and land monitoring they concluded that the cub was orphaned and needed help. 

Amur tigress who came out to people to seek help might be a pet who escaped owners or was thrown out 


Amur tigress who came out to people to seek help might be a pet who escaped owners or was thrown out 


Amur tigress who came out to people to seek help might be a pet who escaped owners or was thrown out 


Amur tigress who came out to people to seek help might be a pet who escaped owners or was thrown out 
The rare predator was caught after weeks of wandering into a village in Russian Far East. Pictures: PRNCO 'Tiger Center'


The tigress was caught on 16 May and delivered to ‘Centre Tiger’ for medical  observation and temporary stay. First checkups showed that the cub had no wounds. Her complete blood count was normal, results of separate virus tests are yet to arrive. 

The cub’s weight is 54 kilogram and despite her looking quite well-fed experts believe she is quite malnourished due to issues with feeding. Her teeth hasn’t changed from milky yet and are in good condition except for two broken incisors. 

The cub’s age was identified as nine to ten months, which is half a year younger than the experts thought earlier. 

What puzzles the Centre Tiger's team is the tigress’s behaviour which continues to be nowhere near as aggressive as it should be with an Amur tiger.  

‘It’s rare to see orphaned tiger cubs in May as normally mothers don’t give up on cubs of that age. Quite likely the tigress was killed by a poacher or died from a natural cause, though it is not impossible that the cub was kept by people before it escaped or was thrown out.

'Certain strange traits in the tigress’s behaviour allow us to think that the cub could have stayed with humans’, said Sergey Aramilev, director of Amur Tiger Centre in the Far East of Russia. 

Amur tigress who came out to people to seek help might be a pet who escaped owners or was thrown out 


Amur tigress who came out to people to seek help might be a pet who escaped owners or was thrown out 


Amur tigress who came out to people to seek help might be a pet who escaped owners or was thrown out 


Amur tigress who came out to people to seek help might be a pet who escaped owners or was thrown out 


PRNCO 'Tiger Center'
The tigress spends most of her time sleeping, the rehabilitation centre team's said. Pictures: Anna Blidchenko/PRNCO 'Tiger Center'


The latest update on the tigress’s health was received on 26 May and suggests that the she is beginning to feel better. The cub still doesn’t drink water and prefers meat broth, her digestive system seems to be working fine, but her behaviour remains unusually calm. 

‘She doesn’t even attempt to get out of the enclosure and spends her days mostly sleeping’, the Centre Tiger team said. 

After the rare cat completes all medical tests, the rehabilitation centre’s team will concentrate on her re-introduction to the wild. 

It will be possible if the tigress will show that her hunting instincts are intact and that her attitude to humans is back to being a lot more cautious. 

ORPHANED AMUR TIGRESS, videos PRNCO 'Tiger Center'


The Amur tiger is the largest of the world’s big cats. About 600 grown up animals - 95% of the world population - live in Primorsky Krai, Khabarovsk regions, Amur region and the Jewish Autonomous region in the Far East of Russia. 

Some Amur tigers live in China and in North Korea. 

Next tiger census in Russia will be held in winter 2021-2022. 

SUPPORT THE TEAM THAT HELPS ENDANGERED AMUR TIGERS IN RUSSIA AND SUCCESSFULLY REINTRODUCES THEM BACK TO NATURE  

Team of  PRNCO 'Tiger Center' have rehabilitated 7 tigers and 1 African lion.

Of them, 6 tigers were released into their natural habitat. Five of them became fully adapted to life in the wild.

The first female Zolushka (Cinderella), which had passed the full course of rehabilitation, was observed with two cubs in December 2015. The tigers Svetlaya (Bright) and Boris, released in 2014, formed a couple. 

The Centre was founded September 19, 2012.

Comments (135)

SHES so Gorgeous. Thank God No one hurt her . It's a shame that people want to harm animals.
Carol , Connecticut
28/05/2020 23:34
13
3
Why do I get an awful sense of foreboding for this completely adorable and SO precious big cat? That she has been safely caught (?) and is being cared for properly (?) is a mixed blessing as she needs to be back out there in the wild and freely interacting with nature and hopefully others of her own kind. But her demeanor clearly suggests she has been around humans for much too long and tigers and humans are NOT meant to share the same space. Not only that but Russia's history of protecting endangered species is dreadful so perhaps a Western project can offer her a safer future. The very best of good luck to you, magnificent Miss Tiger - I do hope your guardian Angel watches over you.
J..J..McCain, U.K.
28/05/2020 23:00
11
4
OMFG, she is so beautiful. How can all humans appreciate such marvel beauty going forward in these uncertain times? Tears rolling down my face as I look at her beauty. How in this universe anyone could harm her is way beyond my understanding.
Tina Gaffney, SC (USA)
28/05/2020 22:11
18
0
how ignorant can somebody be to take something that is supposed to be born in the wild to live free and run free and keep them in captivity in their home. These beautiful creatures have no business being somebody's pet. Thank God the right people came along at the right time to help him or her. I wonder if it can survive in the wilderness because it does seek out the attention of humans and I don't know if it has a dependency on humans instead of their natural instincts.
Christine Hawkins, United States
28/05/2020 22:02
12
3
Is it possible to get an address or other info to send a donation? I'd like to make sure the money goes to the PRNCO tiger center. It's a miracle some poacher didn't get her. Bless you all for your wonderful work in helping these tigers!
Suzanne Janisch, United States
28/05/2020 22:02
13
1
God bless that tiger
John, England
28/05/2020 21:57
4
2
Beautiful and inspirational but very afraid it will somehow deprived of a long and happy life given hideous record of human behaviour towards such splendid fellow earthlings. Big cats like her and her cousins such as leopards, jaguars , cheetahs etc adorned the planet well before Homo Sapiens the most cruel and destructive of all species. May we learn from past and present heinous behaviour and spare these majestic creatues.
Fred Leong, Sydney Australia
28/05/2020 21:49
15
1
That's great pull her out the wild where she hasn't hurt no one and jam her in a 5x5 cage. Ok tiger King
Jj, Detroit mi
28/05/2020 21:41
1
11
In Bharat we respect tigers as a ferocious wild animal which is also quite vulnerable & needs human help understanding to survive. Tiger projects in our country are a success because Bharat has the largest population of tigers in the world & numbers are growing steadily each year.
Sorry to say but Russia with its vast areas & few population has not been a success in conserving their tigers.
Tiger projects world over need to learn from our Conservation dept.
Suddhabrata Karkun, Bharat
28/05/2020 21:28
4
7
I am a cat person and an animal.lover. Thank God she was rescued. I hope she lives her best life possible.
Ana-Maria, Trinidad, West Indies
28/05/2020 21:20
12
0
Please take care of thisvprecious baby, and find her the appropriate home where she can flourish.
Margaret M. Day, Annapolis, USA
28/05/2020 20:56
7
0
I love animals and I have fallen for this beautiful tigress. She is so adorable
Vaibhav Sharma, New Delhi India
28/05/2020 20:50
3
0
Trying to tie this to electronic torture weapons and schemes.
AshleyMBurton, Jones, Louisiana
28/05/2020 20:25
0
3
Wow it's great news which pleases hearts of masses.... Great Work Team
NGP, Pakistan
28/05/2020 20:14
2
0
A star is born !..... Wonderfiul little tiger girl....Hope she will be able to return in the wild ..Thanks to take care of her.
Jocelyne, FRANCE
28/05/2020 20:03
7
0

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