Ranchi zoo tiger’s graveyard

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Link: http://www.indianexpress.com/story/8980.html

 

Ranchi zoo tiger's graveyard

Manoj Prasad

 

Gone in 11 days: Disease kills 5 big cats, including a white tiger

 

ORMANJHI(RANCHI), JULY 21:With suspected babesiosis claiming a big

cat at Birsa Munda Zoological Park here yesterday, the zoo has lost

its fourth tiger, all within a fortnight. The toll will reach five

if a leopard which died during the same period is included.

``Tigress Reshma, which had just recovered from the disease,

collapsed last evening and died shortly,'' said Zoo Director Deepak

Singh today. This has prompted the worried zoo officials to call in

two experts from Bhubaneswar.

 

Asked whether the tigress had a relapse of the disease, Singh said

he was awaiting medical reports for confirmation. The fear of a

relapse is worrying the zoo officials as three lions and a tiger had

also recovered from the disease last week.

 

The zoo, located off the NH 33 on the outskirts of the Jharkhand

capital, is now left with three tigers, 10 lions and a leopard. It

had 19 big cats till July 9, the day a tiger died. The next day a

leopard fell to the disease. A tigress died on July 11 and a white

tiger on July 17.

 

Although post-mortem was conducted on the animals, the report had

not yet been made public. Singh said: ``We are yet to get the

reports.'' The zoo vet, Dinesh Kumar, also gave the same reply. Both

attributed the death to babeiosis. The disease affects the blood and

lever of the animal, he said. Its symptoms become apparent when the

animal gives up food.

 

Kumar and Singh were camping at the zoo with food and medicine. The

team is being supervised by GL Ghosh, a veterinary doctor from West

Bengal. The team will shortly be joined by two experts from the

Bhubaneswar Veterinary College. The zoo itself has only one vet for

340 animals.

 

``There is only one zoo doctor and there is a lack of space to

separate the ailing animals from healthy ones,'' said Singh.

Incidentally, a panther had died the day the zoo was thrown open to

public on February 12, 1992. The very next day, a sambar died. In

the past 12 years, more than six dozen animals, including two lions,

five tigers and two leopards have perished.

 

With so many deaths, the half-acre space to dispose of dead animals

is almost full. This has prompted the state forest department to

build an incinerator at a cost of Rs 42 lakh. Soon, the incinerator

will be used to burn the dead animals. —with PTI

 

manoj.prasad