(CN - HK) Zoo searches for a new big cat

[Guest guest]

South China Morning Post

http://www.scmp.com/portal/site/SCMP/menuitem.2af62ecb329d3d7733492d9253a0a0a0/?\

vgnextoid=6f9e2f7bf1ca7110VgnVCM100000360a0a0aRCRD & ss=Hong+Kong & s=News

 

Zoo searches for a new big cat as Siu Fa begins to feel her age

by Kelly Chan and Cheung Chi fai

Jan 25, 2008

 

The Zoological and Botanical Garden has started looking for a

replacement for its only jaguar, which has almost reached the end of

its life. Visitors to the zoo in Mid-Levels recently reported that a

female jaguar was seen " hobbling along, dragging its hindquarters,

and apparently in distress " in its enclosure.

 

Zookeepers said yesterday that the jaguar might be having difficulty

walking because of overgrown claws in its hind paws.

 

But the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, which manages the

zoo, said the jaguar was suffering from conditions normally

associated with ageing and was being treated.

 

Nicknamed Siu Fa, the jaguar was born in a German zoo in 1987 and was

brought to Hong Kong in 1989. Its male partner, Siu Hak, which was

born in Hong Kong in 1987, died in 2003.

 

Zoo manager Chiu Yuen-ying said the 21-year-old jaguar has already

lived beyond its average life expectancy of 20 years.

 

He said her age was now the human equivalent of a

centenarian. " Because of its old age, it has become less active as

its physical fitness declines, " he said, adding that the jaguar was

still in satisfactory condition with a good appetite.

 

The jaguar was under special care and was provided yesterday with a

heater in its enclosure to keep it warm amid the cold weather.

Caretakers also ensure meat for its meals is free of bones.

 

The jaguar's health is closely monitored by a resident veterinary

surgeon.

 

Meanwhile, the department said it had started looking for a

replacement since last year, adding that it was looking at other

endangered animals apart from jaguars.

 

The department last night said it planned to introduce another

endangered species to maintain the conservation programme of the zoo.

 

A source said the most likely sources of jaguars were from overseas

zoos which also successfully bred the species.

 

Timothy Lam Fung-ngai, senior programme officer of Traffic East Asia,

which monitors the international trade of animals and plants, said

the zoo should not take any animals from non-captive-bred sources.

 

He said releasing the animals in the wild was not a viable option

because past experience indicated many of these animals failed to

adapt to the new environment.