A circus tiger in central China died while being brought back to a zoo after it had escaped from its cage.
According to South China Morning Post, the tiger that was raised in Yuanyang, Henan province, was set to perform at the circus’ first public show at a local school on 6th September. It is reported that the circus’ show had not been registered with local authorities.
Being part of the performance, the tiger managed to escape the cage that it was performing in and ran to nearby cornfields.
A video posted on ThePaper.cn, shows the tiger in the midst of performing with its handlers, when it jumps out of the cage and causes the audience to freak out and run from the venue. The handlers can be seen trying to coax the tiger back inside the cage by using sticks but failed.
Source: ThePaper.cn
Source: ThePaper.cn
The police were immediately contacted after which they began their search for the animal using drones, police dogs and thermal imaging equipment. The authorities also put out an emergency advisory telling residents to stay indoors and to contact police if they have any idea where the tiger is.
After an overnight search, they managed to spot the tiger the next day (7th September) at 10.30am. They then tranquillised the tiger before transporting it back to a zoo in Xinxiang, however, upon reaching the zoo, the tiger was already dead.
Source: ThePaper.cn
One of the zookeepers claimed that “the tiger was hit by a car after it escaped and may have sustained internal injuries”. Meanwhile, the zoo is conducting an autopsy.
News about this incident elicited many responses from netizens, with many expressing their sympathy for the tiger’s suffering, while others called for animal circuses to be banned in China.
Meanwhile, two people from the circus were arrested.
The poor tiger! All it wanted was freedom. 🙁
Also read: There Are Only 23 Tigers Left In Perak Because of Poachers, Might Go Extinct Soon
