Chennai, Jan 2 (IANS) The Anamalai Tiger Reserve (ATR) has sought permission from the Tamil Nadu Chief Conservator of Forests to provide lving sambar and spotted deer to a tiger that has a dental problem and is in captivity at ATR for the past one year.
Permission is sought from Chief Wild Life Warden Srinivas K. Reddy to capture deer and provide them to the tiger so that it hunts it down at the enclosure in Mandrimattam, Valparai, where it has been lodged for the past year after its dental surgery.
ATR officials have already submitted a proposal to the chief Wildlife warden to grant permission to capture Sambar and spotted deer for the tiger so that it can hunt it down in the enclosure. The tiger which is recouping from surgery is not hunting now and is eating rabbit meat, beef, and chicken. This, according to ATR officials will reduce the hunting capacity of the tiger and will be difficult for it to survive in the deep forest to catch prey once it is relocated to the forest.
Sources in ATR told IANS that the tiger is active and is spending time in a cave in the enclosure and drinks 2 to 3 liters of water and eats around 6 to 7 kg of meat. The meat that it consumes is not adequate for the big cat to survive and hence the proposal to hunt down sambar or spotted deer.
Despite being in captivity for a year, the tiger is maintaining good health except for the dental issue, which is now much better.
An officer with the ATR told IANS that the tiger has to now resume hunting its prey and for supplying living animals to the tiger in an enclosure, permission is required.
–IANS
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