Auckland Zoo's last remaining Sumatran tiger Berani put down

Tuesday, 30 July 2019

Tigers at Auckland Zoo enjoy a number of activities to keep their lives interesting (video first published in 2016).

A beloved tiger has been put down at Auckland Zoo after suffering a chronic illness.

Auckland Zoo said a 'very difficult goodbye' to its Sumatran tiger, Berani, on Monday.

He had to be euthanised after efforts to treat him didn't work, the zoo said in a statement.

Berani was 11-year-old when he was put down on Monday.

The death leaves the zoo with no tigers as Berani's mother, Molek, died in late 2018.

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Berani was born at the zoo in 2008 along with his two siblings Cinta and Jalur.

The zoo said Berani, which means brave in Malay, was born at the zoo in June 2008 with his siblings Cinta and Jalur.

They were part of an international breeding programme for the critically endangered animals and were the first tigers born at the zoo since it opened nearly 100 years ago.

The zoo said its staff had been closely monitoring the 11-year-old tiger since he began to show signs of discomfort and stress as the beginning of the year.

'Over the past three to four months, he began to show symptoms of a more serious illness – including loss of appetite, diarrhea, weight loss, and further changes to his behaviour,' the zoo said.

'Berani underwent two separate health checks under general anaesthetic with our vet team in May, which included an ultrasound and endoscopy.

'Some inflammation of Berani's small intestine was discovered, but no diagnosis could be made.'

The best treatment was given to Berani, the zoo said, but the tiger's quality of life continued to decline.

'Initial post-mortem results have been inconclusive, however some of the treatments Berani received are likely to have masked some of the physical signs of disease,' the zoo's senior vet Dr An Pas said.

'All the symptoms point to an underlying clinical issue. It can be frustrating and upsetting, but sometimes we encounter disease that we can neither diagnose nor successfully treat. We hope that further analysis of his histology will reveal more.'

Team leader of carnivores Lauren Booth said she had been caring for Berani since he was born.

He was a very handsome tiger and a 'real sweetheart', she said.

'It's heartbreaking for us that Berani will not now get to experience the incredible new home being built for tigers at the zoo, that was, to a great deal, designed with him in mind,' Booth said.

'Berani was an amazing ambassador for his species and we know his legacy will live on in the many millions of people who were lucky enough to see and connect with him, while he shared his life with us here at Auckland Zoo.'

Typically, Sumatran tigers live in the wild for 10-15 years and up to 20 years in zoos.