17-year-old white tiger dies at Thiruvananthapuram zoo

Malar, a 17-year-old female white tiger housed at the zoo here, died on Friday due to age-related health complications , officials said.

Zoo authorities said the tiger had been suffering from geriatric ailments and was facing difficulty in eating. She was provided special care, including a soft diet of minced meat, milk and eggs, after being shifted to a separate enclosure last year.

According to Zoo Director Manjula, the tiger’s condition deteriorated over the past week, and she died around 6 am. A post-mortem examination was conducted, following which the animal was cremated in accordance with guidelines laid down by the National Tiger Conservation Authority.

Malar was brought to the zoo in 2014 along with a male white tiger. Officials said the male tiger is healthy and continues to remain on public display at the zoo in Thiruvananthapuram.