An eight-year-old Bengal tiger died at Delhi zoo on Friday due to kidney failure, officials said. The big cat, named Rama, died around 3 p.m. on Friday. A blood report stated that very high phosphorous content and creatinine levels impacted the functioning of kidneys, a zoo official said.
The tiger, which was brought from the Mysore zoo in 2014, had been unwell since July 27 and had not been eating enough. It had become very weak, another official said.
Central Zoo Authority (CZA) member secretary S.P. Yadav had on Friday morning constituted a three-member committee to “inquire into the circumstances leading to the ill-health” of the Bengal tiger, according to the officials.
The average lifespan of a tiger is around 20 years in captivity. The tiger attacked a zookeeper, Fateh Singh, on September 10 when he had gone to fill its water bowl.
A team of veterinary officers from Mathura and Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Bareilly, had been treating the feline, the officials said.
