Extremely rare Amur tiger dies in ‘freak accident’ prepping for dental procedure at zoo

An extraordinarily rare Amur tiger — considered one of handiest about 500 left in the world — died after struggling what zoo officers referred to as a “freak accident” when she won a dose of anesthesia and suffered a deadly spinal damage when she fell off a bench.

The tragedy took place closing Friday at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo — roughly six miles south of downtown Colorado Springs, Colorado — when Mila, a 2-year-old feminine Amur tiger, was once given a dose of anesthesia in preparation for an upcoming dental procedure and she or he “jumped up on a bench where she began to lay down and peacefully let the anesthetic drugs take effect,” officers from the zoo mentioned in their observation saying her dying on Tuesday.

But not up to a minute after mendacity down, Mila slipped off the bench she was once on, which officers mentioned was once handiest waist-high, and suffered what could be a deadly spinal damage.

“It was impossible from a human safety standpoint to stop her tragic fall,” the zoo mentioned in their observation.

“She could have slid off from that height a hundred times and landed in a variety of other positions and been unaffected,” mentioned Dr. Eric Klaphake, CMZoo head veterinarian. “The team quickly entered her den when it was safe and diligently tried for 40 minutes to give her life-saving care.”

“She was making such great progress with us,” mentioned Rebecca Zwicker, animal care supervisor in Asian Highlands at CMZoo. “She was a feisty and intelligent tiger, and the team had been patiently and consistently training with her to help her settle in and feel comfortable in indoor and outdoor spaces behind the scenes. She was getting so close to being out where guests could see her. We were excited to introduce her to our community and for people to fall in love with her here.”

Arriving at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo simply 5 months in the past in March, Mila was once “showing signs she was ready for her own space” after coming to the ability on a long run breeding advice.

But one main factor that was once delaying her creation to the zoo was once a want to cope with a just lately came upon serious dental factor.

“This was not just a cavity; and it could not be left untreated, as it was advancing to her sinuses,” officers from the CMZoo mentioned. “Left untreated, infections like this can be fatal for animals.”

The staff at the zoo have been operating with the younger tiger on “several important husbandry behaviors that would allow her to live a life with lots of choice, autonomy and care at the Zoo,” officers mentioned.

“She was focused on shifting to different areas comfortably and returning to keepers when called,” zoo officers persevered. “Once they realized she needed surgery to treat her dental issue, they prioritized re-establishing voluntary injection training.”

“These are impossible life-and-death decisions being made in real time by a team that has dedicated their life to the care of animals. Do you anesthetize her despite the risks and give her the dental care she needs? Once you see her slipping, you wonder if you can safely get in there to stop a 270-pound tiger from falling completely. How fast can you safely go in and provide rescue attempts?,” mentioned Bob Chastain, CMZoo president and CEO.

“You can plan and plan and things still go wrong,” Chastain persevered. “Our team delivered exactly the right amount of drugs to a very calm tiger who had trained for this moment. We have successfully anesthetized countless tigers in this same den, and have never experienced an accident like this. We never take decisions to anesthetize an animal for a procedure lightly, and this is a tragic example of why.”

Mila is the second one feminine Amur tiger to cross away at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo since 2021 when any other tiger, named Savelli, passed on to the great beyond because of headaches throughout restoration from a synthetic insemination procedure.

The deaths of the 2 tigers are totally unrelated however the zoo mentioned this simply illustrates how the “fragile state of their species is glaring.”

“It is sobering to know that no matter how tragic these events are, that we are losing tigers in the wild every day as these animals, and many like them, struggle to survive in a world where there are so many people and so few wild places,” mentioned Chastain. “And that despite the best professional care that we give these animals, accidents can happen and will happen as long as there is a critical need for conservationists to help highly endangered species survive in human care and in the wild.”

Amur tigers are indexed as being significantly endangered in the wild with an estimated 500 particular person tigers left in the world who’re roaming their local habitats. The numbers in human care at zoos and aquariums approved through the Association of Zoos and Aquariums in the U.S. and Canada are round 100 people.

“We feel a huge responsibility for all of the animals in our care, and we especially feel for Mila, her current and past caretakers and the people … who loved her from her birth as the only survivor in her litter,” mentioned Chastain. “Not only was she an internationally beloved individual who defied the odds as a cub and survived to adulthood, but she was here on a mission to save her own species.”