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SIBERIAN TIGER

In December of 2009, a request for two Siberian tiger cubs for education purposes was sent to Cat Tales.  Leading to April, 2010, and the birth of two boys and one healthy girl from a Siberian tiger named Delilah.  After hand raising for long enough to make sure they were healthy, the boys were sent to Tiger Island in Vallejo, and the girl, Amura, stayed with us.  

As she was just a cub, and now alone, we adopted a Great Pyrenees puppy named Sage to provide her with play, companionship, and bonding.  This education into interaction with the animal world proved invaluable for them both.  Even when they were eventually separated due to their cub and puppy relationship being outgrown.  Sage began work as a security dog for us, and Amura matured beautifully.  

Now she lives besides Tigger and Zorro, enjoying their antics while ignoring them as a big 'sister' would.  
Koshka was born in November 24, 2007 as one of a litter of four.  He and his siblings (Malenky, Sestra, and Tuga) were given Russian names - but while doing research, we came across the word Koshka which translates into 'cat' or 'kitten.'  Despite being 650 pounds, he definitely likes to act like a kitten, making him live up to the perfect name.  In fact one of his favourite activities is the Big Cat Adventure, where he gets hand fed by guests and gets to show off a bit for them.

He loves water in the summer and snow in the winter.  Especially when we build him snowmen that he can knock down and play with.  Though most guests come out during the summer, winter is the prime time to see these animals at their best - playing and going wild in the weather that they were instinctively born to love.  
Malenky was born in the same litter as Koshka on November 24th, 2007.  We knew we found the perfect name for her when we came across Malenky, which means 'tiny' in Russian.  After all, she's the smallest of the litter at only 300 pounds!  Her sweet personality is a perfect mimic of her mother's, making Malenky a staff and student favorite.  Though Siberian tigers are solitary creatures, she does love her fair share of attention.  Be it from guests, staff and students, or even from her next door neighbor and sister Sestra when Malenky gets her to pay attention.  

The birth of Malenky and her siblings was a choice to raise morale in students and staff after the natural losses of many of our older cats.  We anticipated only two tiger cubs from Delilah and Sampson, and so when four were born we were in shock!  With our expectations doubled, we took in and kept all four tiger cubs and have since seen the joy and fascination on our guests and students faces ever since.   
When we first received Delilah and Sampson, they came from a private sector owner facing eviction, and brought two cubs with them.  Juliet, and Romeo.  They were three years of age when they were donated to us.  And while Juliet took well to the adjustments in her life, Romeo proved not to be a people person as much as his sister.  He prefers to live as though he has 'selective hearing,' hearing only what he wanted to and acting aloof all for his own personal protection.  Prior to being donated to Cat Tales, Romeo's former owner would use an air pistol to get him to move from the play yard back to the kennel area.  This popping sound causes him high stress, to the point of refusing to respond to clicker training.  Instead we reinforce his actions with repetition of 'good' and food.

Romeo is not as big as his father or younger brothers, weighing 600 pounds as of maturity, having capped his weight and growth at five years of age.  He lives in his own enclosure, and is a healthy, happy boy.
Sestra is one of the four cubs born on November 24th, 2007.  Her name means 'sister' in Russian, and sister she is indeed to her brothers and sister from the same litter.  As a young cub she was always called 'bouncy-trounsy' just like Tigger from Winnie the Pooh, because when she got extremely excited she could never keep all her paws underneath herself while hopping around!  That's a habit she hasn't yet outgrown, and shows no interest in stopping even as a full grown adult.  

While she was an exceptional tiger growing up, Sestra had the same selective hearing that Romeo does.  Sometimes it was wonderful!  Her favourite thing was going on walks on her leash, and she was able to ignore all the noises around her that sometimes scared the other cubs in training.  But at other times she would just love to ignore anything being said that meant 'walk time is over.'  Our zoo director Debbie was the one who realized that she could coax Sestra back into her enclosure (sometimes just before the guests arrived) by complimenting her and telling her she was the most important tiger in the world.
When our four cubs were born, Tuga was the name we gave the last male.  It means 'fast, with difficulty' in Russian.  At first we weren't sure why we named him this - he was a good cub, who loved playing with Koshka as they grew.  But then came the fateful day that Tuga jumped onto a platform about two feet high.  Koshka immediately tried to follow, and landed with his full weight on Tuga's back leg before it could be moved.  They were separated and Tuga was checked by our staff, a confirmed break in his leg, just above one of the growth plates was found by our zoo director.  Due to this, the veterinarians could not plate or pin the bone.  Their only option was to plaster it in a cast.  

Which lasted until Tuga woke up and kicked the entire thing off with his other hind leg!

Thus began the adventure of casting, and recasting Tuga's broken leg.  He was placed under 24/7 emergency supervision on the enclosures kept besides the zoo director's house.  As it was winter we did our best to provide him with stimulation and distraction, but we soon learned everything is a stimulant to a tiger.  E-collars (the infamous cone of shame) were removed immediately, and all of our attempts to redirect or distracting his need to chew failed.  Finally we used duct tape, almost five rolls of it!  Wrapping the plaster up and keeping a constant eye on him, to the point of pulling twelve hour shifts with little to no bathroom breaks.  In the end Tuga had to be recast three times, including when the wonder Dr. Brian Hunter, DVM came out on Christmas Day.  Thus, we learned why we truly named Tuga 'fast, with difficulty!'

SIBERIAN TIGER

Also referred to as Amur Tigers, these felines are currently only found within the Sikhote Alin mountain range, with a small population in the Primorye Province of Russian Far East.  They formerly stretched across Korea, north-eastern China, east Mongolia and the Russian Far East.  But despite conservation attempts, hunting and encroaching into their natural habitats has indicated that the population, as of 2015, is no higher than the 560's with only one hundred likely cubs.  Similar to the Bengal tiger, the Siberian tiger is an enormous big cat.  They are known to weigh an average of 100 lbs more than a male lion, with weights up to 318 kg (701 lbs) and an estimated average length of 200 - 450 cm (79 - 179 inches) from head through body, and tails around 99 cm (39 inches).  Their fur is coarse, thick, and sparse compared to those of other felids living in Russia, and their colors vary from season to season.  Summer coats are bright and vibrant, while winter coats are rusty and darker.  It's believed that winter coats are softer and silkier than the coarse summer coat so often seen.

While all sizes of prey for Siberian tigers are abundant, it's notable that they seem to prefer hunting smaller prey to something larger with more meat.  This is likely related to the estimated one successful hunt every 7.4 days in summer, and 5.7 days in winter, allowing them to eat more than Bengal tigers do on average.  They prefer hares, rabbits, salmon, deer, and some wild boar.  

​​​If you would like to adopt one of our Siberian  tigers, the cost is currently $120.00 US dollars monthly.  This money takes care of any veterinary check ups, habitat enrichment and feeding - all the things a happy Siberian tiger needs.