World's biggest tigers on killing rampage as Putin rescues them from extinction

28 January 2024 , 22:13

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An Amur tiger, the world's biggest cat, is seen moments before killing a guard dog (Image: social media/e2w)

Villagers and pets in Russia have been both injured and killed in a spate of attacks by some of the world's largest cats.

President Vladimir Putin pioneered the rehabilitation of the giant Amur tiger years ago, moving it into its natural habitat in the east of the country.

However numbers of the endangered species have rapidly risen, with over 750 of the big cats, which can weigh up to 30 stone, living in the wild - proving a threat to locals. In December, a man named Viktor S was viciously mauled and killed by a beast after his dog was eaten by the same animal, the latest of several attacks on humans.

The man had “gone to look for the place where the dog was killed” in Ober village, Khabarovsk region, said his wife. A trace of blood was seen in the snow. "We express our sincere condolences to the relatives and friends of the deceased," said a statement from the Amur Tiger Centre, in charge of the attempt to save the species in Russia. Now shocking videos show a spate of attacks on guard dogs by prowling Amur tigers.

(social media/e2w)

‌In one case, a tiger killed a trained guard dog at a Russian border post with China in sprawling Khabarovsk region. This weekend a tiger killed a guard dog in the village of Kutuzovka, south of Khabarovsk city, then another was eaten, likely by the same big cat in Srednekhorskii village, some 25 miles away.

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‌In neighbouring Primorsky region, a house guard dog was savaged in Kuguki, north of Vladivostok. Earlier this month a heavyweight 60kg guard dog was killed in the Anuchinsky district of Primorsky region.

Last month there were tiger attacks on dogs in at least three villages. In an extraordinary case last year, a wild tiger jumped through a window of a remote house to attack 19-year-old fisherman Sergey Kyalundzyuga in eastern Russia. The beast - apparently hungry and emaciated - smashed the glass as it pounced, seriously wounding the man. His cousin grabbed a gun and shot the animal in Khabarovsk region.

(social news / east2west news)

One of the Amur tigers that reportedly killed ten house guard dogs (social media/e2w)

‌One theory is that the natural habitat of the tigers is being destroyed by man, meaning the beasts cannot find their usual prey. Poaching remains a threat to the tigers, and almost drove them to extinction in the wild in Soviet times.

“In my view, [increased tiger attacks are] associated with the destruction of the predator's habitats due to logging, excessive hunting of [the tiger’s prey] and African swine fever, which has decimated the remaining wild boar population," said zoologist Sergei Kolchin in environmental news outlet Kedr.

Will Stewart