A tragic accident left one Amur Tiger dead at Assiniboine Park Zoo on September 25, 2014.
Early in the morning of September 25, a closed gate separating Baikal, the Zoo’s adult male tiger, and two young male tigers was mistakenly left unlocked.
Baikal was able to gain entry to the new enclosure and was confronted by Vasili, one of the young male tigers. The confrontation ultimately resulted in Baikal’s death.
The whole incident took place at an internal gate between enclosures and Zoo visitors were never in any danger.
“This is a tragic event and our staff are devastated,” said Dr. Brian Joseph, Director of Zoological Operations for the Assiniboine Park Zoo. “Baikal had lived at the Assiniboine Park Zoo for over five years and this is a heartbreaking loss for our staff and our visitors.”
The Zoo will conduct a full review of the incident and necessary steps to ensure a similar incident doesn’t happen again.
This is the second time in a few months an animal was able to gain access to another enclosure. Back in July, Wolves were able to dig into the polar bear enclosure at Journey to Churchill exhibit. None of the animals were harmed during that incident.
Baikal was one of four Amur Tigers at Assiniboine Park Zoo. The Zoo’s other Amur Tigers include Kendra, an adult female, and Samkha and Vasili, two-year-old brothers who arrived from the Calgary Zoo last January.
