(MY) Rescued cub to Zoo Malacca

August 13, 2005

Saturday August 13, 2005 - The Star

Rescued cub handed over to zoo

STORY AND PICTURE BY CHIA SHIN HANN

MALACCA: The tiger cub that was rescued from the dinner table by a Good

Samaritan has been named ‘Nicky’ by zookeepers at the Malacca Zoo here.

“We intend to keep the cub here. When she is ready, we are going to

introduce her to the public and put her in our tiger breeding programme,”

said zoo director Mohd Nawayai Yasak.

The zoo received the cub on Thursday from Dr Zainal Zahari Zainuddin of the

Wildlife Department headquarters in Kuala Lumpur.

Nicky was saved from ending up on the dinner table when the Malaysian trade

commissioner to Papua New Guinea, Datuk Dr S.H. Foo, heard from friends on

Monday that the cub had been caught by villagers in Rompin, Pahang and sold

to a Chinese restaurant in Kuala Lumpur.

Worried that the cub was destined for the cooking pot, Foo, through a

contact, bought the baby tiger from the restaurant for an undisclosed sum.

The cub, said to be about three months old, was sent to Foo’s house in Shah

Alam on Tuesday and on the same day he contacted the Wildlife Department.

Asked about the cub’s condition, Mohd Nawayai said: “She looks thin and we

are feeding her. Our in-house veterinarian, Dr Sandy Chong, is taking care

of our new charge.”

Nicky growled and started to chase a photographer of The Star who tried to

snap her pictures.

Earlier, Dr Chong used a blanket to lure her out of her cage.

“As you can see, Nicky is very active and playful,” she said as she

sidestepped the cub, which managed to get a grip on her trousers.

The cub only let go when some Whiskas (a brand of cat food) was put into her

feeding bowl.

Besides the cat food, Nicky is being fed three times a day on chicken wings

and milk.

“Within a month, she should look a lot better,” said Dr Chong.

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