Delhi Zoo gets new jaguar

The Delhi Zoo has a new member in its campus now. Visitors will soon be able to see a jaguar which has been brought to the Zoo from the Thiruvananthapuram Zoo.

The male jaguar was brought almost over 20 days back from Thiruvananthapuram and was undergoing regular check-ups before it be released in the Zoo campus.

“This is a regular procedure we follow. Once we bring any animal from an outside Zoo, it is kept under observation of the veterinary physician and checked for any kind of infection or disease,” said Riaz Ahmed Khan, Curator, Delhi Zoo. The jaguar, whose age is around eight, will be kept in the cage in the Zoo campus from Monday.

“It is a gradual process as the animal had a change of state. It will first be released in the cage where it will be given time to adapt itself to the new surroundings. We cannot expose it to the huge number of visitors at once,” said Khan.

The jaguar is likely to be released in the arena for visitors to see it in the next fortnight. With the preparations for the winters in place, the jaguar will now be kept in a cage with heaters and blankets to keep it warm. It will be kept on a diet of eight kilos of meat for now.

The jaguar has been brought to the Delhi Zoo mainly for breeding purpose. The existing two male jaguars are above 10 years and unfit for mating, said Khan.