Jaguar Too Fat To Mate Being Sent Back Home

A jaguar who was lent to Delhi zoo in India for breeding purposes is being sent back to his original home because he is too fat to mate according to his keepers. Salman is a twelve year old jaguar that was borrowed from a zoo in the Indian state of Kerala over a year ago. He has shown very little interest in Kalpana the zoo’s female jaguar. His handlers say that he seems more interested in his meals than he does Kalpana.

A lazy glutton

One of his keepers, says the female has been seen trying to attract him however Salman stays in his corner and refuses to respond. Delhi zoo says that during the summer, it feeds its jaguars 6kg of buffalo meat six days a week. Salman’s keepers say that he actually eats more than a tiger and every effort to control his weight through strict diet had not been successful.

“He is lazy, a glutton, just loves to eat and relax,” they said.

Other jaguars have also failed

Zoo keepers have tried releasing him into a larger enclosure however that did not result in any exercise nor did it trigger an interest in breeding. Salman has his supporters who point out that two other male jaguars at Delhi zoo have also failed to provide Klapana with cubs. They argue that the trauma of relocation may be the reason behind the big cat’s lethargy.

Conservation is important

Salman is not the only big cat at an Indian zoo that has shown a lack of interest in mating. Earlier in the year conservationists at Alipore Zoo in Kolkata said that white tiger named Vishal had rejected the advances of a tigress. Vishal had been de-wormed and given vitamins that were supposed to enhance his libido. According to the International Union for Conservation, the jaguar which is native to the Americas are listed as being “near threatened”.