9-year-old leopard in enclosure since 2010 dies in SGNP

A nine-year-old male leopard, Bhim, died of cardiac failure at the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) early on Monday.

A nine-year-old male leopard, Bhim, died of cardiac failure at the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) early on Monday.

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A post-mortem conducted by pathologists from the Mumbai Veterinary College said prima facie the cause of death was acute cardiac failure at 7.30am, and tissue samples were sent for further examination.

SGNP director and chief conservator of forest Anwar Ahmed said, “We can only say that Bhim died of a heart attack. Reasons for it, as of now, are only conjectures. According to our CCTV, Bhim was healthy over the weekend. Obesity could have caused the sudden heart attack, but nothing can be said for sure.”

Dr Shailesh Pethe, senior veterinarian at the park, said Bhim may have died due to obesity. “The appropriate weight for big cats should be 50kg, while Bhim was a little over 60kg. He had been kept on a diet with regular exercise within the enclosure. However, over the past one year, he started gaining weight.”

The veterinarian said that leopards in captivity lead a sedentary lifestyle as opposed to big cats in the wild hunting for prey. “Even we have an enrichment area for these big cats, they have lived in captivity since they were rescued as cubs and confined to a limited area. They do not burn their calories leading to fat deposition. These animals, after a certain age, are prone to cardiac problems which is not true for free-ranging animals,” he said.

Bhim was rescued from Shahpur in Thane as a cub, along with brother Arjun, and raised as an orphan cub at SGNP’s rescue centre since 2010. After Bhim’s death, there are now nine leopards – six male and three female at SGNP. The average lifespan of a leopard is 12 to 14 years in the wild, and in captivity it lives up to 14-16 years.

“For the past nine years, we took care of him and only isolated incidents of leg pain were witnessed. Ten days ago, Bhim had puked, but medicines had helped restore his health. However, Monday’s incident was sudden,” said Pethe.

In May 2017, Union minister Ramdas Athawale had adopted Bhim by paying for his upkeep under the park’s adoption policy. “I am extremely saddened by the loss of Bhim, as he was the strongest among all rescued leopards at SGNP. However, park authorities should have paid more attention to his health,” he said.

Meanwhile, Republican Party of India (RPI) party workers have planned a protest on Tuesday at 3pm outside the SGNP main gate.