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Nandankanan tigers develop wounds after
being administered Triquin injections

Over a dozen felines of the Nandankanan Biological Park and Zoo in Bhubaneswar have developed wounds after being administered Triquin injections for immunisation against various diseases by the authorities.

"Some of the affected felines were taken to hospital for treatment and some of them sent back to their enclosures after showing signs of improvement," sources said.

A zoo official told rediff.com that some tigers, including three felines, fell seriously ill after being administered Triquin injection recently. They are Janhabi, Prakash, Jagdish, Tapan, Rohit, Lalita, Tanuja and two cubs.

While Tapan is seriously ill and under treatment, others have been released into their enclosures.

The animals are brought from their enclosures to the hospital in a cage, which is too small for the animals. Restless, they rub their paws against the walls of the cage, hurting themselves, often breaking their nails, in the bargain.

At the same time, their handlers force the animals into the cage by poking them with iron rods or pulling their tails. This irritates the animals, who bite the sidebars of the cages, sometimes breaking their teeth in the process.

Some zoo staff opine that the animals should be administered some oral vaccine instead of Triquin injections.

However, veterinary surgeon Ranjit Samantray said Triquin was a powerful dose in the opinion of eminent animal experts.

Generally, this injection is administered in the upper and lower parts of the tail, foot and in the abdomen. After receiving the injection, animals generally feel weak and do not take any food on the same day and the day after. Salivating and developing wounds are known side affects, which disappear on further treatment , said Samantray.

Sources said that three tigers Bhagat, Jagat and Swagat were administered Avil tablets to prevent side affects.

According to sources , 34 out of the total 36 tigers and 40 out of the 41 lions in the zoo had been administered Triquin injections recently.

Initially, one of the lions developed a wound around the spot where he had been administered the injection while another seemed restless.

Later, tigers Bisakha and Bhagat developed wounds. However, their condition improved after medical attention.

Last July, 13 tigers, including rare white tigers, died after being administered Triquin injections. Later, a probe concluded that the mishap occurred due to the negligence of zoo authorities.

A dozen felines were shifted to zoos in Andhra Pradesh last year in view of overcrowding in Nandankanan.

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