Just over eight months since he was brought to the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP), Suraj, a baby leopard rescued from Ahmednagar, died earlier this week due to an acute illness.
Ten-month-old Suraj along with his sister Tara were found abandoned by their mother in Ahmednagar district, park officials said. They were brought to the SGNP in December 2017 and had been under the care of doctors since then. Suraj was declared dead on Tuesday night.
“According to his caretakers, Suraj started showing signs of restlessness and started vomiting on Monday night. He was taken to the hospital inside SGNP premises and passed away around 9.30 p.m. on Tuesday,” Dr. Sanjay Waghmode, SGNP said.
A post-mortem examination indicated ‘toxemia accompanied by cardio-respiratory complications’ as the cause of death. Dr. Shailesh Pethe, veterinarian at the SGNP said, “He was unable to support both hind limbs. Samples of his viscera have been sent to the Forensic Sciences Laboratory in Kalina for toxicology analysis.”
Dr. Manilal Valliyate, CEO of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, India said, “PETA India are saddened by Suraj’s demise andthank park authorities for trying to save [Suraj]. Though Suraj is no more, we can help other leopards have the best chance at survival by ensuring town planning takes forest protection into consideration and calling forest authorities if a leopard is spotted instead of taking matters into our own inexperienced hands.”