Standing outside the cage of an already agitated Basanti— a captive tigress known for her aggression in Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP), Neville Buck muttered few things and made few strange facial expressions thereby calming the big cat and leaving the top forest officials from SGNP in awe of his art.
Buck who began the first of his three-day training sessions on Monday for SGNP forest staff has been successfully managing several species of wild cats in captivity at Port Lympne Wild Animal Park in Kent. In a detailed presentation about his work, he emphasised that one of the most essential aspects of his job has been to understand and bond with the animal he is dealing with.
"The best way to keep the captive wild cats engaged and active is through right kind of enrichment in the enclosure as well as by feeding them by making them find their food. We had a one-eyed rusty spotted cat and we used a simple 'feeding-puzzle' in which we used to hide a dead rodent and let it find its food," shared Buck.
Praising the forest staff, Veterinary officer as well as the animal keepers at SGNP, Buck said that he was delighted to see the efforts being put in by them as all the animals were in good health and kept in good conditions. "It's not feasible to simply replicate UK practices in Mumbai as it's a different climate and geography. This three-day exercise is more about sharing my experience and knowledge and finding the right ideas that can be put to use here," said Buck who on Monday visited the present enclosure and understood the day to day management of rusties at SGNP.
During his elaborate presentation on his work, Buck also clarified that at times breeding does not take place as the female might reject the male or likewise, which needs to be understood and managed. "While I am here to share my experiences I am also learning so many things including how officials at SGNP have a good record of hand raising wild cats and now there will be a lot of knowledge sharing between us in the future," shared Buck.