The Bengal tiger is the second largest of the existing tiger species, Siberian tigers being the largest. Males can grow up to 300 kilos while females can weigh about 200-220 kilos. I felt I could step off my elephant directly on to their backs. That is how huge they seemed to me.
I have had the privilege of personally getting to know both Royal Bengal and Siberian tigers. I have seen them grow from cubs to adults and I have stood with them, played with them and even given them a cuddle or two when they were young. I got to do this thanks to friends of mine who run a big cat park and rescue animals from bad breeders or poor zoos and give them lifetime care. Normally, no physical contact is allowed with the animals. However, as I was helping them with ideas of how to make their predator park functional and be a voice for conservation, I was privileged enough to be around the animals. With over eighteen years of experience with wild animals, I have a deep and abiding respect for their strength and their nature, which helped me deal with the often rambunctious cubs. What that did for my understanding of tigers is phenomenal.
I have experienced firsthand just how powerful the muscles under the coat are. I have seen just how impossibly soft yet tough their skin is. Pricked my fingers on those ridiculously large whiskers, each one like a quill, intensely sensitive and sharp along the ends. Rubbed the soft noses and knife-like teeth and claws. I have felt them chuff against my hair, against my mouth as they have butted their heads against mine and rubbed cheeks to say hello. Today, these tigers are over five years old and I don't have physical contact with them anymore but even after a six-month gap, if I go to their vast enclosures and call them, they come running, chuffing, muscles quivering and press their faces against the fence so I might give them a quick kiss. It taught me that they are not just species, but individuals. It taught me that they are not just cats, but Cats. It taught me that they could kill me in under seconds with a swipe of one paw. The wild can be captured, can be captive bred, even trained, but it can never ever be tamed.
(Published with permission from 'Born Wild: Journeys into the Wild Hearts of India and Africa' by Swati Thiyagarajan, Bloomsbury India. Order your copy here.)
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