A two-year-old male Jaguar that had allegedly been hunted was critically wounded by gunfire. He was discovered earlier this month fighting for his life in the Rio Negro, an Amazon tributary in Brazil.
The Amazonas Military Police’s Environmental Battalion was alerted to the emergency and arrived at the location to rescue the giant cat who had been swimming, according to eyewitnesses, for nearly eight hours; trying his best to tread water and not to drown. Police officers worked from their rescue boat and threw a makeshift life preserver over the side of the boat; the cat grabbed on, even though there was no doubt he was scared and in pain.
The jaguar clung to the preserver while he was slowly towed to shore.
After being sedated, veterinarians confirmed the jaguar had 30 shrapnel fragments.
it’s heartbreaking yet beautiful; that moment when a wild jaguar chooses to trust humans.
Check out the video recorded by the police:
Updates since the jaguar’s rescue:
“… he had surgery 4 days ago, it went well and he is in hospital in recovery. Started eating by itself today and they are waiting to see if the digestive system is working ok. The Jaguar is a male about 2 years old. They would like to release him back to nature if he recovers 100%.”
Update #2
“He is now in an improvised recovery center, with a room and a covered open space to walk. He had almost 40 lead pieces, most of them in the neck and head, 2 in the right eye, and lost some teeth. He is 120 pounds in weight, almost 6 feet length, he is now eating by himself and the digestive system is working. The surgery to remove the lead pieces was successful, the right eye has edema, but the eyesight is expected to recover without loss of vision.”
Authorities continue to investigate the heartbreaking attack. There have been allegations the jaguar had been hunted. How tragic, but this incident highlights the ongoing threat of poaching to jaguars and other wildlife in the Amazon
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