Pretoria - The female tiger, named Sheba, which is on the loose after escaping from a property in the Walkerville area, south of Joburg, came back to the property where it was kept, but left before it could be captured.
“Yes, she returned to the camp this morning at 4am, according to the owner. She (tiger) returned but she escaped before they could close her in,” Gresham Mandy, of the Walkerville Community Police Forum told IOL.
The search is still ongoing, with the tracking teams stating that they know the area where the big cat is.
A 37-year-old man was hospitalised over the weekend after being attacked by the animal. The man’s dog was killed by the feline.
Mandy has previously told broadcaster Newzroom Afrika that the search had resumed with “quite a few drones” and boosted by a police helicopter supporting the teams searching for the tiger.
“As of yet, we still haven’t found her. We still do not have leads on where she could be, so we are going on whatever is coming out there with regards to where she could be,” he said.
He said several animals have been attacked by the tiger.
“From what we know, she killed a dog on Saturday. She killed a fallow deer, not a reindeer. What happened yesterday (Sunday); she killed a pig. She didn’t eat the pig. She killed the pig, and she left that pig.
“Obviously, she also attacked that male, the 39-year-old (man) that is in hospital at the moment.
“She has attacked two dogs. The one wasn’t killed immediately. It had to be euthanised by the NSPCA. This is what has been uncovered so far,” said Mandy.
He said that without creating panic, residents in the area should be vigilant.
“We don’t want to create panic out there, but she is a wild animal, even though she was kept in a domestic environment. We would caution everybody within the surrounding area. If you see her, don’t climb out of the car to try and pursue. It would be reckless for you to do that.
“Rather call it in. You can call 10111. If you have numbers of the local CPF or the law enforcement in this area, you must let us know immediately because this is going to help us narrow our search and bring in this animal without having to kill it.
“The plan is to dart her and take her to a sanctuary,” he said.
IOL