WARNING: DISTRESSING CONTENT: Firmin was 95 per cent blind when he came under the care of La Tanière Zoo Refuge, and he has recently undergone surgery due to “perforating ulcers in one one”
A tiger left blind by constant camera flashes has had his eyelids sewn shut to offer him another chance at life.
Firmin was 95 per cent blind when he came under the care of La Tanière Zoo Refuge in 2019, having been rescued, alongside his sister, Pam, from a life spent as an attractional animal in Spain.
Sadly, due to the flashes from tourists’ cameras, the tiger has lost the majority of his sight, and once he entered France, it only deteriorated further and he then had to be enucleated, which means removing the eye from the eye socket or orbit.
Patrick Violas, the co-founder of La Tanière Zoo Refuge, said: “When he arrived, Firmin was already 95% blind. He was very thin because, obviously, these animals there, when they are only used to make money, not many people take care of them.”
Firmin underwent his first operation back in 2021, but they recently discovered “perforating ulcers in one of the eyes” and the formation of glaucomas, according to Patrick, reports 20 Minutes.
It led to them quickly arranging a follow-up surgery for January 15th, with vet Laurent Bouhanna deciding that to help Firmin avoid any more pain, the best course of action would be to remove his eyes and sew the lids shut.
Firmin, who was involved in photoshoots when he was young and is reportedly accustomed to being blind after being used for the purposes of entertainment, underwent the procedure to address the risk of infection.
In other recent news, a UK zoo has been forced to up its security efforts after its gorilla enclosure experienced a number of break-ins, following the emergence of “false information” that the animals had been abandoned.
Multiple break-ins were reported by the Bristol Zoo Project at the now-closed Bristol Zoo Gardens site in Clifton, with trespassers reportedly entering the enclosure.
Thankfully, the intruders were unable to get close to the gorillas who live in the premises, but zookeepers said it could be “really distressing” for them. The gorillas are set to move to a new habitat at the Bristol Zoo Project this year.
In comes as Colchester Zoo played host to traumatic scenes earlier this month when a rhino attacked and killed a zebra in an enclosure they shared, with visitors watching the incident in horror.
In a statement, Colchester Zoo said: “At approximately 2pm today (10th Jan) there was an incident in our mixed species African habitat between a rhino and our male zebra and sadly the zebra has died. At this time we are directing our resources to make sure the rest of the animals in the habitat are settled.
“These sorts of incidents are extremely rare and we will continue to monitor the situation over the next few days. We are devastated by this loss and thank you for your understanding and support at this time.”