T-24 falls sick, panel to monitor health

UDAIPUR: Tiger T-24 aka Ustad, the 10-year-old tiger banished from the Ranthambore, is sick again here at Sajjangarh biological park. The tiger is suffering from idiopathic megacolon, the disease which troubled him last year in December.
A medical board consisting of veterinary officer Dr Arvind Mathur, from Jaipur Zoo, Dr Sharvan Singh, Jodhpur Zoo, Dr Himanshu Vyas, Sajjangarh biological park have been constituted on the directions of chief wildlife warden, Rajasthan, Jaipur, to treat the ailing animal.
On Monday, the board examined the tiger in the morning and found that he is suffering from idiopathic megacolon. The board decided to immobilize the animal for the treatment and collection of blood sample. The tiger was immobilized and treatment was given. The blood sample was sent to Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Baraily. The whole procedure lasted for 1 hour and 20 minutes.
"The animal passed around 1kg of stool and seems to be normal now," said T Mohanraj, deputy conservator of forest, wildlife.
The board was of the opinion that idiopathic megacolon is a disease recurrent in nature and can reoccur in future where the only line of treatment would be the one which was followed on Monday.