In a bizarre incident, an endangered tigress defied all its natural instincts and walked out of the jungle and into a village to seek human help over a severe teeth and gum problem.
The rare predator - one of only 500 or so Siberian tigers living in their snowy natural habitat in eastern Russia - found a remote house and quietly lay down on the porch
While the big felines normally shun human contact, but it was clear that she was exhausted and could no longer eat and needed urgent dental assistance.
Galina Tsimano, who lives in far-flung Solontsovy - 3,915 miles east of Moscow - explained how her neighbour on the outskirts of the village found the unexpected big cat on his doormat in the early morning.
According to Tsimano, her neighbour Alexey Khaideyev came across a tiger on his porch. He wanted to go out to the yard in the morning, but his door was pressed by 'someone' from outside. He began to push the door and heard a tiger growling.
Galina adds, “He went back inside and started calling all the emergency services. The predator did not let him approach too close but nor did it pounce on him. Tiger experts are sure the predator was seeking human help as a desperate last resort.
An emergency team came and sedated the animal then moved it to a rehabilitation centre in Alekseevka village.
Doctors revealed the predator was around ten years old and female while also identifying an acute problem in the beast's jaw.
'The tigress behaved absolutely peacefully, as if she was waiting for help,' Sergey Aramilev, director of the Amur Tiger Centre, told The Siberian Times.
Thankfully, there were no visible injuries from firearms, buts he had problems with her oral cavity.
Vets are looking for ways to solve the animals dental problems but she is currently not strong enough the to be put under a general anaesthetic for major surgery.
