14 DAY TRIAL // A tiger living in India's Tadoba-Andhari Reserve owes his life to a 38-year-old man by the name of Vishal Chaudhari who saved it from getting killed by another feline of the same species.
Vishal Chaudhari details that, on November 25, he was taking part in a safari organized in said wildlife sanctuary. While exploring the area together with other people, he saw a tiger challenging another to battle.
Not long after, the felines jumped at each other's throats and, according to Vishal Chaudhari, both were determined to fight to the death.
“After a few minutes of pawing, I could see that they had each other's throat in their jaws. It was a death-lock which lasted for 20 seconds and blood was oozing. I was sure that one of them would die,” the man recollects, as cited by Times of India.
Together with some of his friends, the 38-year-old man started yelling at the two big cats. This got their attention, and the fight ended.
“I asked my guide if we could do anything to save them. He said no. Though tourists are advised to remain silent and not disturb wildlife, I deliberately began shouting at the two gypsies ahead of us to move. I told my friends to shout as well.
“The ruse worked. The tigers got confused and walked away. A tiger means a lot to us,” Vishal Chaudhari said.
Though nobody can say for sure why the big cats decided to fight each other, odds are they did it for food, territory or potential mates.