KARACHI: Having lost their charm and beauty within four years of their arrival at the zoo, Sarah and Alfred, a pair of exotic big cats, now suffer from what appears to be a serious skin infection, a visit to the zoo has revealed.

The white lions were purchased by the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) in 2012 from a private contractor who had brought the pair from South Africa.

It has become difficult for visitors to view these big cats now as the front side of the cage, made of acrylic glass, has been completely ruined by marks and scratches.

Peaking into the cage from the sidewall, one saw the animals perched on their resting platform; both had lost their vigour. The skin infection appeared to have affected Sarah more as she had scattered patches of missing hair coupled with intense itching.

Since Alfred, the male cat, sat in a position that only made his face visible, it became difficult to assess the scale of infection on his body. One could see many flies clinging to his face, though.

The skin infection seems to have also spread to the male lion, housed in the adjacent cage, as his belly was also covered with flies.

Zoo director Fahim Khan, however, brushed aside these concerns. “Only the female white lion has some skin infection and we have been treating her for the past two months. She is much better now,” he said.

To a question about the acrylic glass, the zoo staff said that it would either be replaced or repaired as soon as funds were available.

It is important to recall that the KMC had purchased the white lions from a private contractor at a price almost 10 times higher than the one at which the contractor acquired the pair.

According to some media reports, the contractor had purchased the lion and lioness in the name of Karachi Zoo from Zoological Live Animal Suppliers, Gauteng, South Africa, for $4,000 (roughly Rs400,000). The pair had cost the contractor less than Rs1 million (after inclusion of travel cost). The KMC, however, purchased the carnivorous mammals for Rs10m.

The other violation of law in this case constituted the fact that the big cats, along with a pair of Bengal tigers, were imported without acquiring the mandatory no-objection certificate from the Islamabad-based National Council of Conservation of Wildlife.

Published in Dawn December 28th, 2016