On June 18, 2023, tapping workers found a critically injured leopard cub abandoned in a rubber plantation at Ayiloor in the Nenmara Forest Division of Palakkad district in Kerala. It had injuries all over its body, including multiple spinal fractures. There were worms in the vomitus. It was weak and suffered frequent seizures.
The six-month-old cub was rushed to the clinical medicine wing of the College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Mannuthy, 43 kilometres away. From the near-death condition it had arrived in, it limped back to life in a few weeks. However, the seizures continued. Considering its poor health, veterinarians recommended shifting it to the Thrissur Zoological Park at Puthur, which has a full-fledged hospital with a 24-hour doctor service. There, they named it Leo.
“Nobody thought Leo would survive when he was rescued,” says R. Keerthi, director of the Thrissur Zoological Park, with a smile, as she watches Leo’s acrobatics with a toy hanging from the roof of the spacious enclosure in the zoo hospital. In between, little Leo poses for photos, appearing to thoroughly enjoy stardom.
