Embarrassment for Putin after tigers he released into wild have had to be re-captured
RUSSIAN president Vladimir Putin has been left embarrassed after tigers he confidently released into the wild are now to spend the rest of their lives in a zoo - because they can't feed themselves.
Rehab Tigers
It is a real shame they couldn't make it on their own but living under supervision and being fed by humans really is the best for them now
Two out of the three endangered animals, called Ustin and Tikhon, were both recaptured after experts found them starving in the wild, with food limited to domestic dogs and cattle.
After attempting once again to train them to hunt, wildlife experts at the Centre for Rehabilitation of Tigers in the eastern Russian village of Alexeevka have now given up.
They say neither is capable of being reintroduced into the wild after they were fitted with tracking devices, which showed their every move.
Both tigers have now put on weight but a special commission organised to look into the case decided that they had spent too long in the company of men.
They will now be kept in a controlled environment at a safari park.
Wildlife expert Borislav Bogdanov said: "It is a real shame they couldn't make it on their own but living under supervision and being fed by humans really is the best for them now."
Putin helped liberate the wild cats into Russia's remote Amur region in eastern Siberia with much fanfare in May 2013.
The Russian leader has become well-known for his love of elaborate outdoor photo stunts, sometimes involving animals.
He has often justified them by saying they help the cause of nature conservation.
There are around 400 tigers remaining in Siberia, though the species has been driven almost to extinction in China.
