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19. 11. 12. - 15:00

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19. 11. 12. - 15:00

Tiger Again Gives Cubs to Dog Wet Nurse

Kathryn Quinn

Its snow joke - this White Swiss Shepherd Dog is proving a life saver after she adopted three tiger cubs abandoned by their mother at a local zoo in the Black Sea resort of Sochi.

The snow white hound named Tally is breastfeeding the tiny trio of tigers after the mother Bagheera refused to feed them herself.

Keepers said the dog was producing milk for the cubs, two males and a female that were born in October, even though her own puppies have not yet been born. They are feeding her a high protein food to make sure she has enough milk for them all.

It is not the first time the tiger mum has abandoned her cubs at the zoo at the Oktyabrsky health resort. Zoo keepers last time five months ago used a wrinkled, sand-colored Shar Pei dog named Cleopatra. The two cubs born then were sold to a Moscow circus.

This time round they already had the dog wet nurse Tally lined up, and zoo spokesperson Victoria Kudlaeva said were surprised that she had adopted the three so quickly.

The cubs are also being fed goat's milk as an additional supplement. The female has been named after her adopted mum Tally - and the zoo is holding a contest to name the two males.

And althought the cubs have sharper claws than puppies they have learned not to annoy their adopted mum - who nudges them away with her nose when they start to scratch or bite.

Fewer than 400 Siberian tigers — also known as Ussuri, Amur or Manchurian tigers — have survived in the wild, most of them in Russia's Far East.

Tragic Ski Girl Dies
A 10-year-old British schoolgirl has died after skiing into a tree at high speed during a family holiday tragedy in the Austrian Alps.

Peak Performance
Police chiefs in Hamburg, Germany, are celebrating after new crime figures showed there wasn't a single bank robbery in the city last year.

Chinese Fakeaway
Chinese property developers who've been thwarted in a bid to buy up an entire Austrian village have settled on the next best thing - an entire life-sized replica.

Austrian children help Romanian kids
A charity project run by the middle school in Hippach has been recognised with an award for its social work by officials in Tyrol.

Mother kills disabled daughter because she couldnt take care of her any longer
A Romanian woman killed her 8 year-old disabled daughter on Wednesday (yesterday)because she couldn't pay for her care, Libertatea newspaper reports.

Policeman accused of sex with the son of his girlfriend
A Policeman from Vulcan, Western Romania is currently being investigated for having sex with a minor, the son of his girlfriend, Cancan newspaper informs today (Thurs).

Serial killer survivor walks away alive after fall
An 85 year-old woman who survived the most cruel and notorious serial killer in Romania some 40 years ago, recently fell from the first floor of her apartment building and she walked away safe and sound, Cancan newspaper reports today (Thurs).

The son of Qatar Airlines BA beaten up in Romania
The son of the Board of Administration of Qatar Airlines Akbar Al Baker, was beaten up over the weekend at the launching party of a posh club in Mamaia, at the Romanian Black Sea shore, Cancan newspaper reports.

Majority starts president’s suspension procedures
A day after the Social Liberal Union (USL) legislators dismissed with a large majority of votes the two Speakers of the Parliament, the Union started today the procedures for the suspension and possible impeachment of President Traian Basescu. This is the second time when the Parliament asks for Basescu’s suspension.

Some 177 Roma repatriated by French authorities to Romania
Some 177 Romanian citizens of Roma origin were repatriated on Tuesday night from Lille, France, Romania TV news channel informs today (Weds).