Tiger euthanized at Bloomington zoo

BLOOMINGTON -- Authorities at Bloomington's Miller Park Zoo say they have euthanized Besar, one of the zoo's Sumatran tigers, because of his failing kidney function.

Zoo Superintendent Jay Tetzloff says he and park staff decided to euthanize the 18-year-old Besar on Tuesday after they determined his year-long bout with renal failure had severely undermined his quality of life.

Sumatran tigers have a life expectancy of 15 to 20 years. Besar was the eighth oldest of the 85 in accredited American zoos. He celebrated his 18th birthday in March by tearing open a horsemeat-filled pinata.

Besar arrived at Miller Park in 2003 from the San Diego Zoo.

About 400 Sumatran tigers remain in the wild on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, but illegal poaching reduces their number by about 10 percent each year.