Get up close with Singapore Zoo's white tigers... and survive

Singapore Zoo lets visitors get closer to white tigers

One year after the accidental mauling and death of a man who got into the tiger enclosure, the Singapore Zoo is rolling out a visitor enrichment program to get up close with those same tigers and see how they are trained. It's part of the festivities to mark the lunar Year of the Tiger.

For S$28 each, visitors can watch the interaction sessions between the white tigers and their keepers. But you have to stay behind the line and keep your voices down. The conditioning sessions are when the animal keepers train the big cats to respond correctly to stimulants by rewarding them with meaty treats. 

Francis Lim, curator at Singapore Zoo, said to Channel NewsAsia, "In the past, we had to sedate the animal -- that means we have to knock the animal down, let them sleep so we can do a close examination. But with this conditioning, we don't have to do that. It's safe for the animal, it doesn't compromise the animal's health."

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