UK's oldest tiger Tango reaches 20th birthday

Tango has a bit of arthritis but is in good health for his age

The oldest tiger in the UK has reached his 20th birthday after being rescued from a German circus and going into retirement.

Tango and his partner Julia were only hours away from being put to sleep when they were saved by Woodside Wildlife Park in Lincolnshire.

Tango was given a cardboard birthday cake filled with meat to celebrate his milestone.

Ben Pascoe, head keeper at the park, said he was in good health for his age.

"He's got a little bit of arthritis in his elbows which is to be expected of a cat of that age, but everything else is fine," he said.

"On a particularly cool day he can be seen chasing butterflies around in his enclosure and he's quite proud of himself when he catches them."

Tango was given a cardboard cake filled with meat for his birthday on Wednesday

As well as the cake, Tango was given present boxes filled with meat and was thrown balls smeared in horse dung to play with.

But he preferred a quiet birthday resting in the sunshine, while nine-year-old Julia played with the cake and presents instead.

Tango had a quiet birthday while his younger partner, Julia, played with the cake

Tango is less active than when he was younger.

"Generally they live into their late teens and he's currently the oldest tiger in the UK," said Mr Pascoe.

"He's the equivalent of about an 80-year-old man and I don't know of any 80-year-old men that are still running about, so he's generally quite docile.

"But he's still eating and he's healthy, so he's quite happy to retire here for hopefully many years to come."

Tango's eventful life

• Tango was originally bred in captivity in the UK

• When he was rescued there were reports claiming he had once featured in an advert for Esso, which had the slogan "Put a tiger in your tank"

• Esso said it used several tigers in adverts and could not confirm that Tango had been used

• Tango worked in a German circus with his partner Julia until they were seized by Belgian and German authorities in late 2013, after reports they were being mistreated

• They arrived in Lincolnshire in April 2014, following a campaign by park director Neil Mumby and his team to save them

• He said the tigers would have been destroyed if their new home had not been found

• The tigers were initially frightened of brooms and sticks, probably because of mistreatment, but are happier now