Meet Covid: The tiger born under quarantine in Mexico

The zoo says the name connotes hope in the time of coronavirus pandemic

Last updated: April 07, 2020 | 15:13

AFP and Compiled by Christian Borbon, Digital Content Editor

2 MIN READ

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He is small and ferocious with a deadly name, but a Bengal tiger called Covid has given hope to a zoo in Mexico as the pandemic ravages the world.

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The cub was born last month at Bio Zoo in the eastern state of Veracruz as the virus that causes COVID-19 spread like wildfire, forcing half the world's population to stay home and devastating millions of businesses - including the privately-run zoo.

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"The birth of Covid was a gift for us, an incredible gift for both Bio Zoo and us as a family - it was a bit of hope in the current situation," said Kitzia Rodriguez, a vet at the zoo run by her family.

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"It is a name of hope, of a virus that came to teach us to look after ourselves."

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Though he still struggles to stand up and constantly sticks out his tongue demanding milk, Covid is already showing his Bengal tiger roots with energetic roars.

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"Covid was born very strong, he was born big, although no one knew that his mother was pregnant," Rodriguez added.

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His eight-year-old mother was rescued from a circus and had problems with her hips, making it difficult for her to get pregnant.

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But a younger, lighter male succeeded where others had failed and Covid was born weighing a healthy three pounds (1.4 kilograms).

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A veterinary holds a newborn bengal tiger cub called "Covid" at the Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center "Africa Bio Zoo", in Cordoba, State of Veracruz, Mexico amid the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19.

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A newborn bengal tiger cub called "Covid" is weighted at the Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center "Africa Bio Zoo" in Cordoba, State of Veracruz, Mexico.

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