He was hand raised with a Labrador retriever and keepers think he picked-up a lot of personality traits from the dog. During the years he lived here, he did his job of inspiring many people to care about the plight of wild tigers and other endangered animals. Over the last 10 months, the public outpouring of sympathy and concern for Czar has been remarkable. Two new Siberian tigers will be coming to the zoo from John Ball Zoological Garden in Grand Rapids, Michigan, although a date has not been set for their arrival. They are siblings, born in October 1998.
Siberian tigers are one of the world's most endangered mammals.
Fewer than 400 wild tigers are thought to exist in their remaining territories in the Russian Far East. The zoo plans a simple memorial for Czar this weekend. Visitors will have the opportunity to take part in an ancient Asian tradition of writing messages on strips of paper attached to little bells. Message strips will be available for anyone who wants to participate all weekend and through next week This story and photo is here with permission by Tony Vecchio, Director of the Oregon Zoo . Many thanks to the Oregon Zoo for Czar's story and photo by Michael Durham.