Malaysian pet tiger reluctantly goes wild

Keeping a tiger in Malaysia requires a licence

By Jonathan Kent BBC, Kuala Lumpur

A Malaysian man who went missing with his family and pet tiger on Saturday has resurfaced to set his tiger free.

Charlie merely lurked in the trees and when his owner called to him, happily came bounding out of the forest

The owner, who faced heavy fines or jail for keeping the big cat, disappeared after being pictured on the front pages of Malaysia's newspapers.

However, Charlie the tiger does not appear to like life in the wild.

He appears to have voted with his paws against freedom.

Reluctant farewell

His owner, Zaitun Arshad, released the 200-kilo (31-stone) animal into the jungle in front of a gaggle of reporters.

However, Charlie merely lurked in the trees and when his owner called to him, happily came bounding out of the forest.

The pair made the headlines after they were pictured riding around in a jeep together, in Mr Zaitun's home town in the northern Malaysian state of Perak.

The pictures prompted Malaysia's wildlife authorities to threaten action, because they said they had not received a permit application for Charlie.

Malaysian law makes it an offence to keep certain wild animals.

Mr Zaitun could have faced a fine or $4,000, or five years in jail.

Hope for reunion

He still hopes to be granted a licence so that he can once more bring Charlie home.

The two took daily walks together near Mr Zaitun's house, so Charlie, who eats six chickens and six kilos of beef a day, could top up his diet with twigs and leaves.

Tigers are one of Malaysia's official national symbols and are heavily protected.

The chief minister of the state of Kelantan called for all tigers in the area to be shot after a series of attacks on plantation workers last year.

The suggestion provoked considerable outrage and the tiger suspected of the attack was captured alive instead.