Honoring Tanju the Bengal White Tiger

Tanju the beloved Bengal white tiger of Kowiachobee Animal Preserve passed away, caretakers first announced on Social Media on Sunday.

Tanju was approximately 11 years old and leaves behind his older twin Bengal white tiger Mali.

“I named them Tanju for the older one and Mali for the younger one. They’re both Indian names,” said John Slaby, founder of Kowiachobee Animal Preserve, on Monday.

“We waited a week or so before announcing it,” he said, during an interview at the Preserve as he continued caretaking for animals, a peacock walking on his truck trailer.

The sibling white Bengal tigers, Tanju and Mali, when cubs, were previously passed around into people’s arms to sell popular photos with tiger cubs before Slaby took them to the Preserve, he said.

The two tigers grew up together in Slaby’s living room until they outgrew it at 300 to 400 pound adults.

Volunteers of Kowiachobee, which has been translated from the local indigenous language into English as “big cat,” continue to honor Tanju and his caretakers on social media with photos, videos and memories.

“Rebecca Grace has been creating some great memorials, mostly on Facebook,” Slaby said.

Tanju had died following a dental surgery performed in the rain with several veterinarians and technicians in early June.

“We know we’ll be scrutinized that we didn’t do enough. Imagine telling a parent they didn’t do enough for their child with cancer,” Slaby said.

He’s been continually criticized publicly by people who consider themselves animal advocates who live outside of the Collier County area.

In December 2023, a video of a person seemingly touching the nose of a white tiger at Kowiachobee posted to social media caught the watchful eye of the Carole Baskin network - a group of people who look to shut down facilities with big cats in captivity, other than their own affiliated facility that moved from Big Cat Rescue in Tampa to Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge in Arkansas.

Several months later, in spring 2024, the Kowiachobee Animal Preserve manager was cleared of the charges. Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission had dropped the charges against Brandi Verder, the Preserve’s manager, citing lack of evidence.

Situations of public criticism by animal rights group are frustrating, Slaby said, adding that he’s ready for another onslaught after the Tanju’s death gets more public notice.

For now, FWC is creating a report available by a public record's request on the death, but it wasn’t immediately available, said FWC public information coordinator Ashlee Brahier Sklute.

In the meantime, Slaby described a daunting five hour surgery with oxygen and a heart monitor during the rain with seven people total including four doctors, Grace and Slaby, standing by with umbrellas. The surgery had to be ended, he said.

“Tanju came out of it. He was awake for 20 minutes and then his heart just stopped,” Slaby said. “You never really want to put an animal under if you don’t have to,” he said. But in this case, a local anesthetic just wouldn’t have made sense, Slaby said.

People are invited to continue honoring the big cat in their own way on social media or through donations or tributes in Tanju’s name.

Kowiachobee remains home to other tigers and a lion as well as numerous other animal species ranging from donkeys to white skunk, birds, alligator and more.