Rare white tiger cub found in Turkey triples weight in 4 months

A white Bengal tiger cub discovered by Turkish police during a raid on a villa in Istanbul’s Silivri district has almost tripled its weight under the care of Gaziantep Zoo thanks to an exclusive diet.

Tiger cub Kartopu (Snowball), who was only 3 months old and weighed 22 kilograms (48.5 pounds) when he was discovered, now weighs 57.8 kilograms (127.4 pounds).

Kartopu has been receiving a special diet, including lactose-free milk and cold chicken, prepared under the supervision of a nutritionist.

Initially too timid to move around the zoo, Kartopu now happily roams around and has adapted to her new home.

Celal Özsöyler, the chairperson of Gaziantep Metropolitan Municipality’s Wildlife Protection agency, told AA that the cub has become the “mascot” of the zoo.

He noted that the animal was not fed properly in the villa so they ran a series of blood tests to detect deficiencies and prepared an exclusive diet.

Besides lactose-free milk and chicken, the cute cub also occasionally enjoys quail egg yolks and has become more active since the diet, Özsöyler said.

“She knows her name and responds to us whenever we call her name and runs up to us,” he added.

White Bengal tigers cannot survive long in the wild as their distinctive color prevents them from properly camouflaging to hunt prey.

White tigers are born with a genetic mutation known as leucism, which also affects some other animals including birds, and causes a reduction in pigmentation. The conservation group World Wildlife Fund (WWF) describes white tigers as "a genetic anomaly," with none known to exist in the wild.