Britain’s Tiger King who starred in hit ITV present is mauled by a 13-stone puma at his personal sanctuary and airlifted to hospital
Britain’s own Tiger King has been rushed to hospital after he was attacked by a big cat in his own sanctuary.
Terrence Moore, 78, was mauled by the 13-stone beast at The Cat Survival Trust in Welwyn, Hertfordshire and then airlifted to hospital on Tuesday afternoon.
A chunk of Moore’s leg was taken by the puma before police were called to the scene at his £3m compound.
He was freed from the cage by officers without the predator being destroyed. Moore was taken to the hospital for life-saving treatment.
The big cat owner is understood to be receiving treatment in hospital as infection a worry from any feline bite.
Terrence Moore (pictured), director of the Cat Survival Trust in Welwyn, Hertfordshire, was was mauled by the 13-stone beast and airlifted to hospital
A chunk of Mr Moore’s leg was taken by the puma before police were called to the scene at his £3m compound. File image
Pictured: Jags, a female Jaguar, at the sanctuary
Pictured: Star, a female Amur Leopard at the sanctuary in Hertfordshire
A close friend told the Sun: ‘ Even though he is used to them he must have been terrified. It’s a miracle he has survived. That could have gone very, very wrong.
‘He is so careful and methodical – he has been doing this for decades. Perhaps it’s the stress of having to get rid of the cats that has made him slip-up.
‘They are his family. He would have them round the dining table at Christmas as cubs. For him and his wife it will be like giving away their children.’
It comes after Moore was found guilty of causing suffering to animals on May 20 – after being dubbed the ‘UK Tiger King’ by one visitor.
The Cat Survival Trust is home to 31 animals, including Bengal cats, jungle cats, leopards and wildcats, although it is not clear if it is currently in operation.
Prosecutor Charles Miskin described the sanctuary during the trial as ‘messy and dirty’ with ‘inadequate or insecure’ housing, and ‘a large number of unvaccinated domestic cats’.
Dead carcasses were also previously found in the freezer.
Moore was convicted of four charges of causing unnecessary suffering of an animal, and seven of using an animal species for commercial gain without licence at St Albans Crown Court.
He was cleared of eight charges of causing unnecessary suffering of an animal and four of using an animal species for commercial gain without a licence.
Moore was handed a £14,000 fine and banned from keeping big cats for selling public visits.
Hertfordshire Police originally visited the site alongside a vet in July 2022, where they found a number of animals suffering from various conditions.
Pictured: Lily, a Jungle Cat at the Cat Survival Trust in Welwyn, Hertfordshire
Pictured: Two boxes of Traumeel, a homeopathic product for human use in cases of acute musculoskeletal injuries on unbroken skin
Shocking photos show horror inside big cat ‘sanctuary’ with animals living in squalor
Pictured: Water bowls inside the sanctuary
Daily logs kept by volunteers appeared to show no treatment when recording feeding and care.
When they returned in April 2023, they found more than 20 animal carcasses in the freezers – including two animals they had observed during the previous visit.
Post mortems on the bodies found they died from various diseases.
Joe Exotic shot to fame when Netflix released the seven part documentary Tiger King back in 2020.
The first season focuses on his feud with Big Cat Rescue CEO Carole Baskin.
It follows the events leading up to his conviction under federal murder-for-hire statutes when it comes to light that he paid a hitman to murder Baskin.
Exotic – real name Joseph Allen Maldonado – was also convicted on eight counts for violation of the Lacey Act, which prohibits trade in wildlife, fish, and plants that have been illegally taken, possessed, transported, or sold.
He was also found guilty of violating the Endangered Species Act for nine counts.
Exotic founded the Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park, alternatively known as the G.W. Zoo, in 1999.
Based in Wynnewood, Oklahoma, the attraction was home to lions, tigers and other big cats.
The Netflix series Tiger King: Murder, Mystery and Mayhem was released in March 2020 and became one of the streamer’s most successful releases to date
