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Tigers lured by unwanted Christmas aftershaves and perfumes: ‘The smellier the better’

The Blair Drummond Safari Park is appealing the public to send unwanted pungent gift sets

Friday 25 December 2015 17:19 GMT

Strong scents keep the tigers' sense of smell stimulated (Getty)

Tigers enjoy the pungent scent of unwanted Christmas aftershaves and perfumes, staff at a safari park have revealed.

Staff at Blair Drummond Safari Park near Stirling say the animals like the scents “the smellier the better”, and spray them over toys and treats before hiding them for male and female Amur tigers Genghis and Bella to hunt down.

They say big cats especially like the strong aromas as it keeps their keen sense of smell stimulated.

The two tigers, aged 19 and 13, were recently moved to a new enclosure within the park called Tiger Ridge.

Hiding the alluring toys and treats around the enclosure will help them explore the rock formation, cave and waterfall at the centre of their new home.

Keeper Sam Clark said: “ We all get gift sets from grannies and aunties that we no doubt appreciate but probably don’t ever use.”

In pictures: Three of the world’s rarest tigers born at London Zoo

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1/6In pictures: Three of the world’s rarest tigers born at London Zoo

In pictures: Three of the world’s rarest tigers born at London Zoo

London Zoo

The as-yet unsexed triplets were born to five-year-old Sumatran tigress Melati after a 106-day pregnancy

In pictures: Three of the world’s rarest tigers born at London Zoo

London Zoo

Three of the world’s rarest tigers have been born at ZSL London Zoo, with zookeepers capturing their first moments on hidden cameras when mum Melati feeds her cubs

In pictures: Three of the world’s rarest tigers born at London Zoo

London Zoo

Melati and her cubs are remaining tucked away together inside their special cubbing dens with Melati only occasionally venturing away from her babies for food

In pictures: Three of the world’s rarest tigers born at London Zoo

London Zoo

Born in the early hours of the morning and arriving within an hour of each other, the first cub arrived at 12:28am, the second at 12:59am, and the last was delivered at 1:18am on 3 February 2014, with keepers monitoring the whole birth using remote camera technology

In pictures: Three of the world’s rarest tigers born at London Zoo

London Zoo

Zookeeper Teague Stubbington said: "We couldn’t be more delighted with our new arrivals, and with how Melati is responding to her three cubs. We’ve been observing them 24/7, and one of us is always on duty to keep an eye on the little ones throughout the night. We've even been able to observe key milestones like their eyes opening and their tentative first steps"

In pictures: Three of the world’s rarest tigers born at London Zoo

London Zoo

"While we still don’t know whether they’re boys or girls, we're starting to see their personalities develop. We've nicknamed one Trouble, as it's much bolder than the others – it was the first to start exploring its den and we've spotted it waking up its siblings when they fall asleep!" With wild Sumatran tiger numbers estimated to be as low as 300 individuals, the cubs represent a huge achievement not just for ZSL London Zoo but for the global breeding programme of this critically endangered species

He suggests handing the gifts over to the park so they can be put to use keeping the animals entertained, rather than “clogging up bathrooms”.

“All tigers have a very sensitive sense of smell and new scents keep them stimulated and are good for enrichment,” he said.

Genghis and Bella are not fussy about brands, and will quite happily settle for anything, according to Mr Clark.

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“In fact it seems the smellier the better for them.”

Blair Drummond Safari Park reopens on March 19, 2016.

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