A pensioner with a pacemaker for his heart condition has told how he used a pitchfork to fight off a giant wild Siberian tiger.
Vitaly Saidov was naked in his sauna in eastern Russia when he heard a commotion in his cow shed.
He threw on a gown and ran to see a tiger attacking one of his cows.
‘I was washing myself when I heard growls and moans, and realised that something bad was happening,’ he said.
‘The sounds were coming from the shed.
‘I threw on a dressing gown and rushed to open the shed door.
‘It was a messy sight with blood everywhere – and a tiger killing a cow.
Pension Vitaly Saidov has killed a Siberian tiger that was trying to eat his cow, after fending off the animal with a pitchfork
The rare big cat was later described as being about 15 years old and ‘toothless’
‘I grabbed a pitchfork and tried to strike the tiger on his back to scare him away.’
The pitchfork helped save the cow and gave Mr Saidov time to escape and grab his gun in his house, even though the tiger ‘lashed at me’.
Male Siberian tigers are the largest big cats in the world, and generally eat wild boar, lynx and bear.
He ran into the house ‘pulling my gun out and screaming “Tiger!” to my wife.
‘It was a messy sight with blood everywhere – and a tiger killing a cow’ said Mr Saidov as he opened the door to his shed to find to two animals
He then grabbed a pitchfork and tried to strike the tiger on his back to scare him away, giving the cow time to escape
‘I shot once in the air, it didn’t work. Then the second bullet hit the tiger in the head and killed him.’
Later he told the Rossiya 1 channel that he didn’t aim to shoot it dead.
As the tiger apparently went for him, he pulled out his gun and shot it through the head
‘I ran here thinking I’ll shoot there in the corner to scare the tiger away,’ he said.
‘But as I got there the tiger left the cow and rushed towards me, what could I do?
‘As soon as the cow moved its head, I shot.’
The Siberian or Amur tiger is highly endangered with only around 550 animals surviving in the wild.
Jail sentences can be imposed by Russian courts for killing these rare big cats which were almost poached to extinction.
But officials in Khabarovsk region say Mr Saidov will not be prosecuted for shooting the beast which was over 15 years old and almost toothless.
‘He used the gun lawfully while defending himself and his family,’ said Oleg Egorushkin, deputy head of the region’s Wildlife Conservation department.
‘This was an elderly animal over 15 years old, he was almost toothless.
‘The tiger acted as if he came to the village to die.’
Prosecutors have said Mr Saidov will not face any charges for killing the animal, which can mean a jail term
The pensioner runs a smallholding with two bulls and three cows and has a heart condition which requires him to have a pacemaker
The Siberian Times reported that the pensioner – who runs a smallholding with two bulls and three cows – ‘has a disability pension due to heart issues which led to him having a pacemaker fitted.’
His wife Svetlana said: ‘There was no way the tiger would have run away, he was about to start eating the cow, no tiger would leave its prey.’
‘I got such a shock when it happened.
‘I heard heart-rending cries and then he stormed into the house, screaming: ‘Help me, a tiger is in the shed!’
‘But how on earth could I help?
‘Our daughter was in the house with our grandson. It was an awful night.’
These rare tigers have made a significant recovery in recent years but are still seen as highly endangered.
‘There was no way the tiger would have run away, he was about to start eating the cow, no tiger would leave its prey,’ said his wife Svetlana
Rare Siberian tigers have made a significant recovery in recent years but are still seen as highly endangered