MALACCA: A 200kg male tapir caused a ruckus as it led local authorities and residents of Kampung Tun Razak, near here, through a merry chase yesterday.
The state Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan) received a complaint on Tuesday night from a resident who had spotted the tapir wandering around the village.
Worried for the safety of the public, Perhilitan sent a team to capture the animal.
At 2pm yesterday, the team came across the tapir in a pond at a wooded area across from the Bukit Katil's Fire and Rescue Department.
The team surrounded the tapir, but it evaded several attempts to capture it.
Escaping from the pond, the tapir ran about 300m through a housing estate. Despite being hit by a tranquilliser dart, it continued running before falling into another pond nearby where the team finally managed to capture the animal.
Malacca Zoo director Ahmad Azhar Mohammed said it took about 25 people -- 15 from the zoo and 10 from Perhilitan -- nearly two hours to catch the tapir.
Stray tapir causes panic
The Star 2 Feb 12;
MALACCA: An injured Malayan tapir caused panic among some 300 kampung folk when it strayed into their village in Bukit Katil here.
The villagers of Kampung Tun Abdul Razak sighted the 200kg male tapir yesterday morning.
Malacca Zoo staff and game rangers from the state Wildlife and National Parks rushed to the area on being alerted to capture it.
The animal was spotted at a secondary jungle near the state Fire and Rescue Department headquarters at about 2pm.
However, the operation turned chaotic when the tapir did not respond to tranquillisers and broke loose when 25 men tried to place it in a cage.
Zoo director Ahmad Azhar Mohammed suffered abrasions on his right hand when the tapir attacked him.
The animal ran helter-skelter around the village before plunging into a bund close to the home of a villager.
The tapir was finally put into the cage and taken to the zoo for treatment at about 5pm.
Ahmad Azhar said the tapir would be quarantined during its treatment.