Big Cat Was Simply No Match for Rattlesnake

A Central California wildlife sanctuary is mourning one of its own after a black jaguar named Samba died from two rattlesnake bites, despite intensive treatment. Project Survival's Cat Haven in Dunlap said the cat was bitten on the nose and leg and rushed to an emergency trauma center, where vets administered multiple doses of antivenin and worked to stabilize her vital signs, per KTLA. Initial blood work looked encouraging, but Samba didn't survive after being placed under anesthesia on Monday.

The loss is a first for the 93-acre sanctuary, which says it has successfully treated roughly half a dozen prior snakebitten cats over the past two decades. Rattlesnakes are a known risk on the grounds east of Fresno, not far from Kings Canyon National Park. Founder Dale Anderson told the Fresno Bee that the facility relocates the snakes rather than killing them, noting, "We're here to save animals, not eliminate them." Samba, who was born at Cat Haven and lived with her sister Rose, is undergoing a necropsy at UC Davis as staff look for answers on why the bites proved fatal. KSEE reports that Samba was around 14 years old.