A stray kitten managed to survive wandering into a tiger enclosure and being confronted by three big cats in shocking footage posted to Instagram by a princess of Dubai.
In clips shared to social media on November 19 by the verified account of Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the tiny animal is carried in a white tiger's mouth as two others bound over to inspect it.
They then begin toying with the kitten, as it tries to fend them off.
Two men run into the enclosure, one holding a fire extinguisher. On the CCTV footage the three tigers are filmed running off, with the leader holding the kitten in its teeth.
The second clip shows the tigers entering an indoor part of their enclosure. The kitten falls from one of their jaws and onto the stone floor before wriggling away.
In an Instagram Story watched by The Independent, Latifa explained that the kitten was later taken to a vet.
In the caption of the nail-biting videos, which can be watched here, she revealed: "This little stray got into one of the tiger enclosures and was caught by the tigers she's doing well now and won't be a little stray anymore!"
Latifa describes herself as an animal lover in her Instagram bio, in which she also explains that most of the images and videos on the account are of her pets.
She writes: "I'm honored to have these beautiful creatures, I just want to share these moments with you."
The royal big cat enthusiast is not to be confused with her half-sister of the same name —who became the subject of a global "Free Latifa" campaign after allegations that she was being held against her will by their father, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
The video of the brave kitten has attracted more than 4,400 likes and hundreds of comments.
One Instagram user, Maxofarabia, wrote: "I bet it was soooooo confused as to what these giant cats are."
Another person, Eagle_eyrie, added: "Cats really do have 9 lives and I'm sure that kitten has the heart of a tiger now! Well done to the guys for getting in there quick and efficiently."
Ind_falconbreeder_hyder posted: "Close encounter with the Big Cats! Timely intervention saved the kitten [applause emoji] Lucky Kitten got a second life."
Halaalschaarr revealed, "My heart stopped for one minute," alongside a broken heart emoji.
Polina_abeldinova gushed: "Amazing. The tigers didn't hurt it much. They are nice, and the keepers are so brave."
RR24s wrote: "I'm sure the kitten is in safe hands."
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
