Pittsburgh Zoo's oldest male tiger dies

An 18-year-old Siberian tiger at the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium has died of complications from a hernia, the zoo announced Saturday.

Taiga died suddenly on Thursday while recovering from a dewclaw clip that morning. The Siberian, or Amur, tiger was immobilized for the routine procedure.

Results of a necropsy showed the tiger had a large diaphragmatic hernia that allowed part of his stomach and intestines into his chest cavity, which impeded his breathing, according to zoo spokeswoman Tracy Gray.

The hernia had been there for some time, but chest X-rays taken eight months ago showed no abnormalities, Gray said in an email.

Taiga was the oldest male tiger at the zoo.

Siberian tigers are the largest cats in captivity, weighing as much as 660 pounds, according to the Tigers-World website.

The tiger was the second animal to die at the Highland Park zoo this week.

On Wednesday, zoo officials had a sick baby elephant euthanized . The calf, born a month premature May 31, underwent surgery last week to install a feeding tube after she stopped eating because of teething pain.