White Tiger at Semarang Zoo Reported Dead, Management Responds

A white tiger kept at Semarang Zoo has reportedly died. The news has gone viral on social media, but as yet there has been no confirmation or explanation from the zoo’s management regarding the report. The Instagram account @dinaskegelapan_kotasemarang was the one that spread the news of the white tiger’s death. In a video uploaded by the account, a white tiger, believed to be part of the Semarang Zoo collection, is seen lying in an enclosure with laboured breathing. The white tiger was said to have been sent to Medan, North Sumatra, as part of an animal exchange programme. However, the account claimed there was a suspected anaesthesia procedure error which caused the tiger named Anggun to develop an abscess, infection, and eventually die. When asked for confirmation about the white tiger’s death, the Director of PT Taman Satwa Semarang, Bimo Wahyu Widodo, declined to provide an explanation. “Just be patient. One door, the city government,” Bimo told Republika via written message on Sunday (26/7/2026). When asked again whether a white tiger belonging to Semarang Zoo had indeed died, Bimo responded with a similar answer. “There will be an official statement from the city government later. We are following our bureaucratic channels. Please be patient,” he said. Previously, journalists had asked Semarang Mayor Agustina Wilujeng Pramestuti about the reported death of the white tiger. “We will investigate it later because it is one of the assets at Semarang Zoo,” Agustina said when interviewed on Friday (24/7/2026). Agustina admitted she had not yet received a detailed report regarding the death of the white tiger named Anggun. “We will investigate whether this anaesthesia error is true. This incident should serve as a good lesson for colleagues tasked with caring for the animals. I haven’t received the details yet; I am currently asking for an explanation from colleagues at Semarang Zoo as to why and how this happened,” she said.