BRITAIN’S Tiger King has been airlifted to hospital after he was mauled by a big cat at his own sanctuary.
Terrence Moore, 78, was attacked by the 13st beast at The Cat Survival Trust, in Welwyn, Hertfordshire, on Tuesday afternoon.
Roger Crump – The SunTerry Moore pictured at his cat sanctuary in Hertfordshire[/caption]
Ken McKay/ShutterstockMoore has appeared on ITV and Animal Planet[/caption]
Andrew StyczynskiStaff from Hertfordshire Zoo attended the sanctuary[/caption]
The cat – also known as a puma – took a chunk out of Moore’s leg before cops were called to secure the scene at his £3m compound.
Officers were able to free Moore from the cage without destroying the predator.
He was then airlifted to hospital for life-saving treatment.
Moore previously starred on ITV’s Paul O’Grady Show and Daybreak, while he also appeared on Animal Planet’s Snow Leopards of Leafy London.
While with O’Grady, he brought a snow leopard for US singer Katy Perry to hold.
The show also revealed how Moore would enter the enclosures armed only with a broom.
He has been dubbed the UK’s Tiger King, after notorious Joe Exotic from hit Netflix show.
It is understood the cougar-fanatic is now receiving treatment in hospital – with infection a massive risk from any feline bite.
The attack comes just four months after Moore was fined £14,000 and banned from keeping big cats – for selling public visits despite not having a licence for the rundown centre.
Moore’s five-acre estate was also found to be unsuitable for the wildlife he had caged there and he was convicted of neglect over the animals.
A close friend told The Sun: “I just can’t believe Terrence was bitten. He loves those cats and they love him.
Terry Moore has been rushed to hospitalFacebook
AFPMoore has been compared to Joe Exotic, more commonly known as The Tiger King[/caption]
Andrew StyczynskiMoore was rushed to hospital from the site in Welwyn[/caption]
“Even though he is used to them he must have been terrified. It’s a miracle he has survived. That could have gone very, very wrong.
“He is so careful and methodical – he has been doing this for decades. Perhaps it’s the stress of having to get rid of the cats that has made him slip-up.
“They are his family. He would have them round the dining table at Christmas as cubs. For him and his wife it will be like giving away their children.”
Moore – who claims to have a doctorate – was targeted around 4pm on Tuesday (November 5) and an air ambulance was rushed to the scene.
Care for the animals is now understood to have fallen to Hertfordshire Zoo, which had stepped in to guard the pumas and snow leopards still at the centre.
It comes just weeks before Moore was due back in court to finalise the removal of all the animals from his care.
In May, a jury at St Albans crown court convicted Moore of four counts of causing unnecessary suffering to animals by failing to seek proper and necessary veterinary care.
He was also convicted of seven counts of using an endangered animal species for commercial gain without a licence.
He was cleared of eight counts of causing unnecessary suffering, and four counts of commercial gain.
The court fined him £14,380 and banned him from keeping animals for five years.
However, the ban was suspended for six months because no-one else was prepared to take on the big cats.
Moore’s Cat Survival Trust (CST) was never a zoo – but did sell memberships for as little as £7, allowing the public to receive a tours from Moore or a volunteer.
Cats listed in past reviews include a jaguar named Athena, an amur leopard called Comet, and a puma named Toffee, said to be the largest in captivity in the UK.
A member of the trust, writing on review site Tripadvisor, said the sanctuary had been in existence since 1977, and described how it operated.
She posted: “Most of the cats here I’ve known since they were born, and they are all real characters.
“Some of the cats are in captive breeding programmes as so many are on the endangered list and they go to other zoos on loan.
“The cats belong to the Trust and none are ever sold; they go on loan to other facilities for breeding then return a few months later.
“There is an impressive selection of small cats such as The golden cat, the fishing cat, the Asian leopard cat, caracals, servals, and lynx too.
“Some of the cats there are confiscations from people who have kept them and not had a dangerous wild animal licence, so on seizure by local authorities etc they come to the trust to live.
It added: “The Trust is Terry’s life’s work, and he is so dedicated, waking at 5am daily to get out there feed clean the cats, do anything needing doing, with the others then doing his paperwork in afternoons.
“He gets very little rest but is always cheerful and accommodating and has projects in different parts of the world with release programmes.”
Moore previously claimed to own a 10,000 acre reserve in Argentina packed with 40 cats – part of a plan he boasted to pals would “save the world”.
A spokesman for Hertfordshire Constabulary said: “Police were called to Codicote Road, Welwyn, at 4.04pm on Tuesday 5 November, following reports of a medical emergency.
“Officers attended the scene alongside colleagues from the ambulance service.
“The incident involved a man and a big cat that is caged on site.
“The man, in his 70s, was transported to hospital via air ambulance with serious injuries and has received specialist treatment. He remains in a stable condition.
“The scene was quickly contained and there is no wider threat to the public.
“A spokesperson from East Anglian Air Ambulance, said: “Anglia Two, our Cambridge-based helicopter, was tasked to Welwyn to assist the East of England Ambulance Service Trust with a man in his seventies who suffered an accidental injury.
“Doctor Ewan and Critical Care Paramedics Andy and Rob provided advanced critical care at scene, administered pain relief and splinted the man’s injuries.
“He was flown to Addenbrooke’s Hospital for further care and treatment.”
Andrew StyczynskiThe scene at the cat “sanctuary” this week[/caption]
Andrew StyczynskiAround 31 animals are understood to be kept at the site[/caption]
GettyA Lynx pictured within an enclosure at the Cat Survival Trust Centre in Welwyn[/caption]