Dog versus Tiger: Draw

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MEMPHIS – A Tennessee stray is licking its' wounds this week as it recovers from a tiger attack that should have ended its life.

According to the Associated Press, the 50-pound retriever-mix slipped into the Memphis Zoo Tuesday, taking zoo employees on a chase through the compound.

The chase ended when the dog jumped a 4-foot-high visitor railing into a tiger exhibit. The pooch then swam a 12-foot-deep moat, where it was promptly nabbed by a 225-pound female Sumatran tiger.

Zoo officials say the tiger was born in captivity and didn't have hunting experience. However, natural instincts likely drove the feline to snatch the dog.

Diligent zoo employees used fireworks and air horns to distract the female and another big cat in the exhibit – finally coaxing them into their nighttime enclosures.

The dog, which had been in the tiger's control for a few minutes, was treated for bite wounds to the neck by zoo vets. Soon after, she was taken to the Animal Emergency Medical Center and is reportedly in good condition.

The dog's collar didn't contain it's owner's address, but zoo officials are apparently working to track that person down.

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