This is Miss Fetsko’s Class book about tigers. Tigers live on mountains, in jungles, fields and forests.  Tigers live in high grasses.  Some tigers live in Asia.  They also live in India, and Siberia, Russia.  Some tigers live where it is cold.  Other tigers live where it is hot.  The Sumatran tiger lives in the warm tropics.

A territory of a tiger is the area where he stays.  Tigers live up to 14 years, and then a new tiger will come and take over his territory.  The males leave their mother’s territory and go off on their own, far away.  If a female dies, another one needs to take over her territory.  The bigger, stronger, female chases another one from her territory.  Then the one who is being chased will become a wanderer.  Females will have a territory next to their mothers. 

A tigress is a female tiger.  The female tiger wants to go looking for a boyfriend.  The female tiger does not get help to hunt when she is pregnant.  The females like to have a smaller habitat so they could feed their babies.  The mother hunts for her babies so they have food to eat.  If there is danger, a mother carries her cubs to a new den.  When a female tiger finds another female, she chases her away.  Males like to live in big habitats to eat their prey and to play.  The males have longer whiskers.  Males can weigh 400 pounds. 

Tigers have a lot of big muscles.  They use muscles to stretch their claws in and out.  Their claws are 4 inches long.  Their paws are much bigger than our hands.  Tigers use their tails for balancing.  When their tails hang down, it means beware.  When their tails are up, it means it’s OK.  When a tiger is going to attack, his tail swishes from side to side.  A tiger uses his tongue to get clean.  Tigers clean their bodies with their tongues.  Tigers who are happy have their ears up.  If they sense danger, their ears go forward.  Tigers can miss prey easily because they cannot run long distances.  Their back feet have 4 toes, and front feet have 5 toes.  Tigers jump and walk softly.  They roam the grass fields.  Tigers hide in tall grasses.

The Siberian tiger is the biggest.  It is 11 feet long and 675 pounds.  The Siberian tiger has heavy, thick fur so it can stay warm in the cold.  The Sumatran tigers are the smallest.  They are 8 feet and 300 pounds.  Some tigers can be 9 feet long, not counting the tail. 

Tigers drink water because they are hot.  They like the water so they can be cool.  A tiger can swim for 3 miles.  Tigers are excellent swimmers.  They get so hot that they just have to swim. 

White Bengal tigers are hard to find because they don’t blend in, and because people have killed them.  Bengal tigers have stripes so they could blend into the trees, grass, and shadows.  A Bengal tiger hides in a rainforest by camouflage. 

Baby tigers are called cubs.  When a cub is born the eyes are closed for 10 days.  Cubs like to play with each other.  Some cubs play fight so when they grow up they can fight deer.  Males often eat cubs.  They leave after the cubs are born.  Cubs have to practice killing animals to eat the meat.  Cubs makes a lot of noise when they hunt.  Then the other animal runs away.  When a mother tiger teaches her cubs to eat meat, she does it first and then the cubs try it.  Cubs learn to hunt from their mothers until they are 2 years old.  Tiger moms will stay together with their cubs. 

Tigers are fierce hunters.  They are carnivorous, and that means they eat meat.  Tigers eat pigs, baby elephants, mice, and fish.  Tigers will eat rhinos.  They can eat 40 pounds in one meal if they are really hungry.  Tigers eat lying down.  Tigers sleep after they eat a big meal. 

Tigers are survivors.  The tiger is the king of the cats.  Tigers are in the big cat family.  They are the strongest cats.  Tigers do not like to stay together.  Tigers are only together when they are mating, drinking, or napping. 

The mark on a tiger’s head is the king’s symbol in Chinese.  Kids born in the Chinese year of the tiger are believed to be safe from evil. 

Tigers have stripes.  Most tigers are orange with black stripes.  No two tigers have the same pattern of stripes.  A tiger’s skin is in the same pattern as its fur.  A tiger’s tongue is used to lick off meat and lick up water.  When tigers snort, they want to be friends.  They lick and make marks on a tree so people and other tigers know there are tigers around.  There are 5 different kinds of tigers.  Tigers can hear the softest sounds from far, far away.  Tigers are nocturnal.  They sleep in the day and play at night. 

The End