Mantecore , the white tiger whose co-starring role in Siegfried and Roy 's illusion-packed Las Vegas act was overshadowed by one visceral act of violence , has died . The big cat was 17 . Mantecore died March 19 , wrote Siegfried Fischbacher on the duo 's Facebook page Tuesday . The tiger had been living at the Siegfried & Roy Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat at the Mirage hotel . Mantecore was a part of the long-running `` Siegfried & Roy '' show when it lunged at Roy Horn 's neck halfway through a sold-out performance in October 2003 . `` He ( Horn ) looked like a rag doll in his mouth , '' an audience member told CNN at the time . Trainers quickly rushed the stage to subdue the tiger . It was Horn 's 59th birthday . By the time emergency officials arrived , Horn had suffered massive blood loss and was in critical condition . He also suffered a stroke and required two surgeries . Four days after the attack , Fischbacher defended the tiger on CNN 's `` Larry King Live . '' `` Listen , I say it was an accident , '' he said , adding that if Mantecore wanted to kill his partner `` it would ( have happened ) in no time . '' Siegfried also said that Mantecore biting Horn 's neck was similar to what a mother cat does with her cubs . Horn did survive the attack , but was left partially paralyzed . He never returned to the stage and makes only rare public appearances . The show , too , was canceled . In his post about Mantecore , Fischbacher wrote about the closeness he felt with the tiger . Mantecore was one of three cubs . The cub 's mother neglected it . So Fischbacher once had to go into the tiger 's den and give it mouth-to-mouth resuscitation . The young cub was then cared for by Fischbacher 's mother , who bottle-fed it every three hours . `` Farewell my dear friend , '' Fischbacher wrote . `` Know that your image is forever burned into my heart . ''
Mantecore attacked Roy during a sold-out performance in 2003 . Roy was left paralyzed in the attack . The show was canceled . Hide Caption