Chinese zoo keepers managed to save the life of a mentally disturbed man after he announced he wanted to improve the lives of caged tigers at a local zoo by offering them his own body to eat.

Yang Jinhai, 27, had posted several online messages about how optimistic he was about starting a new life after getting a job as a security guard in Chengdu in southwest China’s Sichuan province.

But he quickly found the job boring and monotonous and moved instead to a job in a printing factory where he also then resigned, saying that he felt there was more to life.

After going to the local zoo he wrote how depressing it was to see the ‘noble and magnificent tigers’ living in such humble surroundings, where they were caged and unable to follow their natural instincts to hunt and kill.

He then announced that he had decided to sacrifice himself in order to provide the Bengal tigers with support.

Eyewitness Feng Lin said: ‘He climbed up the outside of the cage and jumped inside expecting, I assume, that the tigers would pounce on him. Instead the two tigers, a male and a female, seemed more nervous than anything else and the female actually ran off.

Yang Jinhai, 20, apparently wanted to sacrifice himself to the tigers

Rescued: The tiger eventually let Mr Jinhai go and zoo keepers led him to safety

‘He then tried to antagonise the tigers by pulling faces at them. Eventually he was attacked by the male where he was cut after being scratched and bitten before he could be rescued by zoo keepers who fired a tranquilliser dart at the male tiger.’

They then pulled the man out of the cage.

Yang’s family told local media Mr Jinhai had been depressed for a long time and said that he had been taken to a home where he was given psychiatric counselling to cope with his problems.

Troubled: Mr Jinhai had apparently been depressed and wanted to sacrifice himself to the tigers