An Italian-born puma who arrived at a Kent animal park at just 18 months old has died.

Yazhi settled in the UK as a cub just months after being born in Italy in July 2010.

Initially joining Hertfordshire Zoo, she joined The Big Cat Sanctuary in Smarden, near Ashford, in January 2011.

However, following a sudden decline in her health the park has announced her death due to kidney failure at the age of 14.

Named after the native American word for 'little one', keepers have described her as a "truly special cat".

A spokesperson for the Sanctuary said: "Yazhi continued to be a particularly playful character all through her life, becoming famous around the Sanctuary for her love of football which she would play with basketballs - her absolute favourite.

"The team would occasionally give Yazhi a basketball as a treat and it was always a joy to watch her tear around her enclosure, chasing after them with boundless energy.

"Always sweet-natured, she would come over to those she loved and if you listened carefully you could hear her beautiful, continuous soft purr.

"Her wonderful personality was matched equally by her outstanding beauty and, to many of us, she was perfect in every way.

"Sadly, Yashi's health began to decline very recently. She stopped eating and after a period of monitoring, our vet confirmed that her kidneys had failed.

"Despite treatment, it was determined that Yazhi's condition couldn’t be reversed, and, after careful consideration, we made the difficult decision with our vet to let her go peacefully.

"Everyone at the Sanctuary still saw Yazhi as the baby cub that arrived to us and given that her illness progressed over a short time, this has come as a shock to many of us.

"But we will always remember her as the sweet, playful and affectionate character that she was, as well as a huge part of our family."

Pumas, also known as cougars or mountain lions, are native to North and South America and can live on mountains and in forests, deserts and wetlands.

Their bodies are mainly covered in tan-coloured fur, except for a whitish-grey belly and chest.

Males can weigh up to 100kg with females about one-third smaller, according to the National Wildlife Federation.

Yazhi's passing comes in the same week the park announced the arrival of four lions almost a year after plans to rescue them from war-torn Ukraine were unveiled.

Rori, Amani, Lira, and Vanda have made Kent their new home and joined Yuna, who was also rescued and arrived at the park in August, as part of the charity's 'Big Cats in Crisis' campaign.

The initiative began in May with the aim of creating a brighter future for the lions which have suffered extreme hardship due to the country's war with Russia.