Meet The Cincinnati Zoo's Newest And Most Genetically Valuable Malayan Tiger Cubs!
Meet The Cincinnati Zoo's Newest And Most Genetically Valuable Malayan Tiger Cubs!
Three precious, furry, and "genetically valuable" new Malayan tiger cubs were born at the Cincinnati Zoo on February 3rd. Their mother may have rejected them, but we'd be willing to adopt them! Find out more here!
Three precious, furry, and "genetically valuable" new Malayan tiger cubs were born at the Cincinnati Zoo on February 3rd. Their mother may have rejected them, but we'd be willing to adopt them! Find out more here!
On Friday, February 3rd, The Cincinnati Zoo welcomed three incredibly important new members: Malayan tiger cubs, of which there are now only 500 left in the world.
Their mother, Cinta, is the second most genetically important female tiger living, and their father, Jalil, is the third most genetically important male tiger living, meaning, essentially, that these cubs' DNA is REALLY solid, perfect for breeding and helping restore their population later in life.
Mother, Cinta
However, there's still a little bit of trouble in tiger paradise. The cubs' mother, Cinta, has rejected the newborn cubs and does not recognize them as her own. While this is apparently fairly common in first-time tiger mothers, it does mean that special care has had to be taken of the newborn according to Mike Delaney, curator of mammals and vice coordinator of the Malayan Tiger species survival plan.
It’s not uncommon for first-time tiger moms not to know what to do. They can be aggressive and even harm or kill the cubs. Nursery staff is keeping them warm and feeding them every three hours.
Mike Delaney
USA Today, February 7, 2017
So, to make sure that the cubs' body temperatures didn't get too low or that they would go hungry or be harmed by their mother, the cubs were taken to the zoo's nursery, where they are taken care of by zoo staff, being bottle fed and cuddled by humans, who have taken over the role of their mother.
The cubs seem pretty happy, though. You can watch a video of them stumbling around together, still blind, here:
youtube embed goes here!
The cubs will hopefully join their exhibit sometime in the spring, but now, what we want to know is...
Would you ever want to play with a tiger cub?
Would you ever want to play with a tiger cub?
Any other thoughts? Talk to us about them in the comments below, and share with your friends to see what they think!