Hand-feeding saves eight lion cubs

LAHORE:

The Lahore Safari Zoo has recorded the birth of 18 lion cubs over the past few months, with zoo authorities separating them from their mothers due to safety and health concerns.

According to the zoo's veterinary officer, Dr Warda Gill, lionesses sometimes refuse to accept their newborns or fail to nurse them, placing the cubs' survival at risk. She explained that big cats at the facility are kept in groups, increasing the possibility of harm to newborns from other adult males or females.

"In such situations, cubs are immediately separated from the mother and shifted to the nursery, where they are monitored round the clock and fed formula milk through hand-feeding," she said. Dr Gill said 10 cubs from the first batch were successfully reared and later shifted to the Lion Safari area.

A second group of eight cubs remains under nursery care and is being raised through hand-feeding.

She noted that the first 24 to 72 hours after birth are critical for survival.

"If a cub adapts to hand-feeding for the first month, its survival chances increase significantly," she said, adding that cubs receiving initial mother's milk generally develop stronger immunity.

At the age of two to three months, cubs of similar age are paired to encourage natural social behaviour.

The safari zoo has also reported new births among other species, including 10 blackbucks, four chital deer and four hog deer in recent weeks. The newborn animals have attracted families, particularly children.

Although visitor numbers have declined during Ramazan, the administration said families continue to show interest in observing big cats and the young deer in the safari-style enclosures.