Clouded leopard cub Riki-san
I sat waiting in the dark, searching the various doors on the gigantic FedEx plane for signs that Nicki Boyd, behavior husbandry manager, was about to emerge. Nicki had safely landed in San Diego on this cargo-only flight from Tennessee, bringing very precious cargo from the Nashville Zoo’s clouded leopard breeding program. Suddenly, one of the security guards approached my vehicle, knocked on the window, and said, “Here they come.” Nicki and a FedEx employee carried a large airline crate across the tarmac. Inside were two beautiful clouded leopard brothers, only 14 weeks old. They were hand raised at the Nashville Zoo at Grassmere and were coming to the San Diego Zoo as ambassadors for our Backstage Pass program.
All new animals to our collection must undergo a period of quarantine, necessary to ensure that they not have any infectious disease. So, before the boys could join the gang at Backstage Pass, we had to keep them segregated while our veterinarians cleared them for a variety of infectious agents. Since the boys were young and needed TLC, we decided to quarantine them inside our Neonatal Assisted Care Unit (NACU), known as the nursery by many, facility rather than at our Jennings Center for Zoological Medicine as we usually do.
For the NACU keepers, this was something new and exciting! We hadn’t had a chance to work with clouded leopard cubs since 1990, and these cats had always been a favorite species of ours. We prepared everything in advance: our unit was clean and ready for the boys’ arrival.
The two cubs were surprisingly calm in the transfer crate, curious about their surroundings and greeting me with a shrill chirp. They cried just a few times on the drive to the Zoo but were calm and patient. We carried the crate to the nursery area and opened the crate door. As each cub was released, we weighed him and held him awhile for reassurance, then released him into his new, temporary home. We had constructed a climbing structure for the cubs to play on and placed soft towels, rugs, cat trees, toys, and other enrichment items around the nursery. The cubs sniffed around tentatively at first but were playing with each other and exploring their new climbing structure and toys almost immediately.
NACU keeper Mary Dural prepared their evening diet as directed; she weighed out a portion of raw meat-based zoo carnivore food. Nicki brought some of the meat with her from Nashville, since our zoo does not use the same product. Our Nutritional Services department will change the diet for the cubs, transitioning them from the product they are currently on to our zoo carnivore diet. Since all diet changes are made gradually, we will make the transition slowly, increasing the new diet a little bit on each successive day.
That night each cub ate heartily and drank fresh water. We watched as they played, explored, and attacked each other until they began to tire and flopped themselves down on the floor. It was time to turn out the light and put the cubs to bed. They had arrived safe and sound, but it had been a long day for them.
Janet Hawes is a lead keeper at the San Diego Zoo. Read her previous post, No Babies? What Do Nursery Keepers Do?
Will the public get to see them in the nursery? Can’t afford Backstage Pass, but I’d love to visit them.
Moderator’s note: Absolutely! Hurry, as they’re growing fast!
Thank you for highlighting these incredibly beautiful creatures and helping to inform people of the plight of the rsinforests of Southeast Asia. Having grown up in Southeast Asia myself, I have seen the devastation wreaked upon their habitats and those of countless other precious creatures by the unchecked conversion of forests. The negative impact on the human population in these areas is an integral part of this story: children who have to wear masks to go to school, communities evicted from traditional lands and left to pine away in urban slums… young indigenous girls forced to seek work in slave-like conditions and vulnerable to sexual violence. The cubs and the human children are bound together in a story whose plot we might yet be able to change. Please continue to tell us about these lovely creatures.
SC: You have an important conservation message that needs to be told. Hopefully, someday all will be good for both the humans and Clouded Leopards…
Nannykeepers: May I suggest buying the black Kong toys (for exreme chewers!) on your next trip to the pet store? Stuff them with your carnivore meat and freeze for a tasty treat that will occupy them for a long time!
Were they separated from their mother for some reason?
San Diego Zoo responds: The Nashville Zoo at Grassmere hand-raises the cubs as part of their breeding program. This helps improve matchmaking, as hand-raised males in zoos seem to be “nicer” to potential “girlfriends.”
Thanks for this blog Janet. They are so cute and playful. The zoo’s answer makes me think that these guys might still be used for breeding? If so, how long will you be keeping them in the Backstage Pass area? Would you be bringing in a female or would you be sending the male to another zoo? I seem to always have questions for you. Sorry.
One will return to rejoin the breeding program once the brothers decide they need their space from each other. The other cat will stay with us.
The Clouded Leopard Cubs are simply precious! Is there going to be Leopard Cub Cam?
I’ve always said if I could live life like one animal, I would be a feline cub!!! Fearless, Fun and everything is an wonderment!!!
They are just beautiful! Looking forward to hear more about them as they settle in and grow up. Very glad they have each other for company too, I’m sure that will make their transition much smoother.
These little boys are gorgeous! Can’t wait to see them.
I saw them in the nursery last week; coincidentally the first day they were available for public viewing. I think I stood and watched them for 20 minutes in total delight as they were wrestling and playing with each other, and then piled on top of each other to snooze. They are almost impossibly cute. Thank you for telling us a little more about them! I need to pay them another visit before they are out of quarantine!
I was able to visit the SDZ yesterday (12/12) and got to view and film the beautiful brothers!!! They are gorgeous! Their tails are longer than their torso! They were having fun playing with their toys and with each other and also with their nursery ‘mom’. I’ll make a video today or tomorrow and let you all know when it’s up on Youtube
Thank you SDZ for enriching all visitors with the opportunity to visit ALL the amazing animals!
Okay
Here is the link for the video of what we got to see at the SDZ nursery on 12/12.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIRNu3srU8o&feature=youtu.be
Thanks for sharing. They are delightful!
Thank you for the video Bobbie. The music was a nice touch too. I was thinking maybe one of the nannykeepers could put something inside the big water bottle to make it a little more enticeing for them. Like a big rattle.
My goodness! They are so beautifully cute! Thank you for an interesting blog!
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