Lion Camp Update – A New Member of the Pride!
Posted at 11:19 am November 23, 2005 by Marcia ReddingI know many of you have been waiting for news of Etosha’s pregnancy. Finally, here are the details! On the morning of November 10, Etosha began showing signs of labor – restlessness, pacing, and some vaginal discharge. At this point we began a 24-hour watch on her. Her labor appeared to be progressing normally, and her mate M’bari was right next door. He was separated from her by a mesh divider and Etosha did not seem bothered by his proximity – she occasionally stopped by the partition for a brief visit. M’bari himself was very calm, not upset or confused at all by what was happening.
At 9:30 that evening, we had the first glimpse of a cub being born. It soon became apparent that this cub was in the breech position – coming out tail first. This is a problem in animals just as it sometimes is in human births, and Etosha tried unsuccessfully to push the cub out for about an hour. At this point we called in the veterinary staff. The decision was made to anesthetize Etosha and help her deliver the cub. It was obvious at this point that she needed assistance. The procedure went very smoothly, and the vets were able to remove the cub that was in breech position. Unfortunately, this one was stillborn. However, before the anesthesia was reversed, Etosha received a sonogram examination and this revealed another cub waiting to be born, with a normal strong heartbeat.
The next step was to wake Etosha up and see if she was able to deliver the remaining cub naturally. She came out of the anesthesia beautifully, a real testament to the skill and experience of our veterinary staff. However, it soon became apparent that she wasn’t making any progress, and was becoming very tired. The decision was then made to transfer her to our Paul Harter Veterinary Medical Center for a caesarean.
Etosha is doing very well and is back to her old self, although she will have to remain at the hospital until her stitches are removed sometime next week. The new baby is a male, as yet unnamed, and is being hand reared. After Etosha’s surgery, it was decided it was in both her and the cub’s best interests to take over the motherhood duties. As of now he is staying at the hospital. As in human children, lion cubs born by c-section tend to have a little more fluid in their lungs than a vaginally delivered baby, as they have not been squeezed through the birth canal, a process that helps clear the lungs as the baby is born, so he will be kept at the hospital until the vet staff is satisfied there are no other complications. If all goes well, he will be moved to the Park’s Animal Care Center, where keepers trained to care for baby animals will look after him.
Throughout this difficult time, all the staff worked as a team to produce the best possible outcome. We will never know what caused Etosha’s atypical delivery, but knowing we were able to give her the help she needed is very rewarding, and a testament to the dedication of all involved!
Marcia Redding is a senior mammal keeper at the Wild Animal Park.
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November 23rd, 2005 at 11:41 am
Sorry to hear of all her trouble and the loss of a cub. Kudos to all of you involved as you all did wonderful! Hope that the little fellow continues to do well.
November 23rd, 2005 at 11:55 am
Etosha is a very lucky lady. In the wild all three lions would probably have perished. I hope we get a chance to see a picture of her newborn. As usual, I have a couple of questions: Since she had such a tough time, will you allow her to breed again or will future pregnancies be prevented? How does one help a lioness with birth control? Hormones? Spaying? Preventing contact with non-neutered males?
Many, many kudos to you, your staff, and those terrific veterinarians…you saved two lives. Etosha and her lucky cub can’t say thank you, but I can. Thank you.
November 23rd, 2005 at 12:30 pm
I held my breath through this blog. Congratulations for the excellent work you all did on behalf of these beautiful animals. I agree with Pamela, #2 above, that Etosha and her cub are very lucky to have you!
November 23rd, 2005 at 2:07 pm
Wow, what an incredible experience you have shared. Etosha and her new cub are so lucky to have been assisted by the best professionals in the world. Thank you for bringing a new life into the pride and thank you for giving Etosha the emergency care she required. I guess this is an example of what Thanksgiving is all about. What a wonderful gift we have with our animals and their dedicated keepers, veterinarians, and other WAP professionals. I wish you all the best as the care continues for both Etosha and her newborn.
November 23rd, 2005 at 3:58 pm
Marcia, thank you so much for letting us know. I think Diana (#4) expressed the feelings of all of us. And I know the many hours you and your fellow keepers have spent training the lions helped Etosha to feel secure through her difficult deliveries. I hope the cub may eventually be returned to the pride. Are you able to express Etosha’s milk for him –or is there a hope that she might be able to nurse him when she heals? Again, many many thanks.
November 23rd, 2005 at 6:16 pm
Thank you for the update. We’ve been waiting to hear how Etosha was doing. We’re so sorry about the first cub, but we have high hopes for the remaining baby boy. The whole pride will be in our thoughts and prayers. Can’t wait to see him!
November 23rd, 2005 at 6:41 pm
Please, please keep us updated on the cub’s and Etosha’s progress. Many of us will be giving thanks tomorrow for this new life and Etosha’s excellent medical care while at the same time grieving for the lost cub. Is part of this due to Etosha’s rather tender age in becoming a mother?
November 23rd, 2005 at 6:43 pm
When will the cub be out of the proverbial ” woods?”
November 23rd, 2005 at 8:22 pm
Like Stacy (Comment#3), I held my breath through the blog as well. It must have been a tremendously stressful time for both your team and Etosha! This is one brave mommy indeed. So sorry to hear of the lost cub; but at least we have this little guy – and it seems like he’s a survivor!! Best healthy wishes to mom and cub…and many, many thanks to you and your dedicated team for your love and care for these precious animals. We are all very lucky…
November 24th, 2005 at 3:32 am
I am so thankful that you were able to care so wonderfully for Etosha and her cub during this difficult time. Knowing there are such wonderful people in the world to care for these wonderful animals makes life beautiful. Happy Thanksgiving.
November 24th, 2005 at 7:47 am
Thank you everyone for your supportive comments, they are much appreciated. Pamela, the contraception issue is still being discussed. If it is decided to go this route, there are several possibilities, but the most likely is some sort of hormone implant. This has advantages as it is completely reversible. The implant would be placed just under the skin. Shirley, your question about Etosha’s milk is a good one. Unfortunately her training has not progressed far enough to enable us to do this. Also, lactation consumes lots of energy, and it actually is better for Etosha to avoid milk production after all she has been through. The new cub will be entirely hand-raised by the Animal Care Center staff, once he is ” out of the woods” medically, with input from the vets and our staff nutritionist. The little one will be given every chance to thrive we can provide for him. Again, thank you all for your comments, and have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday!
November 25th, 2005 at 9:44 am
Carole, it’s hard to say when the new cub will get a clean bill of health from the vets; they are being very conservative with him due to his difficult birth. It’s also difficult to say if Etosha’s age had anything to do with her troubled delivery – she is a very big, healthy girl. That said, it is true that first litters sometimes have lower success rates both in the wild and in captivity. The big difference, of course, is here at the Wild Animal Park we have the resources to intervene and improve the outcome. Truly something to be thankful for.
November 25th, 2005 at 10:05 am
Marcia, will the little cub eventually be re-introduced to mom and the pride? If so, at what age? Thanks again.
November 25th, 2005 at 3:00 pm
Thank you for the update and thanks to all for making the decisions they did. The fact that you all have the capabilities you do to hand rear almost any ” baby” is heartwarming. I look forward to pictures of the new lion in the future. Hats off to everyone for their efforts, it’s so very much appreciated.
November 28th, 2005 at 8:38 am
What a great story! Thanks to all of the keepers for taking such good care with the animals. Can’t wait to see pictures of the ” little guy” . I’m envious of the staff that gets to ” raise” him. Hugs to all!
November 28th, 2005 at 12:25 pm
This is such a bittersweet, touching story. It brought tears to my eyes. I can take comfort in knowing that Etosha and her cubs were in the caring hands of the WAP staff and vets throughout this whole ordeal.
Please post some pics of the surviving baby!
November 28th, 2005 at 12:48 pm
Blessings to you all for all that you do for all in your care. Without your dedication and watchfulness there would have been such a devastating outcome instead of an outcome of hope with a new live cub. I know that sometimes as hard as we try to understand why some things happen the way they do there are no easy answers and even with all the skill and knowledge behind us we can still wonder. Etosha is doing well because of all of you! The new little male has a chance for life because of all of you! We are all grateful for all of you! With heartfelt Thanks to you all and prayers for Etosha and the new little guy. Luv to all, Judy J
November 29th, 2005 at 9:11 am
Please give us an update on how the cub and Etosha are doing. Thank you.