Tiger Cub Trio Vet Check
July 15, 2022
Last week Indianapolis Zoo’s Tiger Trio (ICYMI: Here's the announcement) turned 6-weeks old and had their first Vet check consisting of vaccinations, a visual check of eyes, ears and body, and a measuring of their weights. They each weigh in at around 12 pounds. Their personalities are starting to emerge, and the cubs love to roll around and wrestle with one another. While they are still being bottle-fed, soon they will receive some meat to start the transition to solid food.
Mom Zoya is doing great and has healed. The tiger cub trio will remain indoors until mid-September. Don’t forget our tiger cub naming contest is underway on Facebook. https://bit.ly/3APS3Xl One of the male cubs was named Nicolas after the Veterinary Surgeon who assisted the Zoo. Winning names will be announced on July 29, International Tiger Day.
Here’s some history/background on the cubs:
On May 27, the Indianapolis Zoo’s 7-year-old Amur tiger Zoya gave birth to triplets. The trio consists of one female cub (the first one born) and two males. The father is 14-year-old Pavel.
Week 1 Photos
Zoya was born at the Zoo in 2014 and is a first-time mom. When Zoya delivered baby number one, she was tending to the cub, but still showed struggling signs of labor. It was necessary for the Veterinary staff to deliver the two other cubs by C-section. The cubs weighed in at around 2 pounds each.
Week 3 + 4 Photos
It is unlikely the cubs will ever be introduced to or in the same space with Zoya. Tigers are solitary by nature and Zoya is not raising them. Our animal care team is doing an amazing job hand-raising the cubs – they will be bottle-fed for 12 weeks.
Week 5+6 Photos
The birth of Amur tiger cubs is extremely important. With fewer than 100 Amur tigers in zoos accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, Indy’s cubs are important to maintaining a healthy genetic and sustainable population.
In the wild, habitat loss, human-tiger conflict and poaching are leading to declines in Amur tiger populations. They’ve lost almost 95% of their territories – one tiger has a large individual territory.