Two adorable tiger cubs were born to the resident pair at Karagandy Zoo, Amur tigers Batyr and Mia, QazMonitor reports citing Kazinform.
Born in June earlier this year, a boy and girl, they are the first tiger litter in fifteen years to grace the grounds of Karagandy Zoo. According to the staff, Mia is on a strict diet as the cubs still need to be nursed. Due to the heatwave this past month, neither Mia nor her cubs ate a lot, prompting the zoo staff to introduce chopped meat to their diet. They were also given meat on the bone to aid in dental development.
Despite the unwelcoming weather, Mia has proven to be a tender and caring mother to her litter.
"At first, we placed extra basins of water in their enclosure, and Mia bathed her cubs there. Following human customs, we kept the cubs hidden for forty days. We also filled [the enclosure's] pool, and Mia is constantly watching over her cubs, feeding them intensively, and bathing them herself, thoroughly several times a day," said Gulnar Adambekova, the director of Karagandy Zoo.
Earlier, Karagandy Zoo reported that its premises became the scene of a romantic triangle involving Mia, Batyr, and the newly transferred Lad. Despite being peers, Mia showed interest not in the strapping young Lad, but in the tiger next door, Batyr.