Dehiwala Zoo provides a rare tiger spectacle
October 24, 2010 10:42 pm
The recently born Bengali tiger cub at the National Zoological Gardens has been rejected by it mother which had refused feeding it. Hence an artificial milk formula is being fed to the cub. The cub is secluded and its feeding has not been permitted to be seen by the public.
However, on October 26 (Tuesday) from 11.00 to 11.30 am the feeding could be witnessed by the public and the media through a special arrangement by the Zoological Gardens authorities, says the Zoological Gardens Director and Economic Development Minister Director General Bhashwara Senanka Gunaratne.
This is a rare instance where the artificial feeding of a Bengali tiger cub could be seen by the public, he added.
The three Bengali tigers were brought to
One among the three gave birth to a cub on October 22 morning. However it mother refused to feed it.
During an earlier instance too this tigress had given birth to a litter of three cubs which had died within a few days. Post mortem examinations had revealed certain abnormalities in their internal organs as having led to their deaths.
A mother tigress refusing to feed its young is a natural phenomenon in captivity, it has been revealed. As several attempts by the Dehiwala Zoo authorities had failed to make the mother feed its cub, special arrangements were made to artificially feed it. The cub was secluded to protect it from outside disturbances and fed a specially prepared milk formula.
As the feeding a Bengali tiger cub is a very rare sight, the public and the media have been provided this once in a life time opportunity of witnessing, says the Zoological Gardens Director.
