Toma, the Amur Tiger that gave birth to a male cub on Mother’s day at the Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium, has completely rejected her cub. At the time we first posted on mother and cub, veterinarians at the zoo had given Toma medication to increase her milk production, hoping that her low level of milk was a possible cause for the rejection.

There was also speculation that perhaps Toma could sense some type of genetic or birth defect in the cub that was not immediately apparent to Dr. Barbara Baker and the tiger keepers. In 2006 Toma gave birth for the first time to a litter of 3 cubs. Five weeks after they were born, the smallest of the three died and a necropsy showed that the cub had an enlarged heart and unusually small stomach. Toma successfully raised the two remaining cubs.

While tiger keepers fed the cub every three hours, nurtured it and kept him in an incubator, there was hope that Toma would accept and care for her cub prior to him opening his eyes, which generally happens at around the two-week mark. All attempts at reintroduction were unsuccessful. Not only did Toma refuse to nurse her offspring, she took no interest in him at all.

Surrogacy options were mentioned by Dr. Baker, as newborn tigers have, in the past, been raised by other species, such as a dogs, however the zoo’s veterinarian staff opted to raise Toma’s cub. Although optimistic about the cub’s chances for survival, there was still concern.

I spoke with a zoo official today and am very happy to report that Toma’s cub, not yet named, is playful and energetic. Currently he is on exhibit from 11:00am to 2:00pm daily, however as he is now nearly 3 months old, his exhibition hours may be extended soon. This feisty little cub apparently finds watching the people that watch him quite amusing, and he loves to play and tussle with whatever toy he can find.

For information on Zoo hours and updates on other baby animals at the zoo, visit the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium website.

Tiger-themed gifts at Whales & Friends

This entry was posted on Thursday, July 31st, 2008 at 3:49 pm and is filed under Animals in the News, Uncategorized.You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.