Three Sumatran tigers born at Point Defiance Zoo
Oct 8, 2014, 2:12 PM | Updated: 2:52 pm
An endangered Sumatran tiger gave birth to three cubs overnight at the Point Defiance Zoo in Tacoma. (Photo: Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium)
(Photo: Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium)
It doesn’t get any cuter than this. An endangered Sumatran tiger gave birth to three cubs overnight at the Point Defiance Zoo in Tacoma.
Zoo staff will monitor the mother, 11-year-old Jaya, and her cubs around the clock to make sure she’s properly taking care of the litter. The family is out of site in the Asian Forest Sanctuary, but the staff set up a video camera.
Dr. Karen Goodrowe Beck, the zoo’s general curator, said tigers usually need time with few disruptions to nurse and bond, so it’ll be several days before veterinarians are able to assess the cubs’ health and learn their genders.
It’s still too soon to determine when the public will get to see the cubs.
The zoo says the cubs bring the Sumatran tiger population in North American zoos to 79 and about 300 tigers exist in the wild on Sumatra.
In addition to Jaya and her cubs, the Point Defiance Zoo is home to four more Sumatran tigers, including the cubs’ father, Malosi.
This is Jaya’s fourth litter of cubs.
