4 lion cubs unveiled at zoo

Four African lion cubs were born two days apart at the Oklahoma City Zoo, officials announced Tuesday.

Two sisters were born Nov. 4, and a brother and sister were born Nov. 6.

The mothers, Tia and Bridget, both 8, were the last lions to be born at the zoo, according to a zoo press release. The lion mothers were unable to birth the cubs naturally, and veterinarians had to surgically remove the litters. About a dozen people worked through each surgery.

The cubs have the same father, a lion named Aslan, who hadn’t been able to mate with the lionesses because of a tooth problem, zoo spokeswoman Tara Henson said. A dentist removed a 2-inch bone growth from his mouth in July, and he immediately bred with Tia and Bridget.

The four cubs won’t be on display to the public until the spring, Henson said. Until then, live streaming video of the cubs is available 7 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. daily at www.okczoo.com. The cubs will live in the Lion Overlook exhibit den for the next few months.

Aslan is still on display, and Tia and Bridget will return after they finish recovering from surgery, zoo officials said.

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