Snow leopard cubs at Denver Zoo

KYLE’S KRITTERS: Snow Leopard cubs

KUSA – In this week’s Kyle’s Kritters, 9NEWS Anchor Kyle Dyer goes to the Denver Zoo to meet three Snow Leopard cubs who were born in late June.

Bataar, a male, Kisa and Milennka, both females, are all doing wonderfully under the watchful eyes of mom Natasha. Natasha is an experienced mother, having had cubs twice before.

These three very cute, seemingly cuddly felines may remind visitors of the kitties they have at home. But keepers say these cats are already too big for them to handle up close anymore because it’s far too dangerous.

Snow Leopards come from the high mountainous regions of Central Asia. Their range in the wild is huge, covering 12 countries! These are solitary animals who usually roam their territory alone except to breed or raise their young.

This species is extremely endangered due to habitat loss, poaching and competition for the hooved stock they feed on. These cats are great climbers, using their long tails to keep balance while on rocky terrain.

The Zoo tells us these cubs were born with a small defect to their eyelids, and a specialist was called in to do minor corrective surgery to fix the problem. All went very well, and their sight was never affected.

Keepers tell us the cubs development continues and is right on track.

If you want to experience where wildlife meets lights join the Denver Zoo for their annual Zoo Lights.

Just visit http://denverzoo.org/zoolights/index.asp for more information.

http://www.9news.com/seenon9news/article.aspx?storyid=106165&catid=509

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Learn more about big cats and Big Cat Rescue at http://bigcatrescue.org