WINNIPEG – The Assiniboine Park Zoo is welcoming two babies to its collection.
The two snow leopards were born Saturday, the zoo said Friday in a news release.
“Anytime we’re able to welcome new additions to the zoo is a aspecial day,” Gary Lunsford, the zoo’s acting director, said in a news release. “We know there will be a lot of people looking forward to meeting the new cubs.”
The cubs are not currently on exhibit to give them time to bond with their mother and get veterinary care.
Initial indications are that Batu, the mother, and her cubs are all in good health, but zoo staff are monitoring them closely, the zoo said.
These are the first cubs born to Batu and her mate, Henry James. Batu, 4, came to Winnipeg in June 2011 from Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle. Henry James, 3, came from the Tulsa Zoo in September 2011.
The zoo said it won’t reveal the cubs’ gender and the date for their introduction to the public until after their initial neonatal exams in two or three weeks.
There are no photos of the cubs available, the zoo said.
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