‘Incredibly endangered’ snow leopards arrive at Assiniboine Park Zoo

Two snow leopard cubs have arrived at Assiniboine Park Zoo, just in time for Canada Day.

The two male cubs, who were born in May and spent the first eight weeks of their life indoors with their mother, are now getting accustomed to their new outdoor enclosure at the zoo.

“Snow leopards are incredibly endangered,” said zookeeper Fran Donnelly. “They’re very hard to keep track of, so we want to make sure that their genetic lines stay as strong as possible. One of the biggest things we want to do is really inspire people to help us conserve them in the wild.”

The zoo is also inviting the public to help name the two cubs. The animal care team has narrowed the list down to four names per cub, which were chosen based on their relevance to Asia and Russia, where snow leopards live in the wild.

You can cast your vote online. Voting ends this Tuesday at noon.

The zoo is open until 8 p.m. on Sunday and 5 p.m. on Monday.