Cub News

For those of you who have been here before you may know that we were concerned about our Asian Short Clawed Otter cubs.

On Monday 7th January 2008 we again weighed them and were really disappointed when none of then showed any weight gain at all. That indicated that Zephyr was probably unable to produce enough milk to support all of her babies.

We had prepared ourselves for this and had previously agreed that if Zephyr wasn't able to supply enough milk we would take out two of the larger cubs, the two males, and attempt to hand rear them. This would leave Zephyr to feed the two, smaller, female cubs - thus reducing the strain on her and hopefully giving all of the cubs a fighting chance.

We had taken our mobile incubator (large plastic ice cream tub, hot water bottle, straw and lid) with us and removed the cubs as soon as the weighing was completed. More about the boys later.

The remainder of the Family didn't seem too concerned until they had finished their breakfast, but then they noticed that two of their cubs were missing. It was a little upsetting to watch them search and call for them but I was sure we were doing the right thing. They searched for the boys for some time; all day on and off, but eventually seemed to realise that they had gone.

We have checked to see how the two female cubs with the Family are doing and up to yesterday (Thursday) they looked very good. We haven't checked today because of the awful weather, but there's no reason to think that there are any problems at present. The Family have settled back down and will hopefully take good care of their youngest members.

The Boys..

As soon as we got the boys into their ice cream tub (which was very snug with the straw and hot water bottle) we put them into the van and took them home.

Their first day here was very quiet as we managed the change over from their mothers' milk to the replacement and gave them a chance to get used to the new sounds and smells of our utility room and kitchen.

They were fed by syringe every three hours (which is actually every two hours because it was taking almost an hour to feed them!) and then allowed to sleep under a heat lamp. This is an important time because a change of diet at this stage in their lives can induce diarrhoea which is a serious condition for any small (or large) animal. The first two days went very well, their appetities increased and so, gradually, did their weight. They weren't very active at first but were gaining confidence and starting to explore their new environment.

Wednesday went so well that we decided to risk moving them on from the syringe to a lambs' bottle. After a little bit of difficulty they both got the hang of it and feeding times went down and quantities went up. Marvellous, you'd think.....

Then on Thursday afternoon a small amount of diarrhoea was seen on the small cub, and he was soon followed by his brother. By Friday both were slightly worse and we decided it was time for a trip to the Vet.

It's Friday evening now and while it's safe to say that neither of the boys actually like their medicine they are taking it. Their feeding isn't bad and they are both still inquisitive and active; wrestling and nibbling being high on the agenda (although not as high as sleep). Fingers crossed for a good recovery.