Oakland Zoo’s Rescued Tiger Cub’s Intent Focus On Tiger Documentary Is Priceless
Does your pet ever watch TV? Our puppy loves when we turn on the tube and she gets to watch other dogs. Apparently tiger cubs enjoy watching TV too, as this video that ABC News posted on Monday, March 18th proves.
The video shows Oakland Zoo's newest resident, a rescued tiger cub named Lily, as she intently watches a documentary about tigers. She is staring at the screen and watching the tigers as if she knows them. It's adorable, but maybe a bit sad, too.
Lily's absolutely adorable, and those big eyes were wide open with curiosity! I wonder how long she watched it before she lost interest. @ABC News were also surprised by the rescued tiger cub's reaction to the documentary. Everybody agreed that she was a cutie, but some were sad by Lily's reaction. @Sarah and many others said, "Her eyes look so sad. This is heartbreaking." And I couldn't agree more with the commenter who said, "Now this, this is news!"
Related: Oakland Zoo Shares Sweet Update on Their New Rescued Tiger Cub
Lily's Rescue
Lily didn't have an easy start at life. At just 8 months old she was rescued and placed at the Oakland Zoo where she's been recovering from injuries due to malnutrition. The injuries include multiple fractures and bone disease from a lack of calcium and phosphorus in the foods she was being fed. It was clear she'd been suffering from her injuries for quite some time before this beautiful exotic animal was rescued. The zoo hasn't released any details about Lily's history, but luckily, she's in safe and loving hands now and is expected to make a full recovery over the next several months.
As she heals, zookeepers are working hard to keep Lily stimulated and entertained sinch she cannot move around much due to her injuries. Maybe playing the documentary for her was a source of entertainment, or maybe they just wanted to see how she'd react to it. She seemed to enjoy it! I'm sure it's hard for her to not be able to move around since she's just a baby and babies love to play!
The first thing I noticed when watching the video of Lily was her beautiful eyes. When tiger cubs are born, they are born blind and when they open their eyes they are a milky blue color. As they grow, the color changes to the golden color that we all know and love. Interestingly, white tigers will keep their blue eyes for their entire lives.
Around 6 months of age tiger cubs start eating meat. Lily won't be hunting anytime soon, but tiger cubs in the wild aren't able to hunt for themselves until they are about a year and a half old. Until then, they depend on their mothers to feed them.
I'll be keeping an eye on Lily - she's so cute! I can't wait until she's able to get up and start moving around so that she can explore the world around her.
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