In April this year, hikers spotted an orphaned mountain lion cub in the San Mateo, California area. They called authorities and reported it to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Big cat rescue.
Biologists transported the dehydrated baby cub to the Oakland Zoo for treatment. Nationally recognized as a leader in a animal welfare, rescue, and conservation, the Oakland Zoo has made its mission to educate the public and provide care for animals since 1922.
Wild cats need love too.
Caregivers at Oakland Zoo named the mountain lion cub Rose and estimated her age to be about four or five months old. The staff at the Oakland Zoo chronicled Rose’s rescue and progress in several Facebook posts.
She arrived malnourished and in very poor shape when brought to the facility. Rose also had a low blood cell count covered in fleas and ticks.
Rose weighed eight pounds and eight ounces. Adequate weight for a cub her age is usually about thirty pounds.
Severely hungry and malnourished, the staff at Oakland Zoo bottle-fed Rose formula and spoon-fed her. Veterinarians estimated she hadn’t eaten in almost two months.
Because of Rose’s anemia, she required a blood transfusion. Luckily, a resident mountain lion named Silverado was able to be a match for Rose and provide blood for the transfusion successfully.
Caregivers and doctors at the Oakland Zoo were cautiously optimistic about Rose’s recovery. She did much better after the transfusion procedure.
Because Rose’s mother abandoned her so young, she missed out on learning critical wildlife survival skills. Rose won’t be released into the wild for her own well-being.
Wild animals
Mountain lions are wild and not personal pets. Wild animals require an environment that matches their needs.
Wild animals belong in an environment best suited for their needs to provide the best quality of life and safety for big cats and humans. Hence plans for Rose’s future release will be into a wildlife preserve or an accredited zoo.
This adorable mountain lion cub has captured the attention of big cat lovers on social media. The Oakland Zoo is giving updates on baby Rose on its social media pages.
Wrap up
A random hike turned into a wildcat rescue for an abandoned mountain lion cub in California. With attentive care from the Oakland Zoo staff, Rose survived and is on the way to a full recovery.
You can follow Rose’s journey to finding her forever home on the Oakland Zoo’s social media pages on Instagram or Facebook.
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