Pet Scoop: Zoo Hand Rears Cheetah Sisters, Abandoned Kittens Found in Snowstorm

January 17, 2017 at 08:34PM by
>br> Jan. 17, 2017: We've scoured the Web to find the best and most compelling animal stories, videos and photos. And it's all right here.

Image: Cheetah cub sisters SD Zoo

Keepers Raise Playful Cheetahs

Two cheetah sisters are being raised by the animal care team at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. The cubs were born on Nov. 19, and the team intervened because their mom wasn’t caring for them after their birth. The staff says the girls are very active and play almost constantly, except for the brief catnaps they sneak in during the day. Known so far as Yellow and Purple, for the temporary identification markings on their tails, the cubs had been confined to a large playpen. But they now have full run of the nursery room, which has been “kitten-proofed” for their safety. The cubs are now eating ground meat and will soon be weaned from the formula supplement they still receive. Yellow and Purple are being trained to be animal ambassadors with the zoo. — See photos at Zooborns

Study: Infant Marmosets Outgrow Baby Talk With Parents’ Help

Another hand-reared baby is helping researchers understand speech development in marmosets. Scientists observing monkeys who’d been rejected by their parents found that the little ones needed their parents’ direct feedback to grow out of making baby noises. While they innately developed vocalizations of adult marmosets, they mixed them in with sounds that are typical of infants. “It seems that developing the repertoire available to them heavily depends on direct feedback mechanisms much like our own,” said researcher Dr. Steffen Hage. The study was published in the journal Nature Communications. — Read it at Science Daily

Firefighters Saved Dog From Fire

The owners of a dog who was pulled unconscious from a fire in their Washington, D.C., home on Monday afternoon are thanking firefighters for saving their family member. The big white dog was covered in soot when he was found in the home’s smoky kitchen. “We rushed him out to the backyard and began resuscitation efforts,” said Vito Maggiolo, the spokesman for DC Fire/EMS. Cesare’s family was on vacation at the time of the fire, and the dog was rushed to a local veterinary hospital after he started blinking and kicking. “Thank you ‪@dcfireems for saving our Cesare, we are hoping he'll pull through thanks to your heroic efforts today at our fire-stricken house,” owner Peter Garrett Tweeted on Monday night. — Read it from Washington’s WTOP

Image: kittens found in box

Four Kittens Found in Box

A litter of four 6-week-old kittens are warm and cozy thanks to a Good Samaritan who found them during a snowstorm in Ohio earlier this month. The woman discovered the kitties in a cardboard box on the side of the road and called the Cleveland Police for help. The police brought the kittens to the Cleveland Animal Protective League, where the staff said they probably wouldn’t have survived the night if they hadn’t been rescued. Small, Squint, Repeat and Benny are now in foster homes and expected to be OK. — Read it from Inside Edition via Yahoo

Dog and Cat Interrupt Soccer Match

It’s not uncommon to see a wayward dog or a stray cat race across a soccer pitch. But one of each in one game is a little more unique! In a video clip of the competition between Mexico’s Pachuca and Jaguares teams, a playful dog runs across the field first. He looks like he wants to join the action but he’s safely corralled and the game continues. Later, a cat takes a seat on the field, but quickly takes off when he’s approached by a player. — Watch it at People Pets



Original From:http://www.vetstreet.com/our-pet-experts/pet-scoop-zoo-hand-rears-cheetah-sisters-abandoned-kittens-found-in-snowstorm?WT.mc_id=RSSFeed