December 13
The boys are growing like weeds! We weighed them today: Jalan and Besar are both 100 pounds, with Marah not far behind at 90 pounds. Between November 1 and December 1, each of the boys gained a whopping 20 pounds! They are still very cute and playful, but they seem to grow before our eyes. Soyono continues to do a great job with them and is very loving and patient. She does appreciate some alone time, though, and we have been putting her outside before the boys go out every day. At first it was only for five minutes, but we gradually lengthened the time and now she gets about an hour to herself. We wanted to make sure she didn't start to worry about them because then she might have refused to go out at all the next day. The cubs don't mind being inside alone. They spend the time playing with each other or communicating with their dad, Rokan, through the mesh door.
Jalan and Marah both had matching limps for a while, probably from playing too roughly with each other. They got a little more rest and a little less yard time and now they look great. The vets have said they can spend as much time in the yard as we can give them. We will keep a close eye on them to make sure they don't reinjure themselves. With the colder temperatures and less daylight, the cubs will probably be outside for about three to four hours each day, usually in the morning, and come inside at about noon or 1 p.m.
If you have a cat, you know that it has to get vaccinated as a kitten to be protected from a number of diseases, including distemper and feline leukemia. The cubs got these shots back when they were small enough to be handled. (Those days are over!) Recently, they have been getting training sessions, just like the adult big cats, and we think that we will be able to give them their booster shots without having to use a dart gun. Needles are bad enough, but getting darted is scary and hurts more, so we are very proud of our boys for being smart enough to avoid this. I may not be completely objective, but I think we have the smartest, handsomest tigers ever, each one a prodigy.
I don't know about you, but everyone here at Great Cats is very excited about the four new cheetah cubs! These cats are very difficult to breed and each birth is important.
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