The Smithsonian National Zoo identified the sex of the two cheetah cubs born last week at its Virginia campus.
On Oct. 3, the zoo’s 4-year-old cheetah Amani gave birth to two male cubs. The first-time mother has been bonding with her newborns and has been seen snuggling next to each other, which is important since the cubs cannot regulate their temperatures yet and it’s starting to get cool, the zoo said in a news release.
Amani is doing well, herself. She’s been eating her diet and nursing the cubs regularly. During the day, she periodically leaves the cubs to patrol her yard or eat, which the zoo said is normal behavior.
It’s when she leaves that zookeepers get a chance to check out the cubs and weigh them. At the most recent weigh-in on Thursday, each one weighed about 2.5 pounds.
They also observed the cubs’ personalities, describing them as “quite feisty.”
“Their eyes are now fully open, but they are still learning to assess their surroundings. When they experience something new — such as when keepers peeked into their den for the first time — the cubs tend to use all their senses to gain information. At times, they try to hiss and ‘act tough’ pending the new experience, the zoo said.
