Another orphaned mountain lion cub — the third in a month — has found sanctuary at Oakland Zoo.

Like the other two, this one was rescued by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and brought to the zoo in critical condition. The cub is believed to be just a few weeks old, making it the youngest of the trio.

The cub was found in late December and was near death when she arrived at the zoo. She was unable to stand or walk, and was suffering from severe dehydration and starvation. Her starvation was so advanced, zoo vets discovered, her body had begun consuming its own muscle mass.

After six days of continuous IV fluids containing essential electrolytes and minerals, and round-the-clock bottle-feedings by Oakland Zoo veterinary staff, she began walking and showing signs of life. Vet staff joyously reports she is now regularly eating solid foods, showing a spunky personality, and playing.

This cub, along with the two others, will live permanently at the zoo. Because they have no mother to teach them the basics of surviving in the wild, they cannot be released back into nature once their rehabilitation is complete.

Sadly, even for those who have their mothers, the mountain lion cub death rate is high, Mountain lions, zoo officials said, are becoming critically endangered in California, where many meet their deaths as they are struck by vehicles, and others who venture too close to developed areas and are shot.

Oakland Zoo partners with conservation organizations such as the Mountain Lion Foundation and the Bay Area Puma Project to try to help conserve the species in the wild.

“Mountain lion cubs need up to two years with their mom in order to learn how to survive and thrive,” said Zara McDonald, executive director of the Bay Area Puma Project. “Human survival training is not possible. The Bay Area Puma Project supports Oakland Zoo’s efforts to care for pumas that cannot be released into the wild.”

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Oakland Zoo helped found BACAT (Bay Area Cougar Action Team) in 2013, an alliance with the Bay Area Puma Project and the Mountain Lion Foundation, to help support the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and efforts to save mountain lions caught in the human-wildlife conflict.

The cub has not been named, but she is thriving with the special care. Zoo vet staff have been treating her in the ICU with nine daily and overnight bottle-feedings of kitten milk replacer formula, grooming her with a soft cloth to mimic a mother’s tongue, and monitoring her progress. She is now eating solid food and her favorite stew is a combination of raw meat from Primal Pet Foods, chicken baby food, frozen mice that are warmed, and cod.

The cub was found along a roadside in Coloma, El Dorado County in the early morning hours of Dec. 21. The couple that discovered her reported she remained in the same spot for hours, and when they finally attempted to approach her, the cub tried to drag herself away but was unable to because she was so weak. The couple contacted Sierra Wildlife Rescue, who in turn contacted Fish and Wildlife.

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San Jose woman bedeviled by fleas in her house “We have a lot of work to do to better protect and conserve mountain lions in the wild, from proper education to establishing wildlife crossings and proper enclosures for pets and livestock,” said Amy Gotliffe, Director of Conservation at Oakland Zoo.

At Oakland Zoo, the cub trio will be ambassadors for human-wildlife conflict education, helping to ensure the survival of their counterparts in the wild. Their new 26,000 square foot habitat, designed to mimic their natural setting, might be the largest mountain lion habitat in the world. It will open to the public in June as part of the Zoo’s upcoming California Trail expansion.

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