Nahargarh Biological Park: one cub of lioness Tejika dies, another battles for life

Jaipur: The Rajasthan forest department on Tuesday issued for the first time an official statement on the litters of Nahargarh biological park lioness Tejika. The officials said that the lioness gave birth to five cubs over a period of three days. One of them was born dead, while another is struggling for life due to excessive weakness. Three cubs are healthy and being fed by their mother regularly.

“The first three cubs were born at 6.51 pm, 9.26 pm and 12.04 am on the intervening night of May 20 and May 21,” said a senior forest department officer.

The officer said that Tejika was critically weak after giving birth to the first three cubs, but when she littered two more cubs on May 22, her health substantially improved.

“One of the cubs was born dead, while the other was very week. These two cubs were born on May 22,” said the officer.

The weak cub was separated from her mother against her wish and was being treated at a hospital in Jaipur Zoo. A team under the supervision of senior veterinary officer Dr Arvind Mathur is trying to save the cub.

Tejika was shifted to Jaipur Zoo from Junagarh in Gujarat nearly one and a half years ago. The officials were worried whether she would be able to take care of cubs like the lionesses in the wild. She had been battling diseases since she was shifted to Jaipur. She even suffered from paralysis.

“She survived against all odds and developed a great chemistry with the lion, named Siddhartha,” said Dr Mathur.

Last month, the forest department officials had put up an LED TV and were showing Tejika documentaries on how lions behave around their cubs in the wild.

“The good news is that Tejika has not abandoned her three healthy cubs and is feeding them regularly. We are keeping a close watch through CCTVs,” said an officer.

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