Lion Cubs Bottle Feed and Play at San Diego Zoo Safari Park

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A pair of lion cubs born at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park are crawling with more confidence but keeping close to each other. The brother and sister, whose mother, Oshana, wasn't giving them the attention they needed to thrive, are now in the animal care center being fed bottles of kitten-starter formula every two hours by keepers. They get between 30 and 40 milliliters and this will increase as their weight increases. Today the female cub weighed 3.5 pounds and the male cub weighed 5.5 pounds after their 8 a.m. feeding.

Keepers say the female cub is very feisty while the male cub is calm. However, they note that both of them are very vocal when they want something, such as food or attention from animal care staff. They also call for each other when separated for feedings or measurements.

The cubs are viewable for short periods of time at the animal care center at the Safari Park. However, the cubs, like adult lions, are averaging about 20 hours of sleep per day. They will remain a pair and learn to be lions together. When they're ready, animal care staff will work on training behaviors that will help staff assess their health.