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3 mountain lion cubs orphaned by California wildfire, getting care at Oakland Zoo

3 mountain lion cubs orphaned by California wildfire, getting care at Oakland Zoo
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Two young mountain lion cubs rescued from the Zogg Fire in California are getting treatment at the Oakland Zoo. They join a male cub rescued from the same fire last week.

Video shared by the zoo on social media shows the cubs getting treatment and cleaned up.

The female cubs both appear to be in good health, according to the zoo.

The male cub, named Captain Cal, was “badly burned, especially his paws.” According to the Oakland Zoo when they got him on October 1 his whiskers were completely singed off.

At the time, Dr. Alex Herman, Director of Oakland Zoo’s Veterinary Hospital said, “We’re grateful to be part of this amazing little cub’s rescue and rehabilitation. It’s an amazing effort between Cal Fire, the Shasta County Sheriff’s Department, and of course our partners at the California Department of Fish & Wildlife. In the past two years, this marks our thirteenth mountain lion cub rescue for Oakland Zoo in partnership with CDFW.”

Cubs usually stay with their mothers in the wild for about two years until they can hunt and survive on their own.

Because these mountain lion cubs were orphaned, they cannot be released back into the wild and will likely be placed at a zoo.