CHENNAI: The grunts from an enclosure in the quarantine area at Vandalur Zoo indicate that Karthik, the three-month-old tiger cub, is hungry and could do with a bite.Abandoned by his mother Uthra a mere 24 hours after birth, was rescued by zoo managers and is being handreared by them. “When the mother abandoned him, we took this as a challenge and decided to hand-rear him,” director S Yuvaraj told TOI.When the cub was born it weighed just 1.2kg, Yuvaraj said. Initially, it was provided with colostrum replacer with probiotics and diluted goat milk to improve the nutrition intake. The imported colostrum replacer provides essential nutrients to newly born animals and is often used to raise orphaned and abandoned cubs and calves at the zoo. The cub was also given vitamin supplements for at least 45 days.After the 45-day period ended, zoo keepers fed the cub chicken soup using a feeding bottle for a month. Gradually, they introduced cooked and minced meat in a bowl.This proved a challenge as the cub wasn’t accustomed to feeding from a bowl and wouldn’t eat the meat.It took a while for the cub to feed from a bowl, Yuvaraj said. Slowly we changed the cub’s diet to minced raw meat and finally the cub is now fed with raw chicken pieces, he added.Now, the cub wakes up around 7am and feasts on a breakfast of chicken chunks of about 200g. The cub spends its day playing in the enclosure, the director said.Zoo keepers have handreared many orphaned wildlife including lion and leopard cubs, elephant calves, hyena and wild dog puppies. This is, however, the first time the zoo is hand-rearing a tiger cub.“The cub, which was weighing 1.2kg soon after its birth is now a healthy 12kg,” Yuvaraj added.

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