Two young orphaned cougars were taken in by the Wilder Institute/Calgary Zoo on the weekend.
The cougar kittens will stay temporarily with the animal care, health and welfare team at the zoo until a permanent home at another facility in Canada is determined.
The zoo says the cubs are about five to six months old and wouldn’t have survived on their own without the care of their mother.
“Thanks to our strong partnership with Alberta Fish and Wildlife, we were able to step in and help give them a second chance,” the zoo said in a news release Tuesday.
“While their time with us will be brief, they’re receiving exceptional care and lots of love.… The kittens will not be viewable during their stay with us.”
Professional wildlife photographer John E. Marriott, who reported seeing the two cubs wandering on their own to Fish and Wildlife, says he feels relieved to learn the zoo will be taking care of the animals.
“They’re in good, human care. But also [it feels] bittersweet in knowing that they are never going to be in this Canmore wilderness ever again,” he said. “Little bit of an emotional roller-coaster.”
Fish and Wildlife Enforcement Services (FWES) said last week it was looking into reports of two young cougars that had been spotted alone near Canmore.
A statement from Alberta’s ministry of forestry and parks says the two young cougars were captured Friday evening.
FWES says it determined that the female cougar was killed legally in the Canmore area as part of a regulated hunt.
