Hand reared clouded leopard cub dies of anaemia in Sepahijala zoo

The conservation efforts of clouded leopards in the state faced a setback after a clouded leopard cub died in Sepahijala zoo on September 26 last. It was one of the two clouded leopards which had been hand reared by the biologists as a part of the conservation efforts of the endangered big cat.

The leopard duo was born in 2022 and later for a couple of months both of them were hand reared away from their biological parents. After they survived, the instance was hailed nationally as the first instance of successful hand rearing of clouded leopards in India.

“Both the cubs were fit. But, recently it was noticed that one of them was showing symptoms of weakness. When tests were conducted, we found that it was suffering from Anaemia. Our doctors tried to save the animal but unfortunately it died,” said Director Sepahijala Zoo Siddhartha Debbarma.  

According to Debbarma, the cub was genetically weak. “When breeding is conducted between genetically close animals the risk of such diseases is enhanced,” he added.

On being asked about the conservation breeding centre, Debbarma said, “Conservation Breeding Centre is a part of our zoo where we conduct breeding of animals which are considered to be endangered species. The motive is to ensure enough population of the animals so that they could be released in the wild.”

Debbarma also dismissed the allegations of mismanagement related to the diet of zoo animals. “We have qualified veterinarian doctors who prepare the diet chart for the animals and based on their recommendations, we procure the food items. Later, the food is distributed in each of the enclosures. There is no room for any mismanagement in the whole process,” he explained.  

Debbarma also said that Sepahijala Zoo has achieved very high standards nationally in terms of birth rate of new animals. “It is not that animals are only dying in our zoo. New animals are also taking birth and we have recognised nationally for our conservation and breeding efforts,” he added.