Five weeks ago a trio of African Wild dog puppies were born at the Oklahoma City Zoo. Unfortunately they were abandoned by their mother. Luckily a retired search and rescue dog stepped in to raise them. We brought you the whole of that inspiring story here – https://theanimalfacts.com/lily-conducts-rescue-different-kind/.
Now five weeks on they are going strong and have been given names. Currently all the pups weigh a healthy 6 pounds (2.7kg). There are two females and one male.
When naming the pups keepers looked to their African heritage along with their surrogate mother’s name, Lilly for inspiration.
Keepers decided to call the two female pups Ayana and Zahara, while the male pup is known as Maji.
Ayana means beautiful flower. She is noticeable due to her white collar and the white fur running up her legs.
Zahra means flowering. Making her k known are the white socks on her feet which have large black spots on them. She also has a white spot behind her left shoulder.
The lone boy maji has a name which is short for maji lily. This translates to water lily. In front of his lip is a white spot. His coat is also the darkest.
There is also Lilly’s original bub that she was raising when she got the job of raising the wild dogs. This female pup is tentatively referred to as Uno.
Recently all of the pups were weaned off milk. The wild dogs are eating chicken and turkey baby food along with some of the same foods the adults have. Uno is eating dog food.
For the next week Lilly will be teaching the pup’s dog etiquette. Uno is also spending time with the pups along with the animal care team so she will be a well-rounded pup with good social skills.
The African wild dog pups are not spending time with humans with the hope they will re-join the adults in their pack. Occasionally they make excursions to the enclosure so they can see, smell and hear each other with barriers between them. When keepers think they are ready they will meet the adults.
Apart from this they spend time playing outside in the back of the zoo. Lilly takes time off to go for walks and runs through the back of the zoo.
Photo Credits: Oklahoma City Zoo
