Like all parents, Fintan, the white lion at the Toronto Zoo, beams with pride over his cubs, but also makes sure they don’t get too mischievous for their own good.
In a video released by the Zoo on Friday, the energetic cubs, who are nearly four months old, are playing up a storm as their proud dad watches on with loving eyes.
Makali, a four-year-old rare white lion, gave birth to two cubs on Sept. 26 and two cubs on Sept. 27. Each cub now weighs over 30 pounds.
The Zoo said the cubs are “very active, playful and rambunctious” and have slowly been introduced to dad.
“Every weekday, keepers are working on integrating the pride with Fintan and the cubs,” the Zoo said in a release.
The Toronto Zoo has shared a cute new video of lion cubs playing with each other as their father, Fintan, keeps an eye on them.
"Our white lion cubs continue to grow and have slowly been introduced to dad, Fintan," zoo officials said. "They are still very active, playful and rambunctious."
The zoo says each cub now weighs more than 30 pounds and that zoo keepers are working on integrating the pride with Fintan and the cubs every weekday.
Visitors can see the four cubs and their mother Makali every Saturday and Sunday between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. As an adolescent male, Doc does not have his full mane yet. As he matures, his mane will continue to grow larger and become darker in color.
Primarily found in the protected grasslands south of the Sahara Desert and in parts of southern and eastern Africa, lions have a life expectancy of 14 years in the wild and can live up to 20 years in zoos. They are classified as "vulnerable" in the wild by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
Doc takes the place of 17-year-old Moufasa, who had to be euthanized last April, according to Haase.
A necropsy procedure revealed masses on his lungs and vital organs that were not treatable, Haase said. Moufasa had been at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo since December 1998, and was born at Zoo World in Panama City Florida in November 1997.
