Submitted Photo Minot Roosevelt Park Zoo’s female Amur tiger, Zoya, is shown with her three cubs. The cubs were born on Saturday.

Just before sunrise on Saturday morning, March 19, Zoya, Minot Roosevelt Park Zoo’s female Amur tiger, gave birth to three cubs. They will become part of the future for saving this species from extinction.

“The zoo’s staff has done a terrific job planning and preparing for this special event and despite not having all of the technology that others might, were able to map and track her pregnancy from the time of the breeding introductions to the accurate prediction for the births,” said Zoo Director Jeff Bullock.

Currently, Zoya has proven herself to be an exceptional mother, according to zoo officials. If she continues to properly care for the three cubs and they are all nursing regularly and increasing in activity, the zoo will remain hands-off and let her continue raising the cubs without any interference or interaction for the next few weeks. Once the cubs are a bit older and Zoya more comfortable in her role, the decision will be made to separate her from the cubs long enough for the veterinarian and pertinent staff to quickly perform a physical examination of each cub, including taking photographs for identification, determining gender, getting weight measurements and giving vaccinations. After that, staff will reintroduce Zoya to her cubs, making certain that she goes back to taking care of them as before.

Zoya began giving birth around 6 a.m. with the first cub arriving around 6:24 a.m. and the third around 10:34 a.m. It is not unusual for the births to be spread over time. Cubs may be delivered within a few minutes of each other, or each cub may be delivered 30 minutes to an hour of each other.

Normally, a birth should be completed within 2 to 6 hours after delivery of the first cub. Some females will deliver all her cubs at one time; however, if an interruption occurs, some females will cease the birthing process for up to 12 to 24 hours before continuing.

The zoo staff has taken measures to ensure that Zoya was allowed to remain undisturbed throughout this process.

The new Amur Tiger Valley exhibit that opened in 2020 allows larger and more naturalistic enclosures and back-up areas that allow staff opportunities to provide greater animal management and husbandry practices.

In order to participate in breeding recommendations for tigers as well as other species, a facility must be able to hold and manage any offspring for up to two years of age, which the Minot zoo is now set-up to handle. The space also provides keeper staff opportunities for training individual animals, which allows the zoo to provide greater health monitoring and veterinary care.

The cubs will not be viewable for guests until they are older and begin moving about the den spaces. At that point, access will be provided to the dayroom that has viewing windows available to the public.