FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Scott Ransom, Zoo Director, at 234-6264 or sransom@pocatello.us
ORPHANED COUGAR MAKES DEBUT WEDNESDAY
Pocatello Zoo to Show off “Missy”
Missy, an eight month old female mountain lion, will be introduced to the public and the media at the Pocatello Zoo for the first time at 10:30 a.m., tomorrow, July 16, 2008 . Missy came to the Pocatello Zoo on February 13 from the Idaho Fish and Game needing a home and was well received by the Zoo, due to its need for a new female cougar.
Last fall, the Pocatello Zoo lost a senior member of its animal collection. ‘Red', the female cougar, had to be euthanized due to kidney failure, which was discovered during treatment for an infected tooth. She had been in excellent health for her advanced age of 19 ½ years. This was a difficult process for the zookeepers and veterinarian.
On January 2, residents west of Cambridge , Idaho had seen something run under their houses, and they thought it might be a bobcat or mountain lion. Senior Conservation Officer Rusty Anderson responded, and Fish and Game personnel removed the cougar kitten from under the house, transporting her to wildlife rehabilitator Keith Schuller. The cougar was weak and malnourished. Over the next few days she began to eat deer meat and drink lots of water, and she quickly regained her strength.
The kitten, which was then just 3 ½ months old, was transferred to the Pocatello Zoo, spayed, and then quarantined for 30 days. Almost all the animals at the Zoo are on birth control programs. Next, Missy was given visual access to the adult male cougar, Scrouge. She has been eating well, is calm, and adjusting to her new environment. Zookeepers have enriched her activities with items such as fur balls, feathers, and a variety of foods. She will need to grow a little bit more before being allowed full contact with the 16 year old male.
Missy has spent a few days alone on exhibit for short intervals, gradually getting used to the new surroundings and the grizzly bears next door. In the near future Missy will be carefully introduced with Scrouge in the exhibit, while the zookeepers watch closely to make certain all goes well, before allowing the two together unsupervised. She is a beautiful animal and a wonderful addition to the Zoo. All the animals at the Pocatello Zoo are native to North America's Intermountain West and were either orphaned, injured, born in captivity, or otherwise unable to be released back into the wild. Come pay her and the other animals a visit.
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