PATNA: Sanjay Gandhi Biological Park officials and employees are an excited lot as they are expecting addition of a bundle of joy to the big cat family. Making the tiger-breeding programme a success, the white tigress, Swarna, has conceived.
A pair of white tigers, including Swarna, was brought here from the Hyderabad Zoo on August 12 last year.
Swarna has started showing biological changes indicating that she has conceived after mating in April.
Veterinary doctor of the park, Ajit Kumar told that the mating between white tiger Bheema and white tigress Swarna held between April 18 and April 20 was successful. "We do not have infrastructure to test pregnancy of animals. So we closely observe and monitor their activity and biological changes after every breeding programme," he said.
He said Swarna has been going through some biological changes and they would do an ultrasonography of her after 60 days from the mating date. He said, "Both Swarna and Bheema are very calm. Both of them are obedient to their masters. Swarna never troubled us for anything since her arrival at the zoo." Swarna is taking normal diet along with glucose and energy supplements.
According to the veterinary doctor, a tigress takes 105 days to deliver a cub. The standard duration of pregnancy could range from 100 to 110 days. Ajit Kumar added that when a tigress conceives, she starts gaining weight and her natural movements get slower. The zoo has completed pairing of its cat family and expecting good breeding in the 2012-13 season.
Before the exchange programmes in the last few months, the park used to have an unequal number of tigers and lions, affecting their breeding process. Incidentally, one giraffe is also expecting to deliver her baby in June.
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