Snow leopard cub dies from pneumonia at Toronto Zoo

One of three snow leopard cubs born this spring at the Toronto Zoo has died of pneumonia, the zoo said Tuesday.

The cub died on June 15 after contracting an infection from its father, the zoo said in a news release.

“Of course it’s very upsetting when an animal dies, but it’s especially upsetting when it’s so young. That’s why we try to learn as much as possible from the experience so we can prevent this from happening to another animal,” said Dr. Chris Dutton, head of veterinary services at the zoo’s Wildlife Health Centre.

The centre completes all post-mortem investigations when animals die at the zoo.

Dutton said the cub’s death was confirmed as a result of pneumonia on June 20. Two days later, it was confirmed that the cub became ill after it was exposed to Bordetella bronchiseptica by the father, named Kota, who is a carrier.

The two surviving cubs, a male and female, also began showing signs of the infection, but are recovering after receiving treatment. The health of the other cubs was why the news of the death took so long to be announced, Dutton said.

The zoo said the snow leopard is classified as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

The cubs were born May18 during a strike by the zoo’s unionized workers. Dutton said he doesn’t believe the strike was a factor in the death.

“The level of care was pretty much identical before and after the strike.”

He said the zoo’s mammal curator and area supervisor took care of the cubs when the zoo was closed, and then two to three zookeepers looked after them when the strike ended.

Dutton said the zoo was aware of the father’s history with the infection but the cubs were too young to vaccinate.