Metro Richmond Zoo Welcomes Cheetah Septuplets: It’s An Extraordinary 1 Percent Chance

Apr 15, 2019

Zoos are amazing because they teach humans about the nature of wild animals. People enjoy visiting zoos to get their chance to see animals they wouldn’t ordinarily get the chance to witness, but what’s even more incredible is when a zoo manages to breed their animals in order to create more of these outstanding wild creatures.

One zoo is making an impact in the animal kingdom because of their mission to increase conservation efforts with endangered species in their care. The Metro Richmond Zoo in Virginia unveiled another miracle: a rare litter of cheetah septuplets!

The seven cubs were born on November 30 of last year and are now nearly six months old. The babies were born to a mother cheetah named Vaila, and anyone who knows anything about this species of animal knows how rare a litter this large is.

Thankfully, the zoo has reported that all of the cubs are growing up to be happy and healthy. Parents of the cubs, mother Vaila and father Kalu, both reside at the zoo with their offspring. This was Vaila’s second litter, while it was only Kalu’s first.

“This is a very special birth to us because not only is it a big boost for cheetah conservation by increasing the captive population, but also a cheetah having seven cubs at once only happens 1 percent of the time,” Andelin said in a statement.

 Obviously, this birth is special not only because it is rare to have this many cubs born at once, but it also means that now the captive population of cheetahs has increased drastically. This means that now we have the opportunity to breed them even further and create more of these amazing animals.

The Metro Richmond Zoo boasts an amazing number of 2,000 different animals, representing 180 unique types of species that come from all over the world. However, this zoo is particularly known for its mission at increasing the number of cheetahs in the world, as the animal is endangered in the wild.

In fact, the zoo even has a special breeding program for cheetahs, 10 dedicated enclosures for these animals, and a facility dedicated to the conservation of the incredible species. As of today, the zoo has thirty-seven cheetahs in their possession for the public to enjoy watching.

As the zoo’s mission is to increase conservation efforts for wild animals, it looks like they are well on their way to completing their goals with this new litter of septuplets!

What do you think about this story? Are cheetahs one of your favorite animals? Let us know in the comments - and make sure you pass this along to your friends and family!