Fauna faces challenges due to human activities. - Animal caretaker acts as surrogate mother for young catta Hiccup.
At Ströhen Zoo in central Lower Saxony, Germany, a young kitten named Hicks is being lovingly cared for by animal caretaker Frauke Niehaus. This eleven-week-old feline was given up by his mother, likely due to an earlier fight in the enclosure where Hicks was injured and his twin sadly perished. The resulting stress may have caused the mother to neglect her remaining kitten.
Niehaus has taken it upon herself to nurture and raise Hicks, as the mother seem to have lost interest in him. Feeding him with a bottle several times a day, this resilient kitten is growing strong and lively. "We're thrilled to see him thriving," shares zoo spokeswoman Hannchen Fenna Kloppert. "He's a bit more independent at night now."
Hicks enjoys spending time with his caregiver, even riding on Niehaus's head as she moves around the park. When bedtime arrives, he snuggles into a transport box at Niehaus's residence with a heating pad. Multiple times a day, Niehaus also brings Hicks to the enclosure with his fellow primates. "We don't want him getting too fond of humans," Kloppert reminds. It's anticipated that Hicks will continue to be bottle-fed for at least six more months before he's ready to stay on his own in the enclosure. Ring-tailed lemur kittens, or kittens for short, are small primates featuring a furry ring-tail equivalent in length to their body.
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- Despite the challenges faced by animals in Lower Saxony, Germany due to human activities, the baby ring-tailed lemur Hicks is receiving exceptional care from animal keeper Frauke Niehaus after being abandoned by his mother.
- Hicks's mother, an animal at Ströhen Zoo, may have neglected him following an incident in their enclosure which resulted in Hicks's injury and the loss of his twin, leading the animal caretaker to take on the role of surrogate mother.
- Born in Germany, Hicks is growing strong under the loving care of Niehaus, who feeds him several times a day with a bottle and facilitates interactions with other animals to prevent his attachment to humans, with the hope that he will eventually be independent in six more months.
