Some more independent baby animals, of precocial species, begin functioning almost as soon as they are born or hatched. Others, called altricial animals, need the attention of their parents before venturing out on their own.

Echidnas are altricial animals and their young (called puggles) need lots of attention. Staff members at Harter Veterinary Medical Center in San Diego, California, are experiencing your need firsthand. At the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, Kathryn the short-beaked echidna (tachyglossus aculeatus) has given birth to two puggles in one season and one is being hand-reared.

Echidnas are pointed, long-nosed animals native to New Guinea and Australia. Along with platypuses, they are one of two monotremes, or egg-laying mammals. An echidna egg hatches after about 10 days of incubation in the mother’s pouch. The puggle then emerges hairless and spineless and weighs about as much as half a miniature marshmallow.

Rare echidna twins born in San Diego

“Unlike a marsupial pouch, an echidna has a temporary ‘pseudo-pouch’ that is only present when it incubates an egg and raises a puggle,” says Jennifer LeBeau, senior wildlife care specialist at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. popular science.

The puggle then enjoys the pouch for about two months before the mother transfers it to the other end of a nursery den. However, their work is far from over. For a few more months, the puggle will remain in the burrow, which the mother fills with soil. You will then return to the baby every few days to feed it. The puggle will begin to learn about the outside world once the mother stops crowding the nursery.

Kathryn is currently raising one of her babies in the den. Because the other sibling was not gaining weight, he was transferred to human care at Safari Park’s Harter Veterinary Medical Center. Part of the puggle’s hand raising included the veterinarians taking regular ultrasounds of the puggle’s stomach, which allowed them to better understand the rate at which the puggle digested its formula. As a result, they came to a more precise decision about how often he should be fed.

“The hand-raised puggle undergoes daily checks by veterinarians and a minimum of twice-daily checks by wildlife care specialists,” says Anthony Cerreta, clinical veterinarian for the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. “Hand-rearing puggles from this age tends to have a lower success rate, so we will continue to monitor closely and intervene as necessary should further challenges arise.”

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