More than a dozen skunk kits were born in a spring baby boom at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado Springs last month, zoo officials announced Sunday on social media.
Two mother skunks, Isabel and Padfoot, each gave birth to a litter of seven “stinking cute” babies that arrived exactly two weeks apart, according to the zoo’s post.
“That’s fourteen tiny bundles of cuteness keeping their paws full,” the zoo wrote in a post on Facebook announcing the baby skunks’ arrival.
Isabel’s outdoor-themed litter of five girls — Acadia, Roosevelt, Katamai, Sequoia and River — and two boys, Kenai and Theodore, arrived on May 5, according to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.
As of the zoo’s Sunday announcement, the seven kits were just starting to open their eyes, grow tiny teeth and interact with each other.
Padfoot’s litter also carried on their mother’s Harry Potter theme.
The skunk gave birth to two girls, named Mrs. Norris and Pigwidgeon, and five boys — Trevor, Niffler, Buckbeak, Aragog and Phoenix — on May 19, zoo officials said.
Each of the 14 babies is marked by a patch of dye on their back, according to a video posted by the zoo.
“Because they look so similar at this age, each little (one) is given a color to help tell them apart,” zoo officials said. “This is important because their care team closely monitors their weight and overall health while they’re so young.”
As the kits grow and become more independent in the coming months, they’ll head to other accredited zoos in the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, Colorado zoo officials said.
But there’s still time to visit them before they head out.
The kits aren’t yet exploring the skunk habitat on their own, but they will be soon, zoo officials said. Until then, the best chance to see them is at the skunk training demonstrations in The Loft at 2:30 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday.
Cheyenne Mountain Zoo will also host meet-and-greets between 11 a.m. and noon and again from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, June 14, and Sunday, June 15, in celebration of National Skunk Day.
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