Heartwarming Video: RESQ Facilitates Reunion of Rescued Leopard Cubs With Their Mother
Anaum Shaikh
Karad (Maharashtra), 5th September 2023: In a heartwarming video that has recently surfaced online, RESQ Charitable Trust (RESQCT) of Pune, in collaboration with the Forest Department of Satara, successfully conducted the reunion of two leopard cubs with their mother in Karad taluka on Saturday. These two cubs had found themselves trapped in a well near Satara and were promptly rescued by the Forest Department (FD).
Tushar Nawale, Range Forest Officer (RFO) of the Satara Forest Department, recounted the events, stating, “We received a distress call on Saturday concerning two leopard cubs discovered trapped in a well. We immediately rushed to the location, and within two hours, we managed to rescue them. Subsequently, the cubs underwent a thorough veterinary checkup, where it was determined that they were in good physical health. Consequently, we devised a plan to reunite them with their mother on the same day. Regrettably, the mother did not appear at the designated spot, resulting in an unsuccessful reunion. Determined to see the cubs safely returned to their mother, we sought assistance from RESQ on the following day.”
Karad is home to a significant leopard population, and over the past year, the Forest Department has successfully reunited approximately 33 leopard cubs with their mothers. This separation of leopard families often occurs during the Sugarcane Harvest season in October when leopards seek refuge in tall sugarcane fields. The harvest activities disrupt their natural habitat, causing them to flee, leaving behind their vulnerable cubs.
According to Harshad Nagare, the operation team lead at RESQCT, “This marked our first instance of reuniting two leopard cubs with their mother. After receiving the call from the Forest Department on Sunday, our team immediately set off for Karad. We reached the location within three hours and commenced preparations for the reunion, which involved the installation of a cage since these cubs, aged between 2 to 3 months, were robust enough to break free from a traditional bamboo basket. After a five-hour wait, we spotted the mother approaching the cage through our live camera feed, which was under constant surveillance by our team. Around 1 pm, we successfully opened the cage using a remote-controlled pulley, witnessing an emotional reunion as the cubs rushed to embrace their mother.”
He added, “This is the first instance of a manual reunion with two cubs. Typically, when attempting reunions in such situations, young animals like cubs, kittens, or pups are usually placed in a basket from which they cannot escape on their own, but the mother can easily retrieve them. It’s crucial to keep a close watch in such cases to ensure the safety of the young ones from potential predators, even though the mother handles the actual extraction.
In this particular instance, however, the cubs were older and couldn’t be confined to a basket. This necessitated the use of a cage enclosure, which is controlled remotely via a pulley system and is continuously monitored throughout the night using live remote cameras. When it is confirmed that the mother has arrived and is near the cage, it is manually opened using the pulley controlled by the team safely in the vehicle at a short distance away. This process demanded intense vigilance and careful execution to ensure a successful reunion without startling the mother.”
The Forest Department and RESQCT have collaborated on numerous similar animal family reunions, both collectively and independently.
RESQ Charitable Trust, founded by Neha Panchamiya in 2007, has been providing emergency aid to animals in distress for the past fifteen years and has a commendable track record of reuniting animal families.
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