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In the evening the team arranged for the cub to be returned to the field where it was found.

Baby Leopard Reunited With Mother: In a carefully-planned operation, Wildlife SOS and the Maharashtra Forest Department reunited a 15-day-old leopard cub with its mother near Kailash Nagar village, located in the Junnar division of Pune district. The cub was discovered by farmers while harvesting their sugarcane fields.

With the changed landscape in Junnar, where forests have been replaced with sugarcane fields, it is not uncommon for farmers to come across newly born leopard cubs. In a similar situation this week, farmers of Kailash Nagar village in Junnar stumbled upon a leopard cub while harvesting sugarcane crops.

The farmers immediately reported the incident to the Forest Department. A 3-member team from Wildlife SOS also rushed to the location to assist the Forest officials in securing the young cub. The NGO’s veterinary doctor performed an on-site health examination and assessed that the cub was a male, aged approximately 15 days old.

In the evening the team arranged for the cub to be returned to the field where it was found. The cameras that were set up captured the mother leopard slowly approaching the field at midnight. She gently picked him up by the scruff of his neck and retreated to a safer location.

Dr Chandan Sawane, Veterinary Officer, Wildlife SOS said, “After examining the cub and ensuring that it was in good health, we returned to the field to initiate the reunion process. Time is of essence in these situations as the longer the separation between cubs and mother, the harder it is to reunite them.”

Ajit Shinde, Range Forest Officer, Junnar Forest Range said, “After the owner of the sugarcane field informed us about the cub’s presence, we immediately reached the location. Following all safety measures, our team worked with the Wildlife SOS team to reunite the cub. We are glad that the mother safely took the young leopard away and the reunion happened that very same day.”