Luna the panther was rescued from a travelling zoo when its mother refused to feed the cub.
Luna the black panther. PIcture: Luna_the_pantera
The black panther was born in captivity as the travelling zoo that had her mother was moving across Siberia.
A week after birth the cub’s mother rejected her, and the zoo had no resources to look after the weak newborn.
The team got in touch with the cub’s current owner who is known to be an expert in rehabilitating wild cats. She agreed to take the cub, and spent weeks nursing the little panther to safety.
The cub was christened Luna when it was evident that she was successfully through the most dangerous period; the owner started social media pages to tell the rescue story, and to share the cub’s progress.
Luna the panther was rescued from a travelling zoo when its mother refused to feed the cub. Pictures: Luna_the_pantera
Now the healthy-looking panther is a mega star in Russian and international social media, with millions of views across different platforms.
Her current owner, a young married woman from Siberia prefers not to share her name and not to declare the exact location because of safety concerns.
Several weeks into Luna’s childhood she got a play pal, a female Rottweiler called Venza.
Most of the amazing videos from remote Siberian woods show the duo running, jumping and rolling in the snow.
Luna and Venza spend a lot of time playing in remote areas outside the city. Pictures: Luna_the_pantera
Luna is a mix of a Persian and an Amur leopard, which means that she is feeling fine in the snow.
‘Venza in fact thought that Luna was her cub. As soon as the dog saw the panther she started licking her fur, they bonded instantly’, the owner said.
They have to play in remote areas outside the city, and soon a summer enclosure will be built for Luna outside the house.
Luna the panther was rescued from a travelling zoo when its mother refused to feed the cub. Pictiure and videos: Luna_the_pantera
‘In May she will move into her own enclosed territory’, Luna’s owner said.
‘I have friends among owners of private - very good ones! - zoos, they are ready to take Luna any minute. But right now I’d like to try and find the way to keep her with us, and to create conditions that she is happy.
‘She is more than a rescued pet for me, she is the part of my heart.’
Video shows Luna 'helping' with dry laundry. Video: Luna_the_pantera
Comments (10)
I'm a cat lover, and a firm believer that felines are the coronation of evolution on our planet, above all other beings, including us, humans. They are so perfect.
I have spent such blissful, joyful hours watching darling Luna, Venza and their wonderful mama bonding with so much love and playing so happily and care freely together. The saddest and cruelest act would be to break up this heavenly family and put Luna in a zoo. She (and her family) would surely die from depression...