Regular visitors to the Park will probably recall that, due to unrelated illnesses, we lost our two old male Meerkats some months ago. That left us with our two feisty young females! These two matriarchal mammas are proving to be particularly fussy about who they’ll accept as a male companion! We’ve had a couple of rejections already – so the research and planning for our newest arrival has been extensive!
Cotswolds Wildlife Park have kindly donated a handsome young male who is temporarily residing in an ‘orientation enclosure’ within our main “Meerkat Madness” enclosure here at the Park. The objective is for the three Meerkats to get to know one another – up close, but without the chance of a full-on scuffle! So far the plan is going smoothly! There’s been lots of positive contact through the wire mesh – gentle churring noises and soft touching of each other with their paws. No signs of aggression. Next week we’ll swap over the two females with the male so that he can have the run of the main enclosure and the girls will have his smaller area. The intention is for him to orientate himself more fully by exploring and scent-marking the entire domain – before allowing the girls back for a full-on meeting with no holes barred!
Below are some images of the ‘orientation enclosure’ within the main Meerkat Madness enclosure just before the new male arrived as well as a couple of the new male’s arrival at his new home with us last week. We’ll keep you posted with the progress!
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