A lot of moms and dads will most definitely agree that parental love is the most powerful thing in the world, and it turns out that the same applies to members of the animal kingdom. After all, is there anything more precious, emotional, and adorable than seeing a baby animal for the very first time?
This papa lion absolutely fell in love with his little cub.
A heart-melting video of their first moments together has gone viral on the internet for all the right reasons.
It’s definitely a big contrast and shock to see these fierce and dangerous animals such as lions in a vulnerable and comfortable situation. It just shows how these very brave and powerful creatures have their emotions as well, and it’s just a joy to look at.
All of this happened at a zoo in Denver, Colorado.
One of the mommy lions was pregnant, and before the staff and the visitors knew it, there was a little baby cub running around in one of the enclosures.
Of course, this is always a much-anticipated moment and the zoo staff did everything they could to welcome the baby lion to the world as best as possible.
Just look at that adorable little furball!
You might not expect it from looking at these baby pictures, but one day, this cute animal will grow up to be a fierce and strong lion as well. As for now, however, the kittenish animal is still very much a baby and isn’t afraid to show his playful, affectionate, and curious side.
Of course, the zoo wanted to document and capture as much footage as possible of their new baby lion. Luckily, there were no complications during birth and everything went well.
The cub was born in September of 2019 and they actually let the zoo visitors help choose a name. Eventually, the name Oskar was picked for this male cub, and there was also another baby lion born around the same time, a female named Araali.
One of the moments that the zoo staff looked forward to the most was the meeting between father and son.
When two generations meet for the very first time, it’s always bound to be a special and huge moment.
The staff was unsure how the father, Tobias, would react to seeing his son for the very first time. Some were even a bit concerned, but all those concerns faded away once they saw the two interact with each other.
Even though baby Oskar can be considered the star of the show, it’s his father’s reaction that actually made the hearts of everyone melt.
The fierce and large lion bows and crouches down to say ‘hi’ to his baby boy, and it’s such a sweet gesture that just shows the love between them.
When the footage was taken, the baby cub was still too small to hang out in the public enclosures, but Oskar has been doing very well and is loved by his family and the employees alike.
“He’s spent the last couple months bonding with his mom (Neliah), dad (Tobias) and half-sister (Kamara) behind the scenes at Predator Ridge at Denver Zoo, and will soon make his big public debut in one of the outdoor habitats,” director of communications Jake Kubié of Denver Zoo said to Bored Panda. “He’s all the things you might expect of a lion cub: playful, curious and energetic!”
“Everyone is extremely excited and anxious to pay him a visit once he makes his public debut,” Jake commented. “The weekly updates we’ve been posting to our social channels are met with an outpouring of “Ohhs” and “Ahhs.” [and] we’re doing our best to give everyone their cub fix while they wait to see him in person!”
In any case, the Denver Zoo is more than happy to share as much footage as possible of the new baby lion, and he’s often featured on their social media channels.
As for the sweet first encounter between father and son, be sure to check out the heartwarming video below!
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