Houston cougar cubs Shasta VII, Louie make their first public appearance

HOUSTON - It's an exciting weekend at the Houston Zoo and for the University of Houston as a pair of cougar cubs make their public debut.

Two male cougars Shasta VII and Louie are finally settled in their new habitat in the Houston Zoo for everyone to see them for the first time. The two brother cubs were found orphaned in Washington by a rancher.

BACKGROUND: Orphaned cougar cubs Shasta VII and Louie have new home at Houston Zoo

"The next steps now are to get them comfortable and acclimated to their environment and to, being able to see all the new guests and they are doing great actually," says Paul, one of the keepers.

The cubs were found at just four weeks old, and were likely not to survive if left on their own, the zoo said. The cubs were flown to Houston at eight weeks old in November 2022.

The zoo said the young cubs were kept behind the scenes for several weeks while they got accustomed to their caretakers and new environment.

Shasta VII and Louie are now coming up on six months old and are becoming more confident and comfortable, Paul says.

According to the zoo, Shasta has already shown himself to be the leader of the two. They say he is protective of his smaller brother, often sleeping or resting with a paw over Louie.

MORE: University of Houston gets two new mascots complementary of the Houston Zoo

In partnership with the University of Houston Alumni Association, the new cougars will "be ambassadors for their counterparts in the wild while faithfully representing the cougar spirit of the University of Houston from their home at the Houston Zoo."

Shasta VII will be the new live mascot for the University of Houston, whose previous zoo-residing mascot, Shasta VI, died in August.