White Lion and White Tiger Produce Little White Liger Cubs, and They're Irresistibly Cute
Four tiny cubs are currently living their best life at the T.I.G.E.R. Sanctuary in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and they’re so rare they barely exist on paper. These aren’t just any babies, they’re white liger cubs, the offspring of a white lion and a white tiger, and the odds of seeing them are basically microscopic.
Here’s the complicated part, the sanctuary isn’t just raising one unusual cat. They’re dealing with a whole litter, four names that sound like mythological legends: Yeti, Odin, Sampson, and Apollo. And while ligers in general are already uncommon, these are the rarest of the rare, growing at a pace that makes it feel like someone is inflating them by the pound.
One cub acts like the life of the party, another acts like a house cat, and somehow, the biggest liger is still treated like the baby.
From the left are cubs named Yeti, Odin, Sampson, and Apollo. They are considered the world's rarest cats.
It is estimated that only over 100 ligers exist in the world.
The four cubs are the rarest of the rare.
The male cubs were born to Ivory and Saraswati, a white lion and a white tiger, respectively. White lions are extremely rare in the world.
According to the Global White Lion Protection Trust, fewer than 13 of these creatures exist in the wild.
The family of big cats lives in the T.I.G.E.R. Sanctuary, located in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
This sanctuary is home to other ligers, including Hercules.
He is the largest non-obese liger in the world, weighing a whopping 922 pounds. Despite his size, he will always be a baby to his handlers.
He loves to play with the young ones.
T.I.G.E.R. Sanctuary founder Dr. Antle was impressed by how quickly the cubs grew. They were gaining one pound each day.
I skip a day seeing them, and it looks like they’ve doubled in size. It’s like someone’s blowing them up with a tire pump.
Of the four cubs, Yeti is the most energetic.
He loves being the center of attention. He’s also the largest cub among his brothers. It wouldn't surprise Dr. Antle if he grows even bigger than Hercules.
Check out this video of the adorable ligers.
At the T.I.G.E.R. Sanctuary, the white lion Ivory and the white tiger Saraswati’s cubs, Yeti, Odin, Sampson, and Apollo, are the whole reason visitors keep showing up with wide eyes.
For another rare-white cat moment, see the clouded leopard spotted in a high-altitude Himalayan forest.
The moment Dr. Antle noticed they were gaining one pound each day, it stopped feeling like “cute babies” and started feeling like “how is this even possible?”
Then the contrast hits, Yeti is the energetic center of attention, while Apollo, the smallest cub, curls up with his caretakers like he belongs on a couch.
Even Hercules, the 922-pound non-obese liger, is still treated like a baby who loves playing with the little ones, because that’s the vibe in their world.
The little ligers, like most tigers, love swimming. Their social nature comes from their lion lineage.
However, since they are different creatures from their parents, they also possess traits unique to their kind. What's even more interesting is that Apollo (the smallest cub) behaves like a house cat.
He always curls up with his caretakers and loves to be petted by them.
You’ll never look at “rare cats” the same way after seeing Apollo curl up like a house cat and Yeti running the show.
Talk about survival odds, watch how a Utah trail cam caught a mountain lion with three cubs.
Share this article:
