Animal Childhood

Gr 4 Up—Who can resist watching baby animals at play? This series entry has popular appeal and then some. In addition to featuring various animals and their young, the film takes viewers to different parts of the world, where a mother raises her offspring and teaches her young how to survive in their natural habitat. In India, a tigress gives birth to four cubs, and they will stay in their den for up to six weeks, at times trying to venture out. Young tigers will stay with their mother until they are two years old. Unfortunately, only half will make it to maturity. In Africa, as soon as a baby elephant is born, it is totally dependent on its mother to survive, needing the mother's milk to be strong enough to walk alongside her while searching for their extended family. Viewers will learn that some new mothers, whether they are elephants or bears, will forget to wait for their young to follow or to stop and feed their little ones, which can be dangerous. Additionally, viewers learn that there are some species that give birth and immediately leave their young to fend for themselves.