The pigeon pair of white tiger cubs growing healthy at Chongqing Zoo in ...

The pigeon pair of white tiger cubs born in early April at Chongqing Zoo in southwest China are growing healthy under artificial feeding, said the zoo on Tuesday. The twin Bengali white tiger cubs were born on April 6 after a 105-day pregnancy of their mother Ningning.

The first-time mother Ningning is incapable of feeding her newborns, so the zoo staff have to bottle feed them."Currently, they drink bottled milk six times a day. They grow very well, and always fall asleep after drinking milk. When it comes to the next milk time, the cubs will wake up, move about and yell, telling us they are hungry and need feeding," said Teng Mingsheng, an experienced keeper at the zoo.

After receiving 20 days of careful artificial feeding, the pair are in good health, and their weight have almost doubled to around two kg.The tiger cubs are expected to make their first public appearance during the coming Labor Holiday in May. The white tiger is a variant of the Bengal tiger. There were only about 200 Bengali white tigers worldwide, according to data released in 2016.