It's been a gloomy few months, so here's a concentrated dose of cute to hopefully lift your spirits.
The Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium announced Monday one of its sea lions, Kelilah, gave birth on June 10 to an adorable pup named Smiley. If that name makes you want a very specific Pittsburgh cookie, that’s because it derived from a partnership between the zoo and Eat’n Park.
“We like to make people smile, and sea lions are pretty good at that, too,” Kevin O’Connell, Eat’n Park’s chief marketing officer, said in a zoo press release. “‘Smiley’ seemed like the perfect name to share with the new pup.”
The release went on to say both Kelilah and Smiley are doing well, and when Smiley is “a little more acclimated,” zoo veterinarians will examine the pup and determine its gender.
“The next big challenge for Smiley will be when Kelilah begins the first swimming lessons in a couple of weeks,” Henry Kacprzyk, curator of Kids Kingdom, said in the press release.
Pittsburgh’s Highland Park zoo reopened on June 5 — albeit for timed visitation — for the first time since being forced to shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and Smiley is already on exhibit in the sea lion habitat. The pup is probably one of the animals at the zoo that’s now people-watching the visitors as they get used to having humans stare at them on a daily basis again.
Joshua Axelrod: jaxelrod@post-gazette.com and Twitter @jaxel222.
First Published: June 22, 2020, 8:52 p.m.
Updated: June 22, 2020, 9:03 p.m.
