Entertainment Swindon

Basking in the sunshine, these two adorable fennec foxes are now 15 times their birth weight and almost unrecognisable from when they were once held in their keepers’ hands.

Born in April at Longleat Safari Park in Wiltshire, the twins are now almost five months old and are halfway to maturity.

Now weighing in at 700 grams, they weighed just 46 grams at birth, the kits are starting to be introduced to their parents, after keepers had to step in and hand rear them.

Animal Adventure keeper, Samantha Peeke, who was one of three keepers who hand-reared the babies, said: “We’re proud of how far the kits have come.

“It’s always a last resort to step in and hand rear, but now the kits are older we are taking a step back and it’s been wonderful to watch them exhibiting all their natural behaviours.

“They spend lots of time zooming and climbing around their environment, digging through the sand and foraging as well as catching their own insects.”

“They are spending lots of time in the outdoor Fennec Fox area which has the scents of their parents, Enzi and Zuri.

“Likewise, once the kits are back in their indoor home, Enzi and Zuri can scent them as they explore the outdoor area. It’s a long process introducing animals to each other, even if they are related.

“Getting each group used to the other’s scent is really important, and then we’ll look at letting them meet through a divider and getting nose to nose,” she added.

Both female kits have now also been officially named – albeit with slightly unorthodox titles.

“When they were born, they were known as Dot and Other, as one of them had a visible dot on them,” explained Samantha.

“We were thinking about what to name them and have tried a few different names, but Dot and Other just stuck,” she added.

The two kits are vital to the European Breeding Programme, with members of the zoo community records revealing fewer than 10 have been born in Europe this year.

The kits will reach maturity at nine to 10 months old, when they will weigh anywhere between 1,200 and 1,400 grams.