Zookeepers have been forced to search for a new mother to tiger cubs in the unlikely form of a dog.

　　The three-day-old Bengal white female cubs, housed at the Badaling Wildlife Park in Beijing, are bottle fed because their mother refuses to let them suckle, says zookeeper Fan Jinsong.

　　"This first-time mother, who was herself born at the park, always kicked her children around," another zookeeper said yesterday.

　　"She even took a bite out of one of them as it pressed closely to her."

　　He blamed hot weather and a difficult birth for the big cat's bad temper.

　　New mother

　　Whatever the reason, a new mother has had to be found because the baby tigers still need parental care.

　　By yesterday afternoon, a total of 16 residents volunteered to allow their pet dogs to breastfeed the two cubs.

　　He said dogs were being sought because domestic cats did not produce enough milk.

　　Today, Fan and a few veterinarians are going to take a look at several candidates and select one.

　　"The mother needs to be a big animal who has a good temper," Fan said.

　　The canine parent is expected to be able to provide sufficient milk for at least a couple of months, he said.

　　The pair are the third generation of tigers in the park, which is in Yanqing County in suburban Beijing.

　　Their father was also born there.

　　The park imported seven white Bengal tigers from the United States in 1998 and currently houses around two dozen white felines.

　　"The dog mother will be named Wei Da (greatness)," Fan said. "And the two cubs are Ke Ke and Lian Lian, implying they are helpless creatures."