Stone Zoo Celebrates World Otter Day With Trio Of Otter Kits

STONEHAM, MA — Three baby otters made their debut Tuesday at Stone Zoo — a perfect way to celebrate World Otter Day, Zoo New England tweeted.

The North American river otters were born February 16 and have been bonding with first-time mom Dunkin behind the scenes since, according to the zoo. Zoo staff is mostly hands-off when it comes to the young otters' care, but "Dunkin has been a perfect mom," primary trainer Dale said.

River otters are born blind and toothless, so they're fully reliant on their mothers at birth, the zoo's website says. Otters tend to be solitary critters, but kits will usually stay with their moms through their first winter before venturing out on their own.

The kits each weighed just 4 ounces at birth, but they'll grow to be between 10 and 30 pounds, the zoo says.

The otter family will have access to their outdoor habitat everyday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., while the zoo is open, but they get to decide whether or not to use it, a zoo representative told Patch. Stone Zoo hopes the kits will spend a little more time outside each day.