After a gestation of 10 weeks, African wild dogs give birth to 2-20 pups from March-July in grass-lined burrows, usually abandoned aardvark holes.
The African wild dog reaches sexual maturity at approximately 12 to 18 months, though they usually do not mate until much later. The youngest recorded reproduction of a female was at 22 months old.
Gestation is approximately ten weeks and pups are usually born between March and July. Litter sizes can vary considerably, from 2 to 20 pups, with an average of 8 pups. The smaller litter sizes have been recorded from animals in captivity.
Breeding females gives birth to their litters in grass-lined burrows, usually an abandoned aardvark hole. The pups remain in the den with their mother for three to four weeks.
The interval between litters is normally 12 to 14 months.
• Image | © Cloudtail the Snow Leopard, Some Rights Reserved (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
• Sources | (Estes, 1991; Kingdon, 1997; Mulheisen, Allen, Allen, 2002; Nowak, 1999; Stuart & Stuart, 2007)
