VIDEO: Jaguar Cub Found with 18 Shotgun Pellets in Her Body

A baby jaguar was found with eighteen shotgun pellets in her body and was later rehabilitated by Ecuador vets.

The 11-month-old cub was named D’Yaria and thanks to the kind people who found her, she recovered incredibly and is now doing great.

According to Live Science, jaguars are large cats that can be found in North, Central and South America. They are identified by their yellow or orange coats, dark spots and short legs. The dark spots on their coats are unlike any other cat spots. Each spot looks like a rose and are called rosettes.

Jaguars are the biggest cats in the Americas and the third largest cats in the world. From head to flank, these cats range in length from 4 to 6 feet (1.2 to 1.95 meters). The tail can add another 2 feet (60 cm) in length, though their tails are quite short when compared to other large cats. Lions’ tails, by comparison, can grow up to 3.5 feet (105 cm).

In August and September, jaguars mate. After mating, the female will carry her young for around 100 days and will give birth to one to four young.

Baby jaguars are called cubs. They are born with their eyelids sealed shut. After about two weeks, the cubs are able to see for the first time. After six months, the cubs’ mother will teach them how to hunt, and after their second birthday, the cub will leave their mother to live on their own.

Jaguars are carnivores, which means they eat only meat. In the wild, jaguars will use their speed and stealth to take down deer, peccary, monkeys, birds, frogs, fish, alligators and small rodents. If wild food is scarce, these large cats will also hunt domestic livestock.

Their jaws are stronger than any other species of cat. With these strong jaws, jaguars will crunch down on bones and eat them. In fact, in the zoo, bones are part of a jaguars’ regular diet.

Jaguars typically live in forests or woods, but they are also found in desert areas, such as Arizona. They tend to stay close to water and they like to fish. Jaguars will dip their tails into the water to lure fish, much like a fishing line.

Jaguars are loners that only spend time with others of their kind when they are mating or taking care of cubs. To keep other jaguars at bay, they mark their territory with urine or by marking trees with their claws. Their territories can be up to 50 miles wide.

They also don’t like to share their food. Jaguars will only eat their prey after dragging into the trees, even if the trees are quite a distance away.

The jaguar is “near threatened” due to poaching and the destruction of the rainforest. The World Wildlife Federation states that there are only 15,000 jaguars left in the wild.

Their name comes from the Native American word “yajuar.” Yajuar means “he who kills with one leap.” During a hunt, jaguars take advantage of their strong jaws and sharp teeth. They catch their prey by the head and chop down to make the kill. Other cats go for the neck when killing prey.