"While the cat's away, the mice will play." In this case, the mother cougar went hunting, leaving the cubs in a safe place. These cubs might stay and wait for the return of mom. But in every family there are always different characters. Some look for adventure, some just respect the rules, and others will just be too shy to do bad or risky things. In nature it's interesting to see that young animals have behavior quite similar to human kids, and just like our kids, they can have different temperaments. - CB