Knut going solo
2007-07-09 10:07
Berlin - A polar bear cub and the
keeper who raised him are to give up the twice-daily appearances
that turned them into international celebrities since the animal
is now big enough to be dangerous, Berlin zoo said on Sunday.
Confirming a report to appear in Monday's Berliner Kurier
newspaper, zoo curator Heiner Kloes told RBB radio that the
regular morning and afternoon appearances will be stopped now
that seven-month-old Knut had grown to 50kg.
Keeper Thomas Doerflein had slept in the same room with Knut
after his birth and fed him bottles through the night after his
mother rejected him.
In his twice daily appearances that drew more than one
million visitors, Doerflein rolled on the ground with the cub
and allowed his fingers to be playfully bitten.
But Knut, 800g at birth, has since turned into a
shaggy yet powerful predator who could soon pose a serious
threat to Doerflein.
Zoo curator Kloes said the polar bear would continue to
roam a small bear cliff enclosure on his own.