Oh, NO!!!
Oct 22nd, 2009 | By mervi | Category: Lead articles22.10.2009 – Photos by Caren and Doris
Yesterday I really got my coffee in ‘a wrong throat’ as we say in Sweden. Flocke and Raspi will be moved to the Marineland in southern France! First I thought it was just another rumour but now it has been comfirmed by the Nürnberg Zoo.
Like most of us – according to the comments on different polar bear blogs – I’m having very mixed feelings about the move. The good news is that Flocke and Raspi will be together. The bad news is that the Marineland is a so called entertainment park where the animals are supposed to ‘perform’.
Many polar bears in the zoos like to ‘entertain’ their visitors but they do it on their own terms. Our Knuti loves to play ball with visitors but only when he feels like it. If he feels like napping he does that – no matter how many visitors there are! Nobody has taught him ‘tricks’. He’s a self-learned bear who loves to interact with his fans but he has a mind of his own and we all respect that! The same goes for Flocke and Raspi.
I’m a afraid that in an entertainment park where the visitors pay a lot to see some action the animals will be more or less forced to perform and ‘deliver’. I don’t like that at all!
There is a new, modern polar bear enclosure being build in the Marineland but everything will be very artificial. And what about all that noise? Frankly, I don’t think that is an ideal place for two young polar bears. Of course, I have to admit I’m feeling very strongly about Flocke and Raspi and maybe I can’t have a neutral wiew on things but at the moment my reaction is ‘Oh, NO’!
As usual Knuti will help us to feel better even though he’s disappointed, too, and has all the reason to show his ‘tapirlippe’. He’s very happy he could stay in Bärlin. His enclosure is not the best possible environment for a polar bear but it’s his HOME and he’s happy there.
My home is my castle even if I have to share it….
Greetings from Mervi
Dear Mervi,
All of us in the worldwide polar bear community are shocked and saddened by the news. Although I never got to visit Flocke and Rasputin (or Knut!) in person, I had hoped that they would end up somewhere near my German fellow Flocke fans, so that I could continue to receive the wonderful reports and pictures I have enjoyed. Now, this is not to be, and I will miss the information about Flocke and Rasputin very much. I still hope to be a part of the polar bear world, and stay in contact with my German friends in some other way.
However, I do not fear that the children will have to perform. There are polar bears in a number of Sea World attractions throughout the world, and there are no polar bear “shows” like those featuring Orcas or Dolphins. As I recently wrote privately to Caren, I have been to Seaworld attractions in the US, in California and Florida. Both had polar bears, who seemed comfortable and well cared for, in large indoor-outdoor enclosures. I am hoping that Marineland will build something like that for Flocke and Rasputin.
LG, Christine
Dear Mervi,
I cannot thank you enough for dedicating Flocke and Raspi the lead article, what a nice treatment for all sorrow in these days.
Hugs, caren&bernd
Dear Mervi
my first reaction when I heard the news,was : oh,how good,Flocke and Raspi can stay together.
But now,I am very conflcting with the decission. Until today the Nuremberg Zoo made a very good job with raisng up Flocke and later with Raspi. I hope,that they made very good investigations of the Marine Park,before they made the decission to send the both bears to the south of the France.I hope that they not sold Flocke.It is true that between zoos it is uncommon to pay for an animal. But is Marine Park a Zoo? For me it is a entertaining park.
But with all my doubts, I trust into the Nuremberg zoo that they choose the right way for the futur of Flocke and Raspi
Bea
Bea
Is the climate in the south of France one that POLAR bears can tolerate? Apparently the shows at this park with orcas and dolphins include loud music and trainers riding and performing tricks with the “performers.” The Numremberg Zoo has to date provided Flocke with extraordinary care raising her and introducing her companion, but Marineland, Antibes does not sound like the right move. This is worrysome!
oh how I wish we had some real POWER to make things all wonderful and perfect and ideal for our beloved bears…that feeling of helplessness is not fun. NOT fun. I am with Bea, I do hope that the Nuernberg zoo was careful in there investigations. Must….remain…calm….even if my heart breaks…
Meanwhile in Berlin, I almost see some kissing going on. ;O)
This week seems to be a week with breaking news, I just got the message by a friend as I had no time to read yesterday, doing so much research on different zoo types, I really don’t feel comforatble with any adventure parks, but to be honest I have never heard about this park before. But I have in general problems with France for polar bears maybe because they never had an adequate French word for “Schmusedecke”….I have to settle the news in first before writing more……
Dear Mervi, dear readers of Knuti’s Weekly Magazine,
OH NO!! yes this is the only possible comment for that news about our darlings Flocke and Raspi. Many of us fans are still moved to tears, when we even think of our two snowballs living in an air-conditioned surrounding in an entertainment park in southern France. Yes of course, the climate in Southern France can not be tolerated by Polar Bears! But can air-condition be tolerated by Polar Bears?
I’m sorry, I have no more words. The only consolation is, that FloRa can stay together at least for the time being, and that they don’t have to go to a zoo in the “Near East” – I mean Tschechien or Slovankia or Poland!
Sad greetings from Heidi from Erlangen near Nürnberg
Tried leaving this in the Knuipe so will try here.
Marina
Quite agree with you that France is a first rate place and it is good to
know that you will be looking out for Knut and Flocke. However, Spain
is also a great place and I can remember that it was from Spain that
the East German bears ended up in a Latin American circus.
Some good news from Britain. Mercedes the Polar Bear has moved to her
new home
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=mercedes+polar+bear&search_type=&aq=f
http://www.highlandwildlifepark.org/
Some links above.
But also some bad news I have found that there is a Polar Bear
kept only 20 miles away from where I live by a Film Company called
Amazing Animals at Heythrop Park. She is called Zara.
Here is some accounts of the place and pictures of Zara.
http://www.zoochat.com/forums/heythrop-zoo/
It all looks a bit odd. What is unsettling is that Polar bears
in private hands as opposed to public zoos are not subject to
much in the way of rules.
Furtunately so far Knut is doing fine and seems to be closer to
Giovanna. But even in Berlin they seem to be having trouble
looking after his Granny Lisa. I do hope she will be alright soon.
Heavy stuff but at least its only 6 weeks until Knut’s birthday.
Ralph
Well.. everything was already said… difficult to accept..
Caren thank you for the beautiful pictures
I am French, but it’s not for that reason that I enjoy the welcome of Flocke and Poutie at Antibes. It’s for them, a luxuous and modern zoo with sea water. Pity ther parents do not travel with them. I hope they will have a lot of French bears cubs.
Françoise Barthès
Hello Françoise Barthès, welcome to Knuti’s Weekly.
We hope that you live close by the zoo and will be able to send us reports.
Hugs from Leaf