GERMANY: Twice daily "Knut show" at Berlin zoo ends

Confirming a report that appeared in the Berliner Kurier newspaper, zoo curator Heiner Kloes told Reuters that the regular morning and afternoon appearances has been stopped now that seven-month-old Knut has grown to 50 kilos. "We have decided to take Knut out of the twice a day circle. We have trained him to be in a smaller enclosure by himself for weeks, which he dealt with very well" said Kloes, adding "This does not mean a final division between him and his keepers, they will still have contact. But we want to make one step further towards Knut's independence. We think this is the right way. The enclosure has been altered accordingly, a new tree trunk has been put in for Knut. Perhaps today he is a little nervous because of this, but that will probably change within the next couple of days." He said Knut would continue to roam the small bear cliff enclosure on his own, ending the 3-1/2 month-long twice daily shows with keeper Thomas Doerflein that drew more than one million visitors and turned both into international celebrities. "The change was bound to happen. We always said that Knut's behavior is changing quickly. He is getting much more independent, he starts reacting differently, he does as he pleases. The last times in the big enclosure, he just used to take a quick peek to see if his keeper was there and then he went on and got himself into all sorts of malarkey," Kloes said. The zoo put on a special ceremony last week to welcome the millionth fan, a 32-year-old Dutch tourist who was presented with a bouquet of yellow flowers and bag of Knut memorabilia. In his twice daily appearances in front of captivated crowds, Doerflein rolled on the ground with the cub and allowed his fingers to be playfully bitten. Doerflein had slept in the same room with Knut after his birth and fed him bottles through the night. But Knut, nursed by Doerflein from his 800 g at birth, has since turned into a shaggy yet powerful predator who could soon pose a serious threat to the bearded Doerflein. Knut was rejected by his mother, Tosca, and hit the headlines after an animal rights campaigner said hand-rearing polar bears violated animal rights, a comment which German newspapers interpreted as a call for the cub to be put down. Since then, Knut has become a global brand. He has his own song, DVD and book deal and features in range of merchandise from soft toys to T-shirts.

ITN Source | July 13, 2007

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