Officially described as a British Jamaican Rastafarian writer and poet, Benjamin is a well-known figure in contemporary English literature, and was included in “The Times” list of Britain’s top 50 post-war writers in 2008. He has 15 honorary doctorates to his name and – much, much more importantly – is simply a lovely, self-effacing guy who has lived and loved to the full.
One of his earliest friends and teachers seems to have been Danny the cat – and of course we were tickled pink to finally have him on site here in China showing off our slightly larger, but no less friendly, four-legged friends.
UK supporters Lee and Heidi have been trying for a while to persuade Benjamin to come and see us during his regular trips to China, and on Tuesday, finally, he did. There he was breezing his way around the bear enclosures, stopping to feed Rupert some treats (below), saying hi to staff and all the resident bears and talking affably to the local media, who followed him around with cameras pressed close to his face. Well how can you blame them? He’s tall and majestic with dreadlocks down to his hips – and has a kindness that comes from living life in the raw and being a vegan to boot.
Benjamin also spoke and recited some poems at The Bookworm pub in Chengdu – an event packed to the rafters – and there was a rousing cheer from our team when he said very early on: “Yesterday, I fell in love with a moon bear”.
Well Benjamin, we all fell in love with you. Come back and see us again soon, and thank you for your early Christmas wishes, which for those of you who are interested began with:
Be nice to yu turkeys dis Christmas
Cos’ turkeys jus wanna hav fun.
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As we celebrate the year of the Tiger, it’s ironic to see such hideous treatment of this endangered New Year icon in China’s safari parks and zoos.
Our own visits, and that of journalists, show that the parks continue to cash in on an illegal trade in tiger bone wine (and other body parts) – laughing in the face of regulations that have made it illegal to trade in any part of the tiger since 1993.
Also abused for entertainment, the tigers are drugged, de-clawed, de-toothed, and chained to concrete slabs, as visitors are persuaded to part with their dollars for the delight of seeing their children sitting on these poor creatures’ backs.
During the recent Lunar Festival celebrations, the parks invented ever new and revolting schemes to make money. Chimelong Safari Park, which Irene, Rainbow, Dave and I visited towards the end of last year (together with celebrity Australian chef Simon Bryant), has now apparently “trained” its tigers to draw Chinese characters for good luck. A paint brush is thrust into the animal’s mouth, while the tiger “paints” New Year messages onto paper, which will bring “happiness and fortune” for those that stump up a fee.
A two-year-old would recognise that the stooped head, flattened ears and terrified demeanour show an animal not completely at home under the menacing posture of the trainers.
These photos, taken from a TV screen, were sent to us by a supporter who was appalled by the cruelty:
Huge banner pictures around the park show that it is supported by Chinese celebrities, such as Hong Kong star Dicky Cheung Wai Kin. How proud we are that our own Chinese celebrities like Karen Mok, Gigi Fu, Ren Xianqi, Zhao Zhongxiang, Zhang Yue, Baihua, Xin, Gao Yuanyuan, Jiang Yiyan, Sun Li, Deng Chao, Yu Kewei, Guan Zhe and the Fengyun Boys are loud and proud in their calls for China’s wild-animal parks to be cruelty-free.
A new fad at other zoos is to invite the public to pay for the privilege of touching a chained tiger’s rump – a play on the belief from ancient times that such an act proved your bravery. (This photo is courtesy of Sina.com.cn.)
And at Changsha Zoo in Hunan Province, they are currently cashing in on selling tigers’ whiskers for luck. Apparently these lucky tokens are said to ward off evil and are especially helpful for drivers and children. “The whiskers are not cut or plucked from the beasts,” said a zoo employee, but are collected after being shed. "Fifteen-centimetre whiskers are sold for 100 yuan (US$14.65), while shorter, thinner ones range from 50 to 30 yuan.”
Anyone who has cats knows that the odd whisker can be found shed around the house if your eyes are good enough to spot one – but enough found lying around from the tigers to support an obviously roaring trade? Give me a break.
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Who would have thought our teeny tiny Jingle could have grown up so fast. Rescued in Chengdu towards the end of 2009, our "baby" of the family is now weighing in at an incredible 50kgs (give or take a few grams).
Kind volunteer Annie has been "bear watching" over Jingle – updating on her likes and dislikes, and how she behaves (or misbehaves) and took these pictures of a boisterous cub now "unladylike, playful and pensive". I can hear the "ahhhs" from here.
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Our volunteers are literally everything to the bears (and dogs and cats) at our sanctuaries in Chengdu and Vietnam. Over the years, we’ve had some absolutely fabulous help from passionate people who are willing to give up three months of their lives and step into the great unknown. They work for nothing except for meals and board, and of course lots of “food for the soul” from the resident animals we house.
Super special and oozing with tender loving care, every single one – you know who you are – and we have loved having you all staying with us on site. Several “vollies” have even returned twice – including Emily, Judy and Diana – and now our Annie.
Annie first came to us on a visit after she won a competition in Woman’s Day magazine in Australia to name a bear. She chose “Mani” and we chose “Rosie” (who only had a nickname) as the honoured recipient of this new name, which is part of a Buddhist mantra “Om Mani Padme Hum” and means “jewel in the lotus”.
Hands up we find it quite hard to remember Rosie’s new name sometimes – but Annie always gives a little tut, and beams her lovely smile, which says she forgives us once again. Here's lovely Mani enjoying a good roll in the grass:
Annie arrived back last October for her second stint which was meant to last only until December. However, learning that we were short of volunteers, she then very generously volunteered for another three months and has thrown herself into bear and dog work alike.
During the run-up to both Christmas and Chinese New Year, Annie worked quietly at night behind the scenes to give our bears a holiday treat – in the form of what Rainbow calls “Dinosaur eggs”. In fact they are gorgeous, big paper mache balls painted with bright red and yellow non-toxic paint and filled with treats that the bears have to “work” to break open and devour the goodies inside.
Laid out in the enclosures this month just days before welcoming the Year of the Tiger, Annie’s creation looked fabulous (especially as she had painted Happy Chinese New Year in both Chinese and English!) and the bears couldn’t wait to destroy and enjoy them. Here in her own words Annie explains how she came up with this brilliant form of enrichment:
“What idea could I come up with to help the bears celebrate Chinese New Year? Twenty five years experience of teaching craft to primary school children came to the rescue and I launched into paper mache production.
The result was 21 hollow ball shapes hiding dried fruit as special treats for special bears. Painted bright red with Chinese New Year greetings, the treat balls were ripped apart by the bears to reveal the hidden goodies which were then eagerly eaten. It was fun to make the treat balls but even more fun to see how they helped enrich the bears’ lives.”
This contented, red-nosed recipient showed just how much the balls were appreciated!
Annie also gives wonderful presentations of her life with the bears when she returns home to Australia - and one such presentation at the Forster Public School saw teacher Lindy Nixon and her students responding with wonderful art work and poetry which they sent to the sanctuary for display in our Education Room on site.
Way to go Annie – a big bear sized hug and xie xie ni (thank you) to you and all of our volunteer family over the years who have brought sunshine into the lives of our animals on site.
And this from Senior Bear Manager Nic’s weekly bear report about how much of a "gem" Annie is .... :-)
“Annie is busy with shake making, dog walking, hospital bear husbandry, some administrative work and observations on Jingle bear. She has been a little diamond.”
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A message sent to the team Sunday morning with the tragic news that Tiger had lost his fight for life....
Hello everyone, no words to let you know that Tiger passed away a few minutes ago. Kirsty had emailed Heather and I first thing this morning to say that he'd had a bad night – with laboured breathing and refusing to suckle. But, acknowledging that he was a good colour, passing urine and faeces, and moving around, both she and Belinda were up all night giving him oxygen, electrolytes and antibiotics. Sadly, he continued to grow worse, with breathing becoming more shallow, and died quietly just now.
Understandably they're in pieces, but no question that they did all they could to give our Tiger the best ever chance. The circumstances of his short life are the legacy of a trade that has no conscience – and a shame on every bear farmer in Asia.
Please join me in sending commiserations to all in our amazing Vietnam team – especially Belinda – who has had next to no sleep for over a week. She has raised literally hundreds of young mammals and they could not have been in safer or more caring hands.
RIP little Tiger from a family who loved you. x
The following message from Belinda’s husband, Russel, reduced me to tears - as did the pictures of Tiger's final goodbye. What perfect moon bear crescent he had - and what a tragedy that his strong heart stopped beating beneath it.
It is with a heavy heart, that I send out these final photos of precious little Tiger. It has been mentioned several times already and I'll repeat it once more. This little guy had all the heart and fight of a tiger with the strength of a bear. Anyone who would have had the privilege of meeting him would have been astonished with the strength of his little frame.
We've just come from his funeral and I can confidently say that spirits here have never been lower. Although the Bear workers weren't involved in his direct care, they all visited the window regularly and even the security guards took a keen interest asking every day how he was. As it’s been mentioned before, this little guy had no clue of the buzz going on because of him, but I find it absolutely amazing the way this tiny little creature has affected so many people.
From the beginning of his short life there had been some question as to whether mom should have him, or whether a surrogate should take him on. And now that he has passed it is natural to second guess everything that has happened over the past six days, and ask whether we did the right things. But I can confidently say, after spending the last week at Belinda's side. Even Italia would have been happy with expert care given by Belinda's experienced and gentle hands. Please keep her in your thoughts, as now she is the second mother to lose this cub.
To sum up. This beautiful little bear has lost his fight and left us all broken hearted. Dropped in our hands on the eve of a New Year and challenging even the best animal caregiver. This little guy was a gem that no longer has a sparkle but will be remembered as the fighting "Tiger" that we never got to know.
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