The Chimp Family: March 10th, 2005
04/19/2005 07:31 p.m.

They are three, a cohesive unit. The male, the companion, and a three year old child, a naughty little rascal. The male is huge. Coincidentally, it is their lunch time when we, Rula and I, walk to just outside their living quarters. Interestingly, almost all of the animals here in this lush green Nandan Kanan zoological park, have their own private quarters apart from open enclosures created to mimic their natural habitats. Now it is the parent’s turn to eat their lunch after the child has been fed. It is now his mothers turn to eat, and a forest guard feeds her with a spoon from a huge bowl through iron bars, while the father waits for his turn, clutching the bars in his large wide spread hands, looking relaxed. They are all standing against the bars interestingly, in order from right to left, the head of the family, the companion, and the naughty little son...


The little one finishes his lunch as mom gets excited for her turn.

Dad climbs the cage walls and hangs on the bars until he sees his son snatch
the spoon from the attendant and runs after him to administer a
loving dose of parental guidance in the form of a spank haha


The naughty boy, amusingly, snatches the spoon from the attendant while he is feeding the mother, and runs away to the other side of the cage, climbing and darting back and forth playfully. Like any other cohesive human family, the father and head of the chimp family runs after the boy, catches him, gives him a spanking, snatches back the spoon, and to our surprise, hands it back to the attendant. He calmly goes back to his posture waiting his turn to be fed, with his hands wide spread, holding the bars, looking relaxed. Yes, they are a family who can be role models for us so called human beings.


The Chimp Family from right to left: Father, Mother, and naughty son
The mother is now being fed as the father waits his turn patiently


After we visit the Chimp Family, we proceed next to the area where the park zoo keeps the beautiful and majestic white tigers. Throughout our tour we see that we are given special treatment and are allowed very close to all the animals. Essentially, we are allowed into the cages and right outside the cages where the feeders and trainers work each day. This is a great privilege for us as we get to see the rare white tigers up close and personal, almost too close hahahaha. The white tigers are found only one place naturally in the world, and that is on the Indian continent.


...

Standing directly outside the cages of the white tigers we watch this big guy as he relaxes in the cool water of his bath. Luckily, we even catch him in a big yawn!


Mr. Kamal informs us that this zoo park not only contains the most white tigers of any park in India, but also houses the only two white tiger babies to have been born naturally to two regular colored tigers. It seems that each of the tiger parents has a recessive gene and passed on this white tiger gene to both infants.




These two white tigers, presently in their cage, are restlessly pacing back and forth as they want to be let out into the open fields designated for them alone




You can see how close we are to these beautiful animals, just a few feet away behind a wire fence




This tiger looks out upon the fields longingly, hoping his trainer, who has been training white tigers for over 17 years, will let him and his friend out soon to roam and play




The tigers stand around in anticipation of the gate to the fields being open, meanwhile they sneak a peak at their awed observers