Joe's Second Christmas at Gorilla Haven
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Joe enjoyed his second Christmas at Gorilla Haven, patiently waiting for Pete to prepare the C cage with a Christmas tree and wrapped presents underneath it, filled with food from his regular meals, as well as some extra treats to make the day more special. Pete’s two daughters were visiting and they helped wrap boxes and paper towel tubes to look like English holiday “crackers” (a pull-apart toy with surprises and ridiculously bad jokes and a tacky paper crown inside, usually - but for Joe, there were bits of fruit, cereal, nuts and other goodies - no crowns or bad jokes!). |
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Initially, Joe just looked at the tree and cautiously entered the C cage and took one package very gingerly, returning to the D cage to open it and discover mini apples and cereal inside. Then Joe grabbed one package in his mouth, one in each hand and one in a foot and he hobbled into the squeeze cage to open them all. Eventually, Joe realized it was ok to stay in the C cage and open his gifts, as you can see on this video clip. Unlike many other gorillas I know, Joe was very gentle, opening each present very carefully. Joe's friends at The Butler Company sent Joe some low-calorie dog treats made of fruit and vegetables which he loves (see photo right). |
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| Pete, Steuart and I were all videotaping or photographing Joe up at the mesh of the cage, and Joe was remarkably tolerant, finally charging us at the mesh and knocking the tree forward, but still upright. When Joe had done an initial survey of all the packages, he determined he needed more and snapped his fingers and clapped his hands, asking for “more please!” just like a small child! | ||
The joy of this holiday season has been tempered by the devastating losses in Asia, where the earthquakes and tsunami have wrought horrendous destruction and loss of lives over such a large area. While we're GORILLA Haven, we have many dear friends around the world - in Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, etc, and our heart goes out to everyone affected by this tragedy. Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone coping during this difficult time.
Construction Progress Continues
Meanwhile, work has been progressing on the Group Building and Emma Villa. Emma Villa, like everything here at Gorilla Haven, is named after a real gorilla I know, who lives at the Limbe Wildlife Centre in Cameroon, West Africa. I first met Emma in 1999 when she was about 5 years old. Her eyes were haunted with the trauma of her capture, like so many other bushmeat orphans in Africa, where hunters killed her mother and father and probably most of her family, but kept her, since she was a cute baby they thought they could sell as a pet. I’ve been privileged to watch Emma mature into a lovely young gorilla, working out her place in LWC’s gorilla group, which now consists of 12 gorillas, each with their own horror story, before they were rescued and brought to Limbe. Emma is featured in the 4 photos above; from the left, she's at the front on the left; Emma begging from Chella, the oldest male, for a bit of watermelon, seen 3rd from the left in the 2nd photo; Emma smiling; and finally, Emma using her beloved caregiver, Bama, as a way to look over a barricade.
