Zion and Trust grow up

When I first came to Harnas in February of 2007, my first experience with lions was taking Zion and Trust on a walk. They were around a year old then--still pretty big by my standards then, but young enough not to be much of a threat.

But here's a picture of Zion as a cub (taken by a friend).



As we sat in the back of the truck with them--stepping on us and falling into us as the truck sped through the dirt roads, I got up close and personal with them--their faces and tails hitting me, their hot breathe in my face. I loved it. They are amazing creatures--especially Zion, who was always trustworthy and gentle. (Trust, on the other hand, never lived up to his name.)

Each time I've come back to Harnas, I've watched them grow up a little more until now they are massive and magnificent brothers, both with full manes and roars to match their stature. They are on the food tour now--which means every tourist who comes to Harnas gets to see these amazing boys get fed. And where I'm staying this trip, I can hear them roar throughout the night. It takes less than 2 minutes to walk to their enclosure, so when they roar, it sounds like it's at my door.

I've been campaigning for a walk with Zion, but Schalk (Marieta's son) just laughs. Even though he's gentle, if he took me down in play, it might be very serious. Instead, I'm hoping I'll get a lion walk with the three Brothers--who are getting their manes now, but are gentle and sweet--the way Zion always was. Still, this past weekend, a German film crew was here and went on a bushwalk with the Brothers, and one of the guys got taken down to the ground by a lion (in play, of course--and they have learned not to use their claws--just enormous paws).

Once a male lion reaches sexual maturity, all bets are off on how tame they can be. Most will turn even against the one who raised them. But I still think Zion would be a gentleman with me. Keep your fingers crossed that I get to do more than pet them through the fence.

Another animal story

You just never know what will happen around Harnas. A few days ago, Marieta was getting ready for her bath one evening. The tub was full, she was naked, and she was just ready to step into the bath when BANG--her bathroom door flew open and in ran six baboons.

These are the group that include Coco and Jessie, two of the baby baboons that I wrote about last spring. Here's what they looked like back then: Now they're more grown up, of course--bigger and stronger--but Coco, especially, is still Marieta's baby girl. So when someone had trouble closing their enclosure gate while leaving (they're fast little creatures) and they all escaped, the first thing Coco did was head for Marieta's house where she had so many wonderful memories.

So the other five followed her as Coco ran right for Marieta's bathroom. And there was Marieta, without a stitch on, trying to close the door before the whole world came running in to catch the baboons.

With the door closed there wasn't much extra room for one grown woman and six teenage baboons whose lives are built around causing mayhem. While she struggled to get her clothes on, they jumped in the tub and swam, grabbed things off shelves, pulled out the toilet paper, and generally did what they do best--create confusion. This is what it looked like AFTER it had been partially cleaned up, the shelves lifted back up (they had pulled them over) and the water mopped.
Finally Marieta got her pants on and a shirt (but no underwear--and she was wearing drawstring pants, so she was worried one of them would pull the string and her pants would drop). She called for help, and the helpers got all of them back except Coco--who clung to Marieta. She had to walk her back to the enclosure herself.

What fun at bathtime, huh?

I love these little monsters. I got so close to Jessie and Coco last spring. Both of them had accidents of one kind, and I spent all day with Coco once when we ran her to Windhoek to a vet (I think I have an earlier blog--in January--about that.).

This morning I went into their enclosure, gave all six a couple of peanuts each (it distracts them so I can get in more easily). Then I just watched the four play while Jessie and Coco sat in my arms, grooming me. (I can definitely say I'm free of fleas and ticks because they checked my whole body, my scalp, and my face.)
A lot of people are afraid of baboons--some of the volunteers prefer not to deal with them--but I have to admit that I'm not one of those. They can be so much fun. Sure--when they get older, they tend to become more dangerous, and at that point I'd much rather go in with the lions or cheetahs than deal with the big ones, but when they're small, they are a lot of fun. I've helped raise a lot of little ones: my first trip here, it was Moses, Ita, Jacob and their group. Then it was Gracie and Frikkie and others. Last trip was Coco and Jessie and the four that have joined them. And now I'm working my way in with Elvis and Loede (who are still a bit wary of me, especially when Marieta, their mum, is around).



Big baboon fun!

new post

Hey everyone--I wrote a new post called "every animal counts"--but it's listed as 3rd on the list and I don't know how to move it up to the most recent one! So if you want to read my amusing story--and I guarantee this one is amusing--click on "every animal counts" in the list of posts. --bb

rude awakeninig

Some mornings I think, "I guess this will just be a regular day at Harnas," but then I remember that there aren't any regular days--most days are extraordinary in some way with drama happening all around, especially when you consider that there are 400 animals all living their lives around you.

This morning around 6:00, my African dog Pickles nudged me gently to let her out to pee. I got out of bed and opened the sliding glass door about 6 inches--then went back to bed. A few minutes she came back in and I felt her jump on the bed and settle down with me and her tennis ball (that goes everywhere with her). We went back to sleep.

A little while later, I awoke to Pickles standing up on the bed, growling her most fierce growl. Then she HURLED herself off the bed, and I sat up just in time to see her chasing two flashes of silver at the foot of my bed, headed toward the open sliding glass door.

My first thought was mongooses (her mortal enemies), but these had tails. Then I thought "cats" but these were lankier. I launched myself out of the bed and ran to the open sliding door and saw six adult and one baby vervet monkeys who were hanging out on my porch, banister, and roof.

Pickles was furiously telling them in no uncertain terms that this was HER territory and they had to disappear immediately. I slid the door closed quickly. Vervets are relatively small, but they have razor teeth that they can use to slice open your neck like little vampires. They seemed friendly enough--I think they were from the enclosure only about 100 yards from my bungalow, and several of those I knew as babies before they were released. So I wasn't afraid of them so much as afraid of the skirmish that might break out between them and my frantic dog.

So I grabbed my camera, of course, and started shooting--keeping in mind that people might find this invasion interesting. One of the females had a tiny baby and I got some good shots of it. They stuck around for about 15 minutes and then moved on to the next venue for their mayhem--which I found out later was Willi and Cornelia's bungalow across the way (although they didn't go inside their house).

I went back to bed for awhile, wondering at the amazing place this is--where your morning alarm clock might be an invasion of monkeys in your house.

caracals

New babies arrive all the time at Harnas--often injured ones, orphaned babies, or abandoned pets--and Marieta always takes them in. This week it is two baby caracal orphans--only hours old.

Caracals are very similar to American lynx. Caracals look like large tan housecats with ears that stand up with black and white tufts. They live in the wild and eat small rodents. And they can jump so high that they also bring down birds in flight. I kid you not. I tried to upload a video of it, but after an hour of waiting, I gave up. It looks like still pictures is all I can handle from Africa this trip. Here's one of a couple of them sitting. If you want to see the jumping one, there's a great one in my book.

The babies are the size of kittens, though, and their eyes aren't open yet. Marieta has to feed them every two hours with a doll-size bottle of special formula. They sleep in a basket in a pile of soft blankets to keep them warm. Originally there were four in the litter, but two died, so we're all pulling for these last two. So far they seem to be eating all right and seem strong (or at least as strong as a kitten can be who is only 2 days old).

They're just as cute as buttons, but a lot softer.

every animal counts

I have a great story for you today. Marieta told me my first night here while we had a drink together. I was laughing so hard I almost spit out my wine.

Every animal counts at Harnas--not just the exotic or cuddly. First, keep that in mind.

Marieta's granddaughter (who ADORES animals as well), Nica, is--as Marieta puts it--the "true farmer" in the family. She especially loves goats and sheep, so when there were two orphaned babies, one of each, Marieta gave them to 7-year-old Nica to raise. Now Nica lives in Windhoek, the capital city of Namibia, most of the time and then comes to Harnas during school vacations. So when it was time to send Nica back to the city, Marieta put the two animals in the transport with her and sent them home, too.

Nica's mother Melanie called back a bit peeved--as you can imagine: "What do you think you're doing sending a sheep and goat to my house!" Marieta explained that Nica loved the babies and she couldn't separate them. "Well, they can't stay here," Melanie said, "I'm sending them back. They make too much noise 'baaaaa-ing' all the time."

A few days later, though, she called back to say that Nica had actually trained them not to say "BAAAA" but whisper "baaa." And she said maybe they could stay--that she was, in fact, falling in love a little with them. A few days later, though, she called back: "I'm sending them back to Harnas. My daughter was sleeping with them in her bed!"

So Marieta got the sheep and goat back, but she couldn't bring herself to put them out in the pen. After all, these animals had lived with a roof over their heads and they wouldn't know what to do outside. Besides, she didn't want Nica to think she wasn't supporting her--that she wasn't respecting her choice of pet.

So the sheep and goat began to live in Marieta's house. At night they slept in Marieta's bedroom with her--along with 4 dogs, 2 baby baboons, and sometimes baby springboks or kudus. First, the sheep wanted to sleep in the bed, but Marieta eventually taught him to sleep in a bed she made for him at the bottom of her bed.

And I know you're wondering about the poop and pee. Well, hold on now--like the baby baboons, the goat and sheep wore diapers, but they were so big by then that she sent her daughter-in-law Jo to Gobabis (nearest town) to buy adult size diapers. The sheep also sucked on a pacifier all night--no joke. So there they all were: At night Marieta would put diapers of all sizes on animals of all sizes, and they would all sleep together. Marieta said the sheep became quite attached to her. If Marieta needed to get up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom, the sheep came with her, watched her, and then returned to bed with her.

On Sundays, the goat and sheep followed Marieta to the little church that is here on Harnas. They'd sleep during the service and then follow her home.

But eventually something was bound to happen--the poop that the sheep was making began to smell really bad, and when Marieta would take off the diaper in the morning, the sheep would wag his little tail and poop would fly all over. "ENOUGH!" said Marieta.

But she still couldn't bear to put them out in the elements--rain, heat, dark--so she had the Bushmen make a home for them, bigger than a dog house, with a roof, windows, and plenty of blankets to sleep on. Out they went--finally.

But when Nica goes out and calls them--as she did for me so I could get their pictures, they come running just like dogs.

Only at Harnas.

Okay, I give up. I've tried for 30 minutes to upload a picture of the sheep. You'll just have to imagine!

here at Harnas

I'm really having trouble with my email here at Harnas--so if you read this and normally email me at my NC State account, please send things to my gmail account instead. It's Barbara.Bennett88@gmail.com

The first two days here have been wonderful, of course. I feel so at peace already. Yesterday morning I went on a walk with Goeters, the 23 year old cheetah who has been a death's door several times lately but has survived.

We started by driving him in the back of a truck to a place called the Tree House, and then we walked for about an hour on a dirt track--then turned around and went back. He walked very slowly but seemed to be enjoying himself out in all the scents and sounds of the bush. But it was hot, so when we got back to the tree house we thought he'd had enough and called for a truck to take us home. He didn't want to get back in the truck--even growled a bit when Marnus lifted him in--and I saw him later that afternoon and he was sleeping sleeping sleeping. It's so good for the old boy, though. It keeps his muscles in good shape and makes him more interested in the world.

I spent the rest of the day going around to my favorite animals, but still didn't get to them all. Marieta has two new baby baboons--Elvis and Loede, and in the afternoon she took those two--along with the 6 others who are a bit older (including Coco and Jessie) and they all played on the lawn. A few even went swimming in a pond (baboons love the water).

In the evening, Cornelia and Willi came to my wonderful bungalow (called Caso) and we sat on the front porch and drank some wine while we listened to the sounds of Harnas. Caso is verrrry close to the lions' enclosures (which I requested) and starting about sunset, they take turns roaring their territory to each other. At times during the night they would get started, wake me up, and it would sound like they were right outside my door. FANTASTIC. Even Pickles (my Jack Russell terrier while here at Harnas--I steal her from Marieta_ would sit up in bed and look around like "Where ARE those lions?" It was magical. I couldn't ask for a better way to spend each night than listening to the power of the lions.

Speaking of Pickles, she was so excited to see me when I arrived that she jumped up and up and up almost to my chin level. She's hardly left my side since.

This morning I went on the food tour. I'll tell you more about it, but I'm afraid how long this connection will or will not last, so I'll leave it for another day.

So much to tell. I'll write again tomorrow if the internet holds.