JERUSALEM: Gabi the elephant packs his trunk and heads from an Israeli zoo to his new home in Turkey
Record ID:
185127
JERUSALEM: Gabi the elephant packs his trunk and heads from an Israeli zoo to his new home in Turkey
- Title: JERUSALEM: Gabi the elephant packs his trunk and heads from an Israeli zoo to his new home in Turkey
- Date: 4th October 2010
- Summary: JERUSALEM (OCTOBER 3, 2010) (REUTERS) CARETAKER FEEDING GABI THE ELEPHANT CLOSE OF GABI THE ELEPHANT CARETAKER FEEDING GABI THE ELEPHANT CRATE IN WHICH GABI THE ELEPHANT WILL TRAVEL TO TURKEY CLOSE OF GABI'S MOUTH AS HE EATS AMMAR ABIDAT HEAD OF JERUSALEM BIBLICAL ZOO'S ELEPHANT DEPARTMENT SPEAKING WITH REPORTER (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) AMMAR ABIDAT HEAD OF JERUSALEM BIBLICAL'S ZOO ELEPHANT DEPARTMENT, SAYING: "Gabi, I started working with him when he was one day old, when he was born. He was born here in the Zoo. I worked with him for five years, he was a bratty elephant. In the beginning it was hard to handle his movements, but the elephant is not like children when they play. The elephant weighs 2.5 tons now, so when he plays or kicks anything, he does it with tremendous power. It was hard in the beginning, but now we control him." MORE OF GABI THE ELEPHANT EATING VARIOUS OF GABI'S MOTHER AND SISTERS WATCHING HIM THROUGH BARS SHMULIK YEDVAB, ZOO CURATOR, SPEAKING WITH REPORTER LOGO OF JERUSALEM'S BIBLICAL ZOO ON YEDVAB'S SHIRT (SOUNDBITE) (English) SHMULIK YEDVAB, ZOO CURATOR, SAYING: "Unlike maybe political issues, the relationship between zoos, no matter which countries are involved, are excellent because we have one main goal which is for all of us and that's, again, breeding endangered species." VARIOUS OF ELEPHANTS IN ZOO
- Embargoed: 19th October 2010 13:00
- Keywords:
- Topics: International Relations,Environment / Natural World
- Reuters ID: LVA80O4LUGD56JNFSR5RRCYIWTUT
- Story Text: Jerusalem's Biblical Zoo made last preparations on Sunday (October 3) to ship Gabi the elephant on a long journey to his new home in Turkey.
Accompanied by his caretaker, 5-year-old Gabi will be placed inside a large crate and will then be shipped by sea to Turkey's Gaziantep Zoo.
Ammar Abidat head of the Biblical Zoo's elephant department, said Gabi was a handful as a young elephant, but has since been trained and is now well-behaved.
"Gabi, I started working with him when he was one day old, when he was born. He was born here in the Zoo. I worked with him for five years, he was a bratty elephant. In the beginning it was hard to handle his movements, but the elephant is not like children when they play. The elephant weighs 2.5 tons now, so when he plays or kicks anything, he does it with tremendous power. It was hard in the beginning, but now we control him," Abidat said.
Gabi will be leaving his mother and sister behind, though Abidat said they seem quite relieved to see the some-what raucous, sexually-matured male leave.
Relations between Israel and Turkey deteriorated over a deadly Israeli commando raid in May against a Turkish-backed flotilla headed for the Gaza Strip. Nine Turkish activists were killed in the raid.
Shmulik Yedvab, the zoo's curator said that strained relations between the two countries have not hindered co-operation between the zoos.
"Unlike maybe political issues, the relationship between zoos, no matter which countries are involved, are excellent because we have one main goal which is for all of us and that's, again, breeding endangered species," he told Reuters Television.
Upon his departure from Haifa port, Gabi will join three hippos, two zebras, another elephant and seven lemur monkeys sent from Israel's Ramat Gan safari zoo to Turkey. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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