Homecoming

Jonas, Todd and Shawn are back.

After the tiger and two camels belonging to a zoo in Canada have gone missing for four days as the truck and trailer which were supposed to take them to Nova Scotia had been stolen, the trailer was found near Montreal after the police received a tip. The animals were in good health and are now resting at their homes.

I hold up my hands. I feared that the tiger and two camels will not be found alive as they could be sold or killed by the thieves. I probably had too little faith in humanity.

The story of their loss and recovery is quite heart warming. The zoo officials have shown genuine concern about the animals, putting up one reward after another to help trace them and making public appeals for the thieves to take care of them. The following remarks by head zookeeper Stephanie MacEwen show how much they care.

"I am so relieved. I feel great... Everyone has been up for over 72 hours and now we can hit the pillow."

You have to give credit to the thieves too, not only for returning the animals but also for caring for them while they were missing. The police believed it would have been difficult for the animals to survive in the heat of the enclosed trailer for nearly four days.

MacEven said: "I'm feeling emotions I didn't know I had." Maybe that applied to the thieves too.

Animal stories (1)

Two pieces of recent news about animals show how the western people care about the four-legged creatures.

The first is about a tiger and two camels belonging to a Canadian zoo being stolen a couple of days ago. Jonas the tiger along with Sean and Todd the camels were inside the truck and trailer being snatched by thieves.

It was believed that the animals were taken inadvertently. "Really who would want a tiger and two camels?" zoo director Michael Hackenberger said. "These things would be like a millstone around your neck. There is no rhyme or reason for it."

As time went by, Hackenberger became increasingly worried about the well-being of the animals. He had two public messages for the thieves, whom he said were "either the smartest thieves in the world or the dumbest". He wanted them to know that the animals were microchipped so moving them on or selling them wasn't an option. He also wanted them to ensure that they water the animals he gave detailed instructions about how to water them, especially watering the tiger safely.

To help trace the animals, the zoo has earlier put up a reward of 20,000 Canadian dollars. But as the zoo officials are increasingly worried that the animals may die soon if they are not properly cared for, they have followed that up with an additional offer of $2,000 for proof that the animals were alive. "It's the best money they'll make off a digital photo in their life," Hackenberger said.

If as the circus officials believed the thieves of the trailer had no idea what it contained, I wonder how they would react when they found out that there were a tiger and two camels inside. Like the zoo officials, I am worried about the animals. Not only is there the possibility that they are not watered, it is also likely that the thieves would kill them if they cannot figure out how to handle them or if they think they can make some money out of the animal parts. I pray that in the next couple of days there will be some good news about Jonas, Sean and Todd.

(to be continued)