This Week we Celebrate the life of Knut, the Polar Bear
Knut
Born: Dec 05, 2006
Died: Mar 19, 2011
Berlin’s much-loved bear Knut who became a world wide sensation in 2006 as a cuddly cub hand-raised by zoo keepers has passed away at the age of four. Knut was one of the few polar bear cubs to survive past infancy. He and his brother were rejected at berth by their mother. Knowing the cubs would starve with out human intervention the Zoo keepers rescued both cubs in the hopes of hand raising them. Knut’s brother died of an infection 4-days later. Knut remained in an incubator for 44 days before being hand fed by Thomas Dörflein.
Knut’s need for around the clock feeding required Thomas Dörflein’s constant attention he even slept with the bear insuring he was fed when required. This bonded the cub to Dörflein and as the cub grew he continued the feedings. Dörflein would later follow Knut on his twice a day shows for the public at the zoo, this made Dörflein somewhat of a minor celebrity in Germany. Dörflein would later die of a heart attack in 2008 at the age of 44.
With any animal held in captivity there was some controversy, some believed that the two bears should have been left to die as that is what happens in nature. The Berlin Zoo had to defend its position and rallied behind the little polar bear and soon the public rallied as well. Knut became a world wide sensation, dubbed "Knutmania" he even showed up next to Leonardo DiCaprio in the 2007 cover of Vanity Fair.
On March 19, 2011 Knut was walking in his pin when onlookers noticed that he was shaking his left leg. He became agitated before convulsing several times, and eventually fell into his pool where he drowned in front of 600-700 zoo visitors. The official cause of death was drowning, but the convulsions were triggered by encephalitis most likely caused by a virus, encephalitis is a disease that causes swelling of the brain. Zoo officials can not say what virus caused the encephalitis but that it was unlikely Knut would of survived the disease had he not collapsed and drowned in his pool.
The sudden death of Knut saw an international outpouring of sympathy and grief for the beloved bear. Hundreds of Knut fans visited the zoo and left flowers and mementos recognizing the young bear. The mayor of Berlin, Klaus Wowereit said of Knut “We all held him so dearly. He was the star of the Berlin zoos”. In honor of the beloved polar bear the Berlin zoo plans on erecting a monument in remembrance of that small cuddly bear that grew up to became an international sensation. The Story Place.