'We want this baby polar bear dead'

[Ziphor]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/a ... icbox&ct=5

http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/200...03_468x380.jpg

'We want this baby polar bear dead' say animal rights lobby
By ALLAN HALL - More by this author » Last updated at 16:03pm on 20th March 2007

Comments Comments (86)
Tiny, fluffy and adorable, Knut the baby polar bear became an animal superstar after he was abandoned by his mother.

He rapidly became the symbol of Berlin Zoo, whose staff bottle-fed him and handed out cuddles in between

At three months old, however, the playful 19lb bundle of fur is at the centre of an impassioned debate over whether he should live or die.

Animal rights activists argue that he should be given a lethal injection rather than brought up suffering the humiliation of being treated as a domestic pet.

"The zoo must kill the bear," said spokesman Frank Albrecht. "Feeding by hand is not species-appropriate but a gross violation of animal protection laws."

When Knut was born in December, his mother ignored him and his brother, who died. Zoo officials intervened, choosing to raise the cub themselves.

But Albrecht and other activists fret that it is inappropriate for a predator, known for its fierceness and ability to fend for itself in the wild, to be snuggled, bottle-fed and made into a commodity by zookeepers.

They argue that current treatment of the cub is inhumane and could cause him future difficulties interacting with fellow polar bears. "They cannot domesticate a wild animal," added Ruediger Schmiedel, head of the Foundation for Bears.

The charity cites a similar case of a baby sloth which was put to sleep after being abandoned by its mother last December in the Leipzig city zoo.

But Berlin Zoo holds different opinions. Its chief vet Andre Schuele says the activists' criticisms would make him angry if he could take them seriously. "Polar bears live alone in the wild. I see no logical reason why this bear should be killed."

Schuele also argued that given the increased rarity of wild polar bears, it makes sense to keep them alive in captivity so that they can be bred. "Polar bears are under threat of extinction, and if we feed the bear with a bottle, it has a good chance of growing up and perhaps becoming attractive as a stud for other zoos," he said.

Knut, who recently made the official A-list when he was pictured by celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz for an environmental protection campaign, is scheduled to make his public debut at the zoo in the next few days.

err anyone else find these activists retarded?

[Senoska]

Wow, lol.

[Kuya]

It was going to die without its mother, any passionate human being would have wanted to save it, even though i see the logic from the side of the animal rights activist, the bear has no other choice but to depend on people to care for it. Im sure the bear would prefer that over death to.

PLUS ITS ALL CUTE N STUFF

[Tajin]

Wow, lol.

[Lbelle]

Don't kill Knut, he's so cute

edit:

Plus I don't see how this is any different than people caring for baby tigers and stuff like how they do on Animal Planet. Those ones seem to turn out just fine.

[Jeryhn]

Dude, fuck the activists, I'll take it.

[Devek]

One of the many cold and dead parts of my heart just came back to life with joy <3

So cute!

Must kill activist!

[Xchelsx]

seriously? wtf?

that's the cutest animal i've ever seen besides my cats.
anyone who would want to kill it has no soul.

[Tricen]

I heard he is filled with candy and helium. WHo doesn't like a high squeeky voice? I say kirr

[Beckwin]

Really retarded. At the very least its useful to keep around to breed with other polar bears/sperm donor and for increased zoo revenues to better take care of all the animals.

[Senoska]

http://img100.imageshack.us/img100/2...468x380sa0.jpghttp://img100.imageshack.us/img100/2...468x380sa0.jpghttp://img100.imageshack.us/img100/2...468x380sa0.jpg

Just incase you missed the massive amount of cute in the first post. This is by far, one of the cutest animals on the face of this earth and it is in perfect heath. there is no reason for this animal to die.

[Tajin]

He looked me funny

[Senoska]

its like a walking teddy bear!

AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW gawd I cant stop looking at it without saying it :<

AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW
http://img100.imageshack.us/img100/2...468x380sa0.jpg

[Kerreck]

He can barely stand up ; ;

Pweese don't kill teh bear Mr.

[quannum]

Frank Albrecht. "Feeding by hand is not species-appropriate but a gross violation of animal protection laws."

wot?

[Ddz]

Those activists are like crazy psycho ex girlfriends....IF I CAN'T HAVE IT NO ONE CAN *pew pew*

Seriously I bet if they had control over the bear from day 1 it would be a different story Don't kill Knut, he's so fucking cute you bastards

[Koga]

Poor Cute and Cuddly bear

[Ziphor]

http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/200...03_468x389.jpg

the activists must BURN!

[Totien]

I work at a zoo. First off, the curators are fucking idiots for exposing it to human contact. Stupid as it sounds, the best thing to do is get in a polar bear suit and feed it and play with it that way.

Secondly, the protestors are fucking idiots for saying they should kill the thing, humanely or otherwise. Why not just relocate it to another zoo where the curators aren't retarded?

[Kiro]

If a stupid hippy lesbian activist kills that thing, stupid hippy lesbian activist hunting season is open.