Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Lady Patches has left us

Lady Patches hat uns verlassen
Patches, photos taken in Erie Zoo

 Just weeks short of her 27th birthday (she was born November 29, 1987), Patches lost her short battle with suspected lung cancer on Sunday. She had been lethargic and not eating in the past few weeks.

Nur wenige Wochen Kurz vor ihrem 27. Geburtstag, verlor Patches ihren kurzen Kampf gegen Lungenkrebs am Sonntag. Sie war lethargisch und hatte in den letzten Wochen kaum etwas gefressen.

 Patches goes for a fishy ice ring
 in her pool at the Erie Zoo
Patches had moved just a year ago from a small old-fashioned enclosure at the Erie Zoo to a spacious new polar bear enclosure – Rocky Coast - at the North Carolina Zoo in Asheboro.

Gur vor einem Jahr wurde Patches von einer kleinen altmodischen Gehegeanlage am Erie Zoo in eine geräumigen neuen Eisbärenanlage im North Carolina Zoo in Asheboro verlegt.

Patches was a curious, friendly bear

Patches had come to the Erie Zoo December 11, 2007 from the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha, where she had lived with her twin sister Bam Bam (officially called Fanny, but everyone calls her Bam Bam). Patches was named for the dark spot on her head when she was born.

Patches kam in den Erie Zoo am11. Dezember 2007 aus der Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha, wo sie mit ihrer Zwillingsschwester Bam Bam gelebt hatte (offiziel genannt Fanny, aber jeder nannte sie hier Bam Bam). Patches bekam ihren Namen von dem dunklen Fleck auf dem Kopf bei der Geburt.

Patches' sister Bam Bam
is still at the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha,
 which has a very large polar bear habitat with a huge pool.
Patches


She was 20 at the time she moved to Erie Zoo, and had lived her entire life with her sister at the zoo in Omaha.

Sie war 20 Jahre zu der Zeit zog sie nach Erie Zoo, und hatte ihr ganzes Leben hier mit ihrer Schwester in dem Zoo in Omaha gelebt.

Patches
At the Erie Zoo, she lived in an antiquated, cramped enclosure with a tiny pool. Her caring keepers tried to keep her entertained with enrichment activities and treats. She lived with three different males in her years in Erie, but each died an early and tragic death.

Am Erie Zoo lebte sie in einer veralteten, engen Gehege mit einem winzigen Pool. Fürsorgliche Pfleger versuchten sie mit Aktivitäten zur Anreicherung und Leckereien zuunterhalten und zu beschäftigen. Sie lebte mit drei verschiedenen männlichen Eisbären in ihren Zeit im Erie Zoo, aber alle drei Eisbären starben einen frühen undtragischen Tod.

Patches rests on the ledge over her tiny pool at the Erie Zoo
After she moved to Asheboro, she enjoyed playing with her many new toys, and swimming in a large pool. She had always been a people watcher, and she continued that in Asheboro, making many new friends in the beautiful new polar bear area. Last month the second new area opened, and Patches was there to entertain the Governor, and supervise the refreshment table. She had always been playful, friendly, and easy to work with.

Nachdem sie nach Asheboro verlegt wurde, genoss sie das Spiel mit den vielen neuen Spielsachen und das Schwimmen in einem großen Pool. Sie hatte schon immerviel Spass daran die Menschen zu beobachten, und sie tat dies auch in Asheboro, sie fand viele neue Freunde in der schönen neuen Eisbären-Anlage. Letzten Monat wurde der zweite neue Bereich eröffnet und Patches unterhalten auch den Gouverneur, und überwachte das Erfrischung Buffet. Sie war immer sehr verspielt, freundlich und es war einfach mit ihr zu arbeiten.

Patches has found a twig
Patches had twice given birth to cubs that did not survive. She had been all alone for several years before she moved to North Carolina.

Patches brachte zweimal Jungtiere zur Welt, die aber nicht überlebt habent. Sie war lange Zeit allein mit sich bis sie nach North Carolina verlegt wurde.

Patches stretching

Now sister Bam Bam is the only surviving bear of the seven cubs raised by the famous breeding pair Olaf and Olga of the Omaha Zoo.

Jetzt ist Schwester Bam Bam die einzige überlebende Bärin der sieben Jungtiere von dem berühmten Zuchtpaar Olaf und Olga des Omaha Zoo.

She was named Patches for the dark spot
 on her head when she was born

Wistful

Patches was a clown,
always making funny poses and funny faces
The North Carolina Zoo had just welcomed Anana from Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago, who will be living there while her habitat is being renovated, so there is still currently a polar bear at the zoo.

Der North Carolina Zoo nahm gerade Anana aus dem Lincoln Park Zoo auf, während die Eisbärenanlage dort renoviert wird, so dass es immer noch einen Eisbären im Zoo Asheboro gibt.

Goodbye to Patches. You will be dearly missed


2 comments:

  1. Dear Molly

    Patches was a beautiful polarbear lady.
    She also leaves to early like Nancy.
    27 is not so old in the Zoo, when
    I think, that we had bears with 37.

    This year there were to many badly
    hurting losses, beginning with Anton.
    I hope, 2015 will be a much better year...

    Grüsse
    Chris

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    Replies
    1. Yes, it was a very sad year for our polar bears, and especially this past week. Patches was one of my favorite bears. I felt sad for her having to live in the small area of the Erie Zoo, but she always had fun anyway. I was happy she got to move to a big new enclosure, but she only enjoyed it for a year. She is gone too soon, I agree. I was planning to visit her this summer. It was not to be.
      Molly

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