Remembering Huggies

Huggies

Huggies was an iconic mother polar bear. A legend. Stories about her will be told for a long time. Her life held triumph and tragedy, and even stardom,  a long life surrounded by family,  keepers and fans who loved her. 

Huggies by the pool.

She was the mother of eight cubs: Freedom, triplets Jelle, Henk and Ewa,  twins Walker and the late Swimmer, and twins Lynn and Luka. 

Huggies in the old enclosure

Sadly, we lost Huggies this week, at the age of 32. It's a life that would not have been, if not for the brave fishermen who rescued her as a little cub alone on an ice floe near Russia's Wrangel Island back the spring of 1994. The young bear was brought to safety, and her further rescue was sponsored by diaper company Kimberly Clark, so she was named Huggies, after their signature diaper.

Sign at the Bear Forest - about Huggies companion of her youth.

Because she was just a cub, only a few months old and all alone, her new home Ouwehands Zoo in the Netherlands, brought in a brown bear cub of the same age, Björna, to be her companion and they could teach each other how to be bears. Björna, now an old bear too, is still there, across the way in the magnificent bear forest of the zoo.

Nuuk Nordman, in Skandinavisk Dyrepark.
 Father of Freedom while Huggies lived in Sweden.
Nuuk has since passed away. 

Huggies lived in Ouwehands for four years, then went to Kolmarden in Sweden, where she met Nordman (Nuuk), and gave birth to a daughter, Freedom, in 2001. Huggies and the cub moved to Ouwehands in March of 2002, when the cub was just a few months old.

Freedom's grandmother, Nordman's mother, was American born CW, who came from the Memphis Zoo. Nordman later moved to Skandinavisk Dyrepark in Denmark with his twin sister Ilka in 2006 when Kolmarden gave up polar bear keeping. So all of Freedom's cubs have American cousins.

Victor in retirement at Yorkshire Wildlife Park.
 Victor has since passed away.

Young male bear Victor arrived in Ouwehands in 2000, while Huggies was away in Sweden, but moved to Amsterdam in late 2002, after Huggies' return, so Huggies could have room to raise her daughter. He returned in late 2003, and all the rest of Huggies' children were fathered by Victor, as well as most of Freedom's cubs.

Henk, one of Huggies' triplets, when he was in Eindhoven.

In November of 2005, Huggies gave birth to rare triplets, named Jelle, Ewa and Henk. The babies were named after the zookeepers of the time. The triplets went their separate ways, Jelle eventually ending up in Canada, where he now lives in Calgary. Jelle is the father of Shouka and Kinuk. Ewa went to Sweden where she had Miki, now deceased, and now lives in the UK. Henk went on to father six cubs in Eindhoven in the Netherlands and now lives in France. Henk is the father of twins Pixel and Nordje, twins Nickie and Simona, and twins Nivi and Elva.

Huggies' grandson Sprinter, in Hannover.

Huggies daughter Freedom gave birth to Sprinter in fall of 2007, fathered by Victor. Young Sprinter stayed in Ouwehands for three years, so he was present in Ouwehands when Huggies gave birth to her next set of twins, Walker and Swimmer, in 2008. Sprinter is now in Hannover Germany.

Huggies' son Walker (on the right),
 in Highland Wildlife Park,
with his friend Arktos.

Twins Walker and Swimmer were born in December of 2008. Walker and Swimmer were famous from the start, for their birth was filmed and featured in the David Attenborough BBC television series, "Frozen Planet,"  as it would be impossible to film such a birth in the wild. Walker and little twin brother Swimmer (both named after Kimberly Clark diapers, the rescue sponsor of their mother Huggies) made their public debut in March, and tiny Swimmer captured many hearts, for he was about one third the size of his brother, quite lively and scampering about. About a week later, poor Swimmer died during a swimming lesson, as some inborn weakness caused something to burst. Huggies and Walker were seen grieving for hours. It happened on a Sunday, with many families there to see the new twins, families who witnessed the tragedy and the great sadness of a mother crying over her tiny lost child, with bewildered young Walker there, grieving as well.  Walker now lives in Highland Wildlife Park in Scotland.

By summer of 2010, it was just Victor, Huggies and Freedom at Ouwehands. 

Huggies' granddaughter Sesi in Mulhouse Zoo in France,
 with first child Nanook, now in Munich.
Sesi has had another since then, Kara is now in Sweden. 

But then in November, 2010 Freedom gave birth to Sesi and Siku (later Taiko).  The next year it was Huggies' turn.

Lynn, now in the Copenhagen Zoo.

In December 2011 Huggies had twins, Lynn and Luka. At this point, the two moms, mother and daughter, were dealing with four cubs, Sesi and Siku (later Taiko), and Lynn and Luka, between them, and it seemed to work to raise them together in the large enclosure with that wonderful deep pool. These were amazing days, with Freedom and her older cubs, and Huggies and her younger cubs, splashing and playing for the visitors and on the Explore webcam broadcast around the world.  Two moms and four cubs all living together.

Luka in Wuppertal. He now lives in Yorkshire.

Eventually, these four cubs grew up and went  their separate ways. Sesi moved to Mulhouse in France and Siku became Taiko and went to LaFleche in France. Lynn moved to Vienna and then to Copenhagen.  Luka went to Wuppertal in Germany. He's now in YWP.

In August of 2014, Victor retired to YWP in Doncaster in the UK but not before adding to his legacy. In November 2014, a few months after Victor left, Akiak and Sura were born to Freedom.

Akiak and Sura, born to Freedom.

Once again, Ouwehands Zoo decided to mix the generations. They determined that the twins should meet their Grandmother Huggies in May of 2015, so Freedom and her kids went through some tense times. The several generations tried to meld, as they did previously when Huggies and Freedom raised their children together.  I was there to witness the attempted meetings.

Huggies keeps her distance from Freedom and the cubs.

Cubs Akiak and Sura don't trust the stranger,
 who is actually their grandmother Huggies.

There were days of confrontations, as the young cubs hid behind their mother, afraid of this older polar bear coming into their territory. The was a lot of huffing and chuffing going on.

It's okay kids, it's just grandma.

Huggies went about her business,
while Freedom and cubs kept an eye on her.

The apprehensive cubs stayed near their mother
 for protection from the "stranger."

                                     One brave cub tries getting a little

                                                 closer to Grandma.

Eventually, harmony returned, and Grandma Huggies, Mother Freedom and young twins Akiak and Sura learned to live together as a family. 

Huggies' grandson Akiak in Rostock

Akiak grew up and moved on to Rostock, where he fathered a set of twins, Kaja and Skadi, with Sizzel, and now lives in France. But Sister Sura remained in Ouwehands. 

Felix did not work out well with Huggies.
He was too enthusiastic.

A handsome long legged male bear named Felix came to visit in late 2015. He was already the father of the Famous Flocke, of Milak and the late Augo of Aalborg, of Gregor and Aleut and Charlotte of Nuremberg.  Previously, Felix had a reputation for being gentle, a real gentleman with the ladies. But in Ouwehands, he became over-zealous in his pursuit of  Huggies. Freedom was still grouped with her young twins. It was an uncomfortable situation. Felix left in July for another zoo in the Netherlands, and there were no cubs from that visit. 

Wolodja in the old enclosure at Ouwehands.

More success came a few years later. A Russian bear named Wolodja came from Tierpark Berlin in the Spring of 2019, just for the breeding season before moving on to Rotterdam. The result of that visit was another set of twins for Freedom, a girl named Yura and a boy named Yuka. 

Huggies finds joy in a flower

The zoo again tried to integrate the different generations of bears. Wolodja was gone, so it was just Grandma Huggies, older and much bigger sister Sura, Freedom and her twins. 

Tragic history repeated itself on that sad day, June 11, 2020, when young Yura, only 7 months old, was the object of rough play in the pool by her older sister Sura, who had no idea how fragile cubs can be since Sura had never been a mother herself.

Seven month old Yura died of internal bleeding from the playfight in the water with the much larger Sura.

The pool, where cubs played, but also a place of tragedy.

It was Deja Vu for Huggies, as she pulled her granddaughter from the pool, and sat in the same spot where she had mourned Swimmer years earlier, to mourn another tragically lost cub, sweet Yura, her granddaughter. 

A report from the zoo:

“Mother Freedom and her two cubs Yura and Yuka had been living with Grandma Huggies (Freedom’s mother) and Sura for several weeks. Sura is five years old and weighs almost 300 kg. In our extensive experience with breeding polar bears, we’ve had similar combinations of older and younger animals and it was never a problem.  Sura and the cub played together regularly, always under the watchful eye of their mother and grandma.

“Once all the polar bears were together, Mother Freedom protected her cub more intensively than before. We didn’t know she was like that. In retrospect, this was already a sign something was wrong. However, when Sura started playing roughly with the much smaller Yura (65 kg) – we don’t think it was a deliberate attack – Mother Freedom stayed on the side-lines. She no longer defended her cub.

“We believe the autopsy results explain this behaviour. It shows that Yura had been suffering from a respiratory infection, but that she didn’t yet appear to have had any symptoms. Based on Mother Freedom’s behaviour, we suspect that she “knew”. It’s common knowledge that mothers sometimes don’t take care of newborn cubs if they know something is wrong. In this case, Freedom let “nature” run its course.”

It is my belief, however, that since Sura had never been a mother, she played too roughly with her baby sister, not realizing how much smaller and more vulnerable Yura was. Huggies, having been a mother, had a protective attitude toward Freedom's cubs, something Sura had never learned. She only knew how to play.

In fact, I think Huggies was more on the alert that day for trouble than Freedom was, but just did not get there in time to save Yura. 

Brother Yuka, now six years old, is still in Ouwehands, along with big sister Sura, now 11 years old, and mother Freedom. 

Huggies

Time for a nap. 

 

Huggies swims in the old enclosure, and Freedom watches from a distance.

A life that started with a dramatic rescue, Huggies grew up with a brown bear companion who was still her neighbor, then traveled to the far north. She returned with her infant daughter, took care of a growing family, endured heartache and tragedy, but also knew joy and friendship. People came from all over the world to meet her. She even had a starring role in a groundbreaking David Attenborough documentary. Throughout most of her life, she had her daughter Freedom by her side, and her other children and grandchildren scattered throughout Europe and even Canada. Quite a legacy for a little orphaned bear rescued from an ice floe. 

Agee, a very special bear, passes away

Agee - Photo from the Assiniboine Zoo.

Agee was a remarkable bear, part of a human family, a star in films and TV commercials. She passed away this week from the ravages of old age, at 30. She lived most of her life with people, but spent the past several years behind the scenes, without other bears and being pampered by keepers, in the Assiniboine Zoo in Winnipeg.

She was born January 3, 1995 in Kolmarden, Sweden, the 11th  and final cub born to Mirsha. She was raised by keepers, so from the beginning, she was used to humans. That may be why the zoo allowed her to be sold to Beyond Bears in British Columbia in Canada when she was four months old. 

Kolmarden Zoo stopped keeping polar bears about 20 years ago.

She lived with her trainer Mark Dumas and his human family for most of her life, until they were unable to care for her, when she was transferred in 2022 to Assiniboine Zoo, where she lived a quiet life away from the public eye. 

She first appeared in the 1996 movie "Alaska," in which she played a cub.  Agee would travel to movie sets in a 12-metre-long trailer and was provided with a pool to wade in on hot days.  Agee's film credits include Alaska (1996), The Journey Home (2014) and Operation Arctic (2014).  Agee was also the subject a 2017 episode of the documentary series  "Wild Animal in My Family," Season 2 episode 1. She was featured in episodes of the TV series  "Psych," and "Arctic Air." I also remember her appearing in a car commercial.

Just about everyone has seen the famous video of Agee swimming in a pool with her trainer Mark Dumas. 

Marissa, born in 1993, was full sister of Agee. Marissa moved to Fasano Italy and became mother of Giovanna of Munich, Noel of Copenhagen, Dea (now in Japan) and Grace of Fasano. 

Agee's niece Giovanna nursing Nela and Nobby.
Giovanna is also mother of Quintana.

Noel of Copenhagen, niece of Agee

Read on to find out who else is related to Agee.

In those earlier days, when Agee was born, zoos didn't seem to worry much about genetics or inbreeding, like they do today. Agee's mother Mirsha and her father Imarac were half sister and brother, sharing the same father, Olaf Wildfang, who was also the father of famous Churchill (father of Rostock's V cubs and also father of rescued circus bear Boris), Kara (mother of Boris), Lisa (mother of Lars, grandmother of Knut) and Norpol (father of Japan's Cookie). 

As far as half-siblings for Agee, in Kolmarden Zoo in Sweden, Agee and Marissa's father Imarac was also father of cubs with American born CW, who came from the Memphis Zoo. Their offspring were Nuuk-Nordman and Ilka of the Skandinavisk Dyrepark; Manasse of Finland, Yukime of Japan, all passed away. Agee's only surviving half-sibling, daughter of Imarac, is Baffin of Hamamatsu Japan, whose daughter is Momo.  

Huggies of Ouwehands spent almost two years in Kolmarden, where she gave birth to daughter Freedom, who was fathered by Agee's half brother Nuuk-Nordman. Freedom and Huggies returned to Ouwenhands in the Netherlands and Freedom became mother to Sprinter, twins Sesi and Siku (Taiko), twins Akiak and Sura, and twins Yuka and Yura, all but the last two fathered by Churchill's son Victor. 

Agee's half sister Ilka, now gone, was mother of Danish Siku, and twins Nuno and Nanu, all born in Skandinavisk Dyrepark in Denmark.

Agee's half brother Manasse moved to Finland and with Victor's daughter Venus fathered Ranzo and Sisu.

This is the statement from the zoo about Agee, and their fondness for this special bear.

We are saddened to share that our senior polar bear Agee passed away late last week.

Agee arrived in our care in 2022 as a geriatric bear in need of rescue. She lived a quiet, private life behind the scenes and has not been visible to Zoo guests, but immediately stole the hearts of her care team who have bonded deeply with her over their time together.

Since her arrival, the Zoo’s animal health team has been managing multiple age-related health conditions in Agee. These were primarily related to kidney failure, her dental health, and her mobility. Over the past month, Agee seemed to be doing quite well, and she had even gained weight. Last week she had a sudden onset, severe deterioration in her health. We believe she had a rapid, significant decline in her kidney function, potentially associated with an infection. Sadly, despite the medical intervention of our team, Agee passed away. Agee was 30 years old.

Further investigation into her sudden decline in health is ongoing and involves postmortem examinations of various tissues, screening for different types of infections, and evaluating organ functions at specialty veterinary pathology laboratories. These tests may provide further insight on Agee’s condition at the time of her passing.

Agee could be very set in her ways, our team was on Agee’s schedule and living in Agee’s world! She preferred a calm environment, familiar people, and she found comfort in predictable routines.

She loved to swim and spent much of her time cruising around in her personal pool. She would often take enrichment items and food to her bed (aka her nest) and could be spotted cuddling with her toys. Some of her favourite things included carboard boxes, rain barrels, and nesting materials like straw and hay.

Agee spent most of her life with private owners in British Columbia who were no longer able to care for her. Her short time here at Assiniboine Park Zoo was deeply meaningful to her caregivers. Please join us in offering our sincere condolences to those members of our team who loved Agee and cared for her every day.

Anori and Luka part ways

Luka and Anori in Wuppertal 

It has been a busy week for nine year old Luka. 

Tuesday was Luka's birthday at Zoo Wuppertal in Germany, where he has lived with Anori for seven years.

On Wednesday, he climbed into his transport box, which had been put into his area a couple of weeks ago so he could get used to it.

Welcome to Project Polar at YWP 

Today, Luka finds himself in Yorkshire Wildlife Park across the English Channel, able to see and sniff his new companions, 7 year old Nobby and 3 year old Wee Hamish, separated by some small space and some bars. 

After a few days, when he adjusts to his roomy and grassy new environment, Luka will be introduced to the other two male bears. Hamish is a new arrival too, just come from Highlands Wildlife Park in Scotland a month ago. Hamish and Nobby already seem to be fast friends.

The meadows at YWP may still smell faintly of Pixel and Nissan, two other male bears who recently left for France. Luka's father Victor lived at YWP for many years, before his recent death. 

 

Luka and Anori getting friendly 

Luka and Anori

Luka and Anori on the stairs steps in Wuppertal. 

Luka and his twin sister Lynn were born December 1, 2011 in Ouwehands Zoo in Rhenen in the Netherlands. Their parents were wildborn Huggies and Victor, son of Churchill and Vienna.

Luka in the water

Anori on the steps

Anori was born in Wuppertal very late in that same polar bear birthday season, on January 4, 2012. Her parents were Victor's sister Vilma, and Lars, father of the famous Knut.

Luka in the underwater viewing area at Wuppertal 

Anori in front, Luka in back, in the Mother Child area

When Anori and Luka were nearing the age of two, Anori's mother Vilma moved back to Rostock, where Lars then lived. Young Anori needed a playmate, so Luka came from Ouwehands. The two of them grew up together.

Anori and Luka in the main enclosure, heading toward the diving platform

Ready to dive

Luka in the Mother Child area 

So for the past seven years, Anori and Luka have been playing, splashing, running and swimming together 

Luka grabs the crazy egg

Anori and Luka in the mother child area 

Luka on the platform, and there is a viewing area behind him

Luka and Anori with their toys

The polar bear enclosure at Wuppertal was built about a century ago, and at the time it was very forward thinking. A hundred years ago, most zoos kept polar bears in cages. Wuppertal was one of the first to embrace the revolutionary idea of  Hagenbeck's habitats without bars, where the animals can move about freely and naturally. The stylized enclosure was built of slabs of silvery white granite, featuring a large pool, stairs and diving platform. 

Luka on the bottom step

Luka and Anori in the pool 

While Wuppertal's ancient enclosure cannot compare to the new state of the art facilities of some of the other zoos, I have rarely seen happier bears than at Wuppertal. Innovative toys and puzzles give them lots to do and think about, and the keepers are always looking for new ideas for activities and enrichment. 

Luka and Anori always had lots of different toys, and they get creative

About ten years ago a cozy mother child enclosure was built onto the back of the living quarters, a sheltered area of soft surfaces and a shallow pool area in front of the viewing window. Anori is the only cub to have been raised there. Anori and Luka would swim in the big pool area and then run through the building and out the back to sleep or play or have a snack in the little garden, then back and forth again. All day long. 

Luka with his ring

Of course Anori and Luka have had each other too, and they became compatible friends, very good at sharing.

Luka

It is customary for keepers to go along for the trip and stay until the bear has adjusted to new people and environment. 

Luka and Anori, follow the leader

Facebook photos today show that Luka has arrived at Yorkshire Wildlife Park and already explored one of the grassy areas on his own. 

Luka says goodbye to Wuppertal 

He will find a very different kind of home at YWP, with four large bear enclosures with natural ponds, rolling grassy meadows and stone shelters. It is all very spacious and natural. There are even ducks and other birds to chase.

Anori with her toys

And where is Anori going? I thought maybe Rotterdam, which has two large enclosures, one for Olinka and one for Wolodja. There is probably room for one more. Karlsruhe has had three bears before. Maybe she could go there? We will just have to wait and see. Her birthday is coming up in a month. Will she celebrate again in Wuppertal, or be in her new home by then?