SINGAPORE: A five-day celebration kicked off on Thursday (Dec 22) at the Singapore Zoo for locally born polar bear Inuka, which turns 26 this year.
To mark his turning of age, the polar bear chowed down on a birthday cake made of ice with salmon and minced beef, and topped with a small helping of peanut butter. As a treat, his climate controlled den will be filled with more than two tonnes of crushed ice and enrichment toys to keep him mentally and physically occupied.
(Photo: Wildlife Reserves Singapore)
Born Dec 26, 1990, Inuka is into his senior years and his human equivalent would be in his seventies.
In a press release, Wildlife Reserves Singapore said said health checks over the last three years showed age-related conditions like arthritis and dental issues, which the veterinary team is “closely monitoring”. He also has dry eyes and an ear infection from time to time, said WRS. Inuka is also on long-term glucosamine and anti-inflammatory treatment for his arthritis.
According to Dr Cheng Wen-Haur, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Wildlife Reserves Singapore, their main goal at the zoo is to ensure Inuka can have a “very good quality of life”.
The point is not to prolong his life,” said Dr Cheng. “So as long as we can make him enjoy his life, he’s eating well, he’s moving quite comfortably, then we will continue looking after him. Overall we’ve assessed that we still have a very happy bear that enjoys life.
“However if it comes to a point that we don’t think we can manage his pain then we’ll probably have to consider the humane thing to do.”
He added that the keepers are observing him every day, and on a weekly basis a vet will come and check on him.
“If it comes to the point that, for example, he’s losing his appetite, he continues to lose weight, and despite pain killers, we cannot control the pain – so in combination – then we will have to make the decision. But for now we’re just observing him very carefully,” said Dr Cheng.
“It could be months, perhaps extend to the end of next year – we still don’t know. We really just have to observe him, how he responds to our care.”
Dr Cheng also shared that the zoo would not be looking at acquiring more polar bears in the foreseeable future, and will be focusing more on animals from the tropics or sub-tropics, as it would be easier to replicate a good quality of life for them.
“One of the key reasons to have a polar bear is to communicate (the message of) climate change. But to maintain them in the tropics, we’ll be generating so much greenhouse gases which goes against the message,” he said.
Guests at the Singapore Zoo can catch Inuka enjoying his “birthday enrichment session” at 10.25am from Dec 22 to Dec 26.
