Psychotic bear
Remember Knut, that adorable little polar bear cub that captured the world's attention last year when it was abandoned by its mother and raised by humans at a German zoo?
Little Knute ain't so cute no more. In fact, he's turned into something of a monster.
Being raised by humans has turned the adorable cub into what one person calls a "suffering psychopath."
As Knut grew larger, he grew considerably less cute and more unpredictable. The harmful effects of so much human contact began to surface and Doerflein was removed as sole keeper. The daily shows ended.
By this spring, at 15 months, Knut was a psychological mess, so addicted to human attention and adulation that he whimpered or howled in anger when no one was nearby. Whenever he picked up Doeflein's scent, he cried plaintively.
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About the Bloggers
Daily Breeze reporter Donna Littlejohn has shared her homes with a succession of wonderful, funny, and occasionally difficult canines -- Muffin, Fritz, Ellie, Mercy, Pilgrim and now Cowboy, an Australian shepherd-border collie, and Tess, a border collie. From strong-willed terriers to weirdly obsessed Australian shepherds, they've invaded her world with boundless energy, wet noses, muddy paws and soggy tennis balls. But they've really brought so much more than that -- like laughter and joy, some unexpected life lessons, and more than a few tears along the way.
E-mail Donna at donna.littlejohn@dailybreeze.com.
Josh Grossberg grew up with the usual array of animals: goldfish, dogs, hamsters, parakeets and turtles. He now owns the loudest dog in the South Bay(Video: Rocket the Dog) and is the least popular person on his block. He spends his free time in dog parks, pet shops and always has an extra plastic bag in his pocket just in case. He also has a cat.
E-mail Josh at josh.grossberg@dailybreeze.com.
That's a really sad, but interesting, story you linked to. Poor Knut.