TV star's baby handed to gorillas

BBC NEWS: ^ | 2003/11/10 | Unsigned

[aculeus]

Television presenter Donna Air and her zoo-owner boyfriend Damian Aspinall intend to place their daughter in the care of a gorilla.

The couple plan to put Freya, who was born in September, in the gorilla enclosure at Howletts Zoo near Canterbury, Kent.

They will then let her be carried off by the female of the group.

Neither parent has any qualms about letting their daughter be taken off despite five keepers being killed by animals at Howletts and its sister park, Port Lympne, since 1980.

Mr Aspinall told the Evening Standard: "It is a ritual. I'll probably give her to the dominant female who will take her off and introduce her to the others."

The multi-millionaire said his two other daughters, Clary, 11, and Tansy, 14, had also been introduced to the gorillas at the zoo in the same way.

Both he and Miss Air approve of the plan and do not believe their daughter will be in any danger.

He said: "Why would I not trust them? I know them, I grew up with them. They are my friends."

Mr Aspinall took over running Howletts when his father, who encouraged close contact between animals and their keepers, died.

Since 1980 three keepers have been killed by tigers and two crushed to death by elephants at the two zoos.

But gorillas are known for their gentle treatment of babies and children.

Miss Air and Mr Aspinall have been together for more than two years and recently made a documentary together about releasing gorillas into the wild in Africa.

[Spruce]

Stupid hippies.

[Petronski]

For your pingage.

[Zeroisanumber]

Holy crap. I hope the UK version of the child protective services puts a stop to this idiocy.

[bonfire]

too many drugs. brain dead.

[Dog]

Lock these two up......and never allow them to breed again.

[facedown]

Reminds me of that dope with the bears.

[WinOne4TheGipper]

Hollywood Leftist Ping!!!
If you wish to be added to or removed from this list, please FReepmail me.

[Ramius]

It is too bad for that kid, but at least there is a very low probability that any of their offspring will survive infancy. Look at it as chlorine for the gene pool.

[calljack]

Zipperheaded wackjobs.

[germanicus]

He said: "Why would I not trust them? I know them, I grew up with them. They are my friends."

Isn't that what Roy said about his tigers?

[zlala]

Are they any relation to that guy (and his female friend) who died in Alaska...because he "knew" the grizzly bears he had studied for years? Poor baby and the older sibblings were just plain lucky.

[Holly_P]

My question is,how do they get the baby back if momma gorilla takes a liking to her?

[Batrachian]

Well, if it's good enough for Tarzan, then it's good enough for Freya. Cripes, you know these people are mentally unwell just by the name of their child. Poor thing. But then children have been paying the price for their parent's stupidity since time immemorial.

[smith288]

[hellinahandcart]

"It is a ritual."

So is baptism, but I guess that isn't SPECIAL enough for eccentric millionaires...

[nuffsenuff]

Unbelievable.

Part of me can't help thinking that the kids would be better off being raised by those gorillas than by those morons who gave birth to them.

[At _War_With_Liberals]

Whackos like this do what they do to make themselves feel good in some twisted way. Or worse, they are doing it for the benefit of the gorillas, not the baby. There is no way a gorilla mother is preferrasble to the human mother for any given period of time.

Sounds like a PR stunt for the company.

[stylin19a]

Are these people related to the guy who said bears aren't dangereous...who died from bear attacks ?