The Zoo Keeper

  •  All of you must have seen the movie "Life of Pi"
  • Much before the movie came to be made, I had laid my hands on the book
  • Meenal was in Pune pursuing her PhD and I had purchased the book on one of my trips to Pune
  • The book is a good read with one whole chapter describing the zoo that Pi's father owned
  • That chapter justifies the need of a zoo and I was posted in charge of Bondla zoo at the time and I fully agreed with the writer
  • Zoos are fascinating places
  • I lived in Bondla in one of the staff quarters at the time which was close to the zoo
  • The best time of the day was after closing time and the staff would wrap up the day's work with a report on the health of each animal
  • I would then sit and watch the animals after the staff left and the night watchmen would report for duty
  • My day would also start early morning with a round of each enclosure checking up on the things that need to be done and I would have my list ready before the staff reported for work
  • The animals fascinated me and I could actually identify each animal according to their behavior which was so much similar to human behavior
  • So there was a short tempered Sambar and a very mischievous jackal
  • The mother lioness was very docile but the two big cubs were very naughty while the lion was plain lazy
  • The blind leopard was very patient and the male elephant very impatient
  • The female elephant was very mother like and would sometimes come near my quarters at night (we used to leave the elephants unchained in the night)
  • We had a very disciplined feeding schedule that was always maintained punctually so much so that you could set your watch
  • Early morning was cleaning time before the zoo opened and the attendants would be up and cleaning by 7.30 am every day
  • They would release the animals from the night enclosure and finish by 8.30 am
  • The attendants would then go for breakfast to their quarters when the zoo opened and return around 10 am to start cooking the meals for the animals
  • The day for the mahouts began at 6 am when they would round up the elephants from the forest and then begin the cleaning
  • The elephants got their long drawn bath at 8 am which would often take 2 hours - they loved the scrubbing
  • The feeding time for the deers and other herbivores would begin by 10 am while the food for the bears and elephants was being cooked
  • Fresh meat for the carnivores was delivered at 2 pm every day while the fresh vegetables came around the same time
  • Feeding time was after 3.30 pm during which time the animals would return to their feeding chambers
  • We had a forester checking up the quantity and quality of food every day at 2 pm and we were very strict about this routine
  • If the meat was ice cold, it meant it was not fresh and was returned back with deduction in the bill, so the supplier was very wary of the same and never cheated
  • I very often fondly remember my days in Bondla and I thought of it now for a very different reason
  • I am now sitting in my enclosure at panaji head office
  • The cleaning staff arrive and complete their mopping of my enclosure by 9.30 am every day
  • My first cup of tea is delivered between 10 and 10.30  in the morning
  • I open my tiffin and eat my lunch at 1.30 pm and my cup of afternoon coffee is delivered at 3.30 pm
  • In between i get to go out in the verandah and visit other enclosures if I feel like it
  • Only difference between then and now is that I am now on the other side of the enclosure!

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