In our younger days, my cousin and I would oft discuss what we wanted to be when we grew up. I recall her wanting to be a doctor; she never truly wavered in this (admittedly her charges are not the homo sapient kind), and has become one of the most respected vets in Goa. Veterinarians and ecologists get along like wildfire and, thusly, I cannot emphasise enough how happy (and proud) I am of this turn of events. On the other hand, I cannot emphasise enough, with equal unhappiness, how unfortunately challenging I find it to spell the word veterinarian. One of Dr. Loveleen Vaz’s responsibilities is to the Bondla Zoo and its denizens (let us take a moment here to appreciate what an odd word Zoo is; it stands for Zoological Park). Recently, I imposed on her good nature and spent 3 glorious days in the Zoo and adjoining Sanctuary.
Lady Doctor in her office © Nisha D’Souza
Keepers, in a manner of speaking, become staff members to the animals they handle. They must take care of the physical health and spirits of their charges, and as such strong bonds of understanding between handler and animal grow. Keepers, by very nature of their trade, are a special sort, distinguished by their passion, and a peculiar kind of resourcefulness difficult to define, except in terms of deeds. This is a particularly important trait because zoos are resource-heavy consumers, and zoos in India, by in large, do not receive adequate funding to meet needs. Nor is there sufficient technical expertise available to advise effective running of the zoo. One of the inevitable aspects associated with working with animals, is addressing their humans. In the case of zoos this can range from the Public to the State Governments, and is a far more challenging job then anyone can imagine.
I shall get back on track here to give you an account of how we travelled the 52 kms to and from Mapusa (North Goa) to Bondla (middle of nowhere). It involved a ride with the Zoos’ Vegetable provider (supplier of essential minerals, vitamins and roughage for the past 26 years), and Butcher (Savior of carnivores for the past 20 years), the official Zoo driver (who picked up several live chickens as a treat for the leopards, along the way; fowl company), local buses (rattlers of bones since the dawn of public transportation), a rickshaw ride (questionable drivers since the invention of three wheelers), and some bi-pedalism at unearthly hours of the morning.
As ‘Lady Doctor’ and I traipsed around the Zoo, the animals, with their distinctive personalities and odd quirks, responded endearingly to her voice (I say endearingly rather liberally here, more than one has been poked in the bottom by her; there was a definite air of apprehension). We spent a couple of hours at the leopard enclosure with Julie, a year old orphan cub rescued from a nearby sanctuary (had she been human she would have been diagnosed with ADD), and Jenny, a juvenile rescue leopard (with some weight issues). We kept Raju the Sloth Bear company; he sat proudly in his hibernation hole, we sat nearby watching him, and some wild Malabar Flying Squirrels watched us from the trees above (there was an universally accepted awkwardness in this arrangement). As the sun set and the creatures of darkness went about their business, we prowled around with no great stealth or grace to observe what the animal folk were up to. The Palm Civets were up and about, padding around their enclosure, occasionally stopping to nose each other affectionately. Rana, the Tiger was gently snoring, looking for all the world like Hobbes. The snakes were alertly following all sounds, heard and unheard by human ears. And, the ungulates were giant slumbering piles, an assortment of limbs poking out here and there.
The Palm Civet seemed to be partaking in some kind of blinking (or lack thereof) game. With whom, God only knows. © Nisha D’Souza
Jenny, the juvenile, rescued, orphan leopard is quite the heart breaker © Nisha D’Souza
Jenny, the juvenile, rescued, orphan leopard is quite the heart breaker © Nisha D’Souza
At a year old, Julie is an energy ball, rarely sitting still for even a minute. She has the most unique and expressive eyes of any animal I’ve met © Nisha D’Souza
Rana, the Royal Bengal Tiger, surveys his domain © Nisha D’Souza
Sandhya, the female tiger of the zoo, is a gentle soul © Nisha D’Souza
Raju the Sloth Bear built himself a hole © Nisha D’Souza
Four-horned antelope are expert leaf eaters (in whatever state the leaves might be) © Nisha D’Souza
A gorgeous Lady Amherst Pheasant © Nisha D’Souza
We got down to the serious business of investigating the killing of a juvenile sambar by a wild leopard, and the mysterious sudden death of a pea hen, pondering over the bizarre violent dislike for women harbored by a (now caged) lemur and considering his fate, and ensuring that Krishna the elephant received his medication. In addition to playing Sherlock, we indulged in some avifaunal stalking. Bondla, being in the Western Ghats (a recognized biodiversity hotspot), hosts an extraordinary bird life, and during our dawn treks we identified over 20 species, and saw several more (to our consternation most of them were bemusedly staring at us before we ever spotted them)!
As the last day drew to a close, it was more than a little difficult leaving Bondla behind (and not just because we had no idea how to get back). Despite its remoteness, this is one job that is in no danger of ever getting boring!
Examining the carcass of the juvenile Sambar that fell prey to a wild leopard © Nisha D’Souza
A Pompador Green Pigeon © Nisha D’Souza
A Paradise Fly-catcher © Nisha D’Souza
Chestnut headed bee eaters © Nisha D’Souza
Greater Racket-tailed Drongo © Nisha D’Souza
Never too late to read your article Nish… :) :) Very well written!!! Proud of y’all both *hugzz*
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Thanks Lari =D
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I just had to revisit this wonderful piece after the privilege of visiting Bondla and meeting Loveleen and all her adorable charges (possible exception being Psycho aka Krishna…we didn’t get enough time together with him! :)). The forests and creatures of Bondla are so very much more peaceful and joyful than the grey jungles of Delhi and their wild inhabitants…
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Think I’ve fallen in love…. with Julie!!! And love the wonderful work being done by the ‘social chameleons’ ; ) Loved reading the article, just makes me want to run away from this jungle of wild, crazy, inconsiderate (and I can go on and on) humans in Delhi.
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I agree, let’s do it =D
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A delight to read, Nisha! And the photos too are simply wonderful. Raju the Sloth Bear bears startling resemblance to a certain State Bank General Manager I knew (please don’t tell Raju, poor soul) :D
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Hahahaha! Poor chappy! Thanks Mani =)
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Loved your article…n the pictures are so fresh…great piece of work…
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Thanks Sachi! I haven’t seen you in yonks; how’ve you been?
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Nice to see some bonding going on with the cuzns. So proud of you guys. Lovely write up and fantastic remembrance. Wish I was there. Awaiting Kennys write up now. Great work keep it up Nish and Dr Luvs. 😘😘😘😘
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Thanks Peps! I’m thinking next stop might be Italy, to impose on the hospitality of my other cousin dearest =P
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Awwwwwwwwwwwwwww :)
Thanks Nish….. for the wonderful gift you gave me with this article! Very well written, and I love my glorious lot at Bondla. I had intented to do a similar blog or write biographies for my “fellas” who can’t speak, but do have feelings (Sandhya,the tigress, literally complained and groaned to my sister), but unfortunately, I am bound with no internet facilities. That’s the price one has to pay living in the jungle :(
But Nish, keep up the good work!!! Thanks again Cuz :*
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Yay, you finally got interwebs! Miss ya.
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i loved it nish …staying with you both at the jungle really changed my views of animals :) though at night i got bit scared as my sis the vet says “Krishna the elephant plods here and there in search of food ” lovely pics and i know how much patience one needs to click the animals at their best .
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Hahaha thanks Mels, I’m glad you enjoyed the trip (somewhat); I was afraid you might disown us!
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Absolutely enjoyed your pictures n article on our lady doc in her domain!! Shane n I just love yr superb clicks!!
Both you cousins..rock!!
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Thanks Shalinee =D We should do a combined fun run and bird watching trip in the Sanctuary next year!
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Envy Luv’s workplace and the furry friends that keep her company. Superbly written Nish, I can tell you enjoyed every bit of your trip there.
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So much envy buddy!
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Oh wow! What a great piece of writing and such super pictures! So exciting (and now proud) to be related to this amazing “Lady Doctor” :) Also, what a looker that Julie is!!
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Thanks =)
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All kudos to Loveleen! Awesome pics of the habitat Nisha!
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Thanks =)
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Jenny and Julie are so awesome. They look magnificent.. Truly beautiful. Nicely written as well.
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Thanks =)
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Lovely article – Nish and great photographs. Only you two could make the transition from the Goa dance floor to the forest and enjoy both to the hilt!
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Some might say we’re social chameleons =D
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Great work keep it up
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Thanks =)
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Awesome article n pics Nisha!! Proud of both of u and what you do.
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Thanks muchly Nichola!
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Very well written! And the pictures are amazing.
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Thanks =)
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Absolutely loved reading about my sister! :P
Very well written and as usual the photos are awesome! :)
Waiting for your next piece!!!
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Heads up, next one might be on you =P I’ll see you soon!
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