Latest news with #Afia
Daily Mail
24-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Gorillas in Our Midst by Alan Toyne: So cute! Until a baby gorilla becomes a toddler, that is….
GORILLAS IN OUR MIDST by Alan Toyne (Summersdale £10.99, 336pp) Gorilla babies are cuter than human babies, if Alan Toyne is to be believed. 'She affects a smile,' he coos of Afia, whom he must hand-rear when her mother can't cope. We hear about the little gorilla's 'rubbery flared nostrils, smooth ridges of dark skin across her muzzle, long eyelashes and crazy wispy eyebrows'. You feel Alan would not be above opening his wallet and flashing a photo like a proud dad. 'I was unprepared for the instinctive eruption of parental affection Afia awoke in me.' Alan was a zookeeper in Bristol, working long days and nights with total dedication. 'I lost track of what day it was and dreamt about gorillas each night.' Looking after Afia, he has to wear a string vest – so the gorilla can cling on as if to its mother's fur. The baby needs bottle-feeding every two hours and, as primates require around-the-clock social interaction, Afia comes home and sleeps in Alan's bed. It's charming and comical at first, taking a gorilla in and out of the car seat, swaddled in nappies, the whole teething ring and teddy bear routine. But gorillas are not sweet for long. Within a few months, 'ludicrously strong', they'll have you in a headlock. At first, Alan's daughter laughs: 'That's insane. You're sat with a gorilla on the sofa.' Soon enough, the gorilla is screaming with rage, a 'shrieking mass of muscle', jealously chasing the petrified daughter away, perceiving her as a threat. Afia, and another requiring adoption called Hasani, get to be frighteningly boisterous, chewing the furniture and ripping out the wi-fi router. They slap Alan's head and bite his arms, which become a mass of bruises. As wrestling is part of the teaching programme, Alan is open to attack – but 'without thick gorilla skin and fur to soften the play bites, they bloody hurt'. What I wouldn't fancy is the way gorillas pee and poo indiscriminately, on the string vests and into Alan's pockets, 'all over me keys'. It's the same for his colleagues. Once, going to the lavatory in the middle of the night, a fellow keeper found a baby gorilla grabbing hold of an intimate part when it 'swung me old fella about'. I doubt that has happened to many people. Another thing that made me laugh is that you can remedy shock caused by loud noises in young gorillas by sitting them in front of the TV when Richard Osman is on. They adore him, perhaps sensing an affinity. Re-introducing the baby gorillas to the rest of the group is a dangerous process. Despite preparing females for surrogacy duties – by using soft toys saturated with the babies' smell – rejection is still a possibility. The little gorillas may be crushed and killed, 'torn quite literally limb from limb, right in front of us'. As Alan admits, 'working in zoos carries the risk of death'. He writes of a dominant breeding male gorilla weighing 31 stone: 'If they get hold of you, you're not coming out in one piece.' If a gorilla decides to throw a punch, 'my head would come off'. The keepers stay their own side of the barriers, never going within arm's reach – and the reach of a gorilla's arm is long. If an anaesthetised, fully grown gorilla is taken from the compound for medical treatment, Alan is armed with a rifle in the event it suddenly wakes up. The risk assessment forms fill page after page. What Alan calls 'primate social politics' are not dissimilar to our own. This book describes in detail the way gorillas jockey for position, continually switching alliances. There's much punching and biting, the males 'big and bulky' with a 'puffed up stance', baring yellow fangs, snarling and swiping rivals with their huge hands. All these characters, with names such as Sal, Moki, Kera, Komi, Kala and Ayana, were, I'm afraid, as confusing to me as the identities of the Russian gentry in Tolstoy. Yet Alan knows each and every one at a glance, noticing nuances of facial expression and body language. When the gorillas ingest medication, it is concealed in peanut butter and honey, 'universally adored by primates'. We hear about gorilla blood transfusions, vaccinations and CT scans, which are performed the same as in the world of 'weird, hairless bipedal apes' – Alan's phrase for humans. The average gorilla meal consists of eight cucumbers, 30 tomatoes, 12 yellow peppers, a few kilos of carrots, parsnips and courgettes, lots of lettuce and a coconut, which their jaws crack with ease. The theme of wee and poo continues. Gorillas fling it about if distressed – and they often appear nervous and wary, emitting 'high-pitched fear screams'. There are 'dried trails of diarrhoea down the glass windows' and a zookeeper's shift concerns much sweeping up and mucking out. The stench from the collected gunk 'stays with you for the rest of the day'. Not that this worries Alan in the slightest. As much as he tries to keep professionally distant, reminding himself that a gorilla baby is not 'a miniature hairy version of one of us', he nevertheless confesses to becoming 'emotionally infatuated'. Seeing the gorillas interacting fills him with 'crazy heights of emotion'. Of course, it is cheering to know the keepers adore their work – there's a lot of blubbing in the staffroom following the death of one of their animals. But, in the end, Gorillas In Our Midst made me very uneasy. The concrete pens, steel nesting sites, padlocks, cages, locks, gates, a 'giant steel frame portcullis' and the sliding mesh doors opened and closed by hydraulics – a zoo is a maximum-security prison. Alan says it is all in aid of conservation as 'there ain't no wild left for half the species we got here' owing to carbon emissions, pollution, snares, poaching and the bushmeat trade. Well, that's just another good reason to loathe humankind, which destroys all it encounters. And if zoos move animals around 'to maintain a level of genetic diversity within the captive population', who wants to be kept in captivity? I'm sure on the whole gorillas would prefer to find themselves in West African rainforests. Schools like mine in South Wales went on trips to Bristol Zoo, which opened in 1836. It's shocking looking back at the tiny cages. I remember, too, Animal Magic on the telly with Johnny Morris. He dressed in a cap and polished boots (zookeepers resembled bus conductors in those days), impersonated the animals and gave them jovial words to say – an anthropomorphism that's no longer in fashion, and rightly so. The show was filmed in Bristol with 440 episodes between 1962 and 1983. I was not sorry, in the final chapter of this book, when Bristol Zoo closes and half the keepers are made redundant. Where Alan goes and what he does today is not divulged. The animals are apparently moved to an area outside the city with more space. But it's still not right, is it?
BBC News
20-04-2025
- General
- BBC News
Bristol Zoo: Raising baby gorillas at home an 'amazing experience'
A zookeeper has described what it felt like to hand-rear two baby gorillas who were rejected by their mothers. Alan Toyne, who spent 14 years working at Bristol Zoo, raised two infant gorillas - including one in his own home. He has now published a memoir, Gorillas in Our Midst, about the "amazing" experience. "[They're] just very hairy versions" of human children," Mr Toyne told BBC Radio Bristol. Starting out as a volunteer keeper, Mr Toyne eventually became the leader of the team looking after mammals at the the zoo, caring for "everything from a naked mole rat" to the western lowland gorillas. While most of his work revolved around the Clifton site where Bristol Zoo was based, he found himself faced with bringing up a baby gorilla at his home after four-week old Alfia was rejected by her mother Kera following a difficult birth."Hand-rearing is quite a rare thing to do," he said. "It means that the zoo keeper has to feed that animal milk until it is capable of eating solid food and feeding itself." But what does hand-rearing a gorilla really look like in practice? "Afia had to come home with me in a car seat, I parked outside the house luckily [and] took her in," Mr Toyne explained. "She was pretty tiny but they grow and get pretty mobile quite quickly," he added. Eventually, he added: "She was running around the house, yanking the wi-fi router out of the wall, jumping off tables."We taught them to walk, to play and to feed - and spent a long time wearing a string vest which kind of replicates the fur of the animals - so they cling onto you wherever you go." As "incredibly intelligent animals" with "really complex" social hierarchies, it was important that Mr Toyne and his family recreated a similar environment to the one Afia and Hasani - another gorilla who was also later hand-reared by the zookeeper - would live in once they returned to the zoo. "We used to eat all at the same time because it's quite important for them to eat at the same time as the other gorillas," he said. "We'd sit around the table having our tea and she'd be eating veg, lettuce and cucumber. I say eating, she would be chucking a load of it on the floor." Both Afia and Hasani grew strong enough to return to their own species and live at the zoo with surrogate mothers. Bristol Zoo Project, which has reopened on a new site on the northern outskirts of the city, has come under recent scrutiny for keeping some of its animals - including gorillas - on the closed Clifton site while construction is under way on their new enclosures. Trespassing incidents have been reported at the former zoo site, which Mr Toyne said could have an impact on the gorillas."You've got Jock, the silverback, whose job it is to protect his family group, he's really elderly now. The stress that puts on him, with people crashing around in the middle of the night, is awful," he said. Director of conservation and science at Bristol Zoological Society, Brian Zimmerman, has previously said the incidents were being taken "extremely seriously", adding the "care and welfare" of animals was "top priority". Zookeepers also took part in a Facebook livestream where they explained that they still work at the Clifton site to provide the same level of support and care to the animals."The animal's requirements haven't changed. They still eat the same food, they still need the same enrichment and the same training," they said.
The Guardian
09-04-2025
- General
- The Guardian
A moment that changed me: I brought a baby gorilla home – and learned so much about being a parent
It was 2016, and I'd been a zookeeper for seven years. I lived with my partner and two stepchildren in a Victorian terrace house in Bristol. We'd met when her kids were four and eight, so I had not experienced the early baby stages, the sleepless nights, nappies and bottle-feeding. But that was about to change. On 15 March, I parked my car outside the house as usual, but rather than bowling inside to shower and eat, I unclipped the car seat and carried a baby gorilla into the lounge. Afia had been born by emergency C-section at Bristol zoo after her mum, Kera, developed pre-eclampsia. I first took her home when she was four weeks old. On the couch, she nestled in the crook of my arm and clutched my thumb with a delicate fist of wrinkled grey fingers. The trust in her dark eyes snapped awake an instinctive devotion in me – the foundation of the bond that grew between us. I worked with a family group of seven western lowland gorillas at the zoo. Classified as critically endangered, they are at imminent risk of extinction in the wild. The captive population is managed collectively across Europe by a specialist team: zoos don't own the species they keep, or sell them, but rather they maintain the genetic diversity within the population by moving animals from one collection to another. I followed industry-wide husbandry guidelines, but what we were doing with Afia had never been tried in the UK before. As a gorilla keeper, I was now part of the team that would hand-rear her. Hand-rearing is a rare part of zoo keeping and the goal is always to reunite the baby with its own kind as quickly as possible. As gorillas rely on their mother's milk for three years, the aim with Afia was to try to get her back with her mother or, failing that, train one of the adult females to become her surrogate mum. Afia would need to be acting like a normal gorilla infant by the time we introduced her into the troop; if we could achieve this within a year, she wouldn't remember travelling in the car each night or sleeping in a bed with a duvet. Baby gorillas develop more quickly than humans, so my parenting ride lasted just seven months. I wore a string vest, to replicate a gorilla's fur, as the first thing Afia needed to learn was to hang on to me wherever I went. She slept on my chest at night, clung to me in fear at unexpected noises, and I helped with her first stiff-legged steps. By day, we spent time with the adult gorillas, particularly with Kera, Afia's mum. Adult gorillas are dangerous animals, which meant we would never go into the enclosure with them. Kera remained separated from the rest of the group and struggled to recover from the C-section. Our interactions were through grilled windows and doors in the gorilla house, but Kera was so sick and unresponsive that no maternal bond with Afia could be formed. Soon, Afia began to ride on my back, furry arms clamped around my neck. She could climb and was trying to master swinging from one rope to another. I recognised her facial expressions – sleepy, solemn, inquisitive – and she had full trust in me, knowing that I would keep her safe. At six months, she was running around the lounge and throwing her toys about. My favourite expression was her play face, a grin that we both knew meant diving off the sofa and wrestling. I would take up my regular spot on the floor and wait for Afia to push the coffee table up against the couch so she could climb on to it more easily. She would spend the next hour leaping on to me or the cushions she'd chucked nearby. My own family group had to be hands off, as part of the hand-rearing protocol. The kids mentioned later they felt waves of irrational jealousy. When I was rolling around on the floor, Afia chuckling with gorilla laughter, my partner said: 'I can see now what sort of parent you'd have been for the kids at that age.' We ate dinner together as a family, Afia on my lap, enthusiastically drumming her hands on the kitchen table and making grabs for the cutlery. The gorilla troop eats together at the same time, so sharing meals needed to be the norm for Afia, and she would look around the table at us all, squishing fistfuls of steamed sweet potato through her fingers. After dinner, she'd slump across me on the couch, asleep, briefly waking up for a bottle-feed before bed, where she would snuffle and belch cheesy milk breath over me. In bed, Afia had started off sleeping on my chest, but now she was older, she would slide off to snuggle next to me, or roll over and throw a hairy arm over my partner instead. That's how the routine went, until we arrived at our final night together. Afia sensed my sadness and slept with her head wedged under my chin. For the first time, I felt as if I'd lied to her. Kera had recovered, but as she continued to show no maternal instinct towards Afia, we were about to begin introducting her to a surrogate mum, an older female with plenty of experience. My sped-up baby and toddler experience had fast-tracked me to a point that I'd yet to go through with the human kids: a taste of how it will feel when they, too, leave home. It changed the way I thought of my own family, with a realisation that the troop as we know it will disperse, our roles as parents steadily replaced by a desperate and fragile hope: that you've done all you could, and that life will be kind to them. Gorillas in Our Midst by Alan Toyne is published on 10 April (Summersdale Publishers, £10.99). To support the Guardian and the Observer, order your copy at Delivery charges may apply. 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Tourism Breaking News
01-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Tourism Breaking News
TUMBI Hotels unveils first UAE property with AED 375 Million investment under Hilton's Tapestry Collection
Post Views: 98 TUMBI Hotels has partnered with the Tapestry Collection by Hilton brand for the opening of its flagship property in Dubai, TUMBI West Palm Beach Hotel. With an investment of more than AED375 million, the hotel redefines hospitality by blending wellness, sustainability, and sophistication in a breath-taking waterfront setting. Nestled on Palm West Beach, the hotel offers 171 elegantly designed rooms and suites with panoramic views of Ain Dubai, the Dubai Marina skyline, and the Arabian Gulf. The property embodies Ali Tumbi's philosophy to 'Live Life Well,' focusing on nurturing the mind, body, and soul. The hotel caters to a diverse range of guests, from travellers seeking premium experiences to health-conscious visitors prioritizing wellness and families looking for a serene retreat. With its prime location, the hotel is uniquely positioned to offer guests authentic experiences, providing access to top attractions such as Nakheel Mall, West Beach Boardwalk, and the thrilling Aquaventure Waterpark. Guests can also easily explore the iconic Dubai Marina and Bluewaters Island. The 1.6 km beachfront promenade is a hub of entertainment, relaxation, and pet-friendly spaces, offering something for visitors of all ages. Whether lounging by the seaside, indulging in all-day entertainment, or exploring Dubai's top destinations, TUMBI Hotels ensures a memorable stay for everyone. TUMBI West Palm Beach Hotel Dubai joins Tapestry Collection by Hilton, a gathering of independent hotels, each with an original, vibrant personality in destinations worth exploring. The partnership with Hilton underscores TUMBI Hotels' ambition to set new benchmarks in hospitality, combining bold, stylish hotels with global expertise. 'TUMBI Hotels are not just a place to stay—they are a sanctuary for rejuvenation and self-discovery,' says Ali Tumbi. 'At our latest hotel, we are redefining the guest experience through a harmonious blend of culinary experiences, wellness and sustainability.' The hotel's unique story comes to life through elevated design and food & beverage inspired by the locale. Onsite restaurants include – Afia: Inspired by the Arabic word for 'good health,' Afia is a culinary haven that offers a fusion of global and local flavours through its vibrant buffet and à la carte menu, crafted to cater to diverse dietary preferences. Perched on the rooftop, Afia provides breathtaking views of Ain Dubai, making every meal a feast for the senses. Deatox: Deatox is a unique dining concept derived from 'detox' that embraces mindful eating and nourishment. The menu features multi-cuisine à la carte options, nutrient-rich, calorie-counted dishes thoughtfully prepared to align with a healthy lifestyle and complemented by fresh juices and detox mocktails designed to refresh and rejuvenate. A Wellness-Driven Philosophy TUMBI West Palm Beach Hotel places wellness at the heart of its guest experience with offerings curated to revitalize mind, body and soul. The hotel offers world-class amenities designed to cater to every guest's needs, including a stunning rooftop infinity pool with breathtaking views of the Dubai skyline, versatile meeting spaces tailored for business travellers, a serene lobby enhanced with aromatherapy and soft lighting to create a calming ambiance, and dedicated family-friendly facilities. TUMBI Hotels is deeply committed to environmental responsibility, integrating sustainability into every aspect of its operations. In addition, TUMBI West Palm Beach Hotel, Tapestry Collection by Hilton aligns with Hilton's 'Travel with Purpose' ESG strategy to drive responsible travel and tourism globally. The property features energy-saving fixtures, eco-conscious packaging, and sustainable dining practices at its signature restaurants, Afia and Deatox.
Khaleej Times
24-03-2025
- Business
- Khaleej Times
TUMBI Hotels unveils first UAE property with Hilton tie-up
TUMBI Hotels, founded by entrepreneur Ali Tumbi, has partnered with the Tapestry Collection by Hilton brand for the opening of its flagship property in Dubai, TUMBI West Palm Beach Hotel. With an investment of more than Dh375 million, the hotel seeks to blend wellness, sustainability, and sophistication in a breath-taking waterfront setting. Nestled on Palm West Beach, the hotel offers 171 elegantly designed rooms and suites with panoramic views of Ain Dubai, the Dubai Marina skyline, and the Arabian Gulf. The property embodies Ali Tumbi's philosophy to 'Live Life Well,' focusing on nurturing the mind, body, and soul. The hotel caters to a diverse range of guests, from travellers seeking premium experiences to health-conscious visitors prioritizing wellness and families looking for a serene retreat. With its prime location, the hotel is uniquely positioned to offer guests authentic experiences, providing access to top attractions such as Nakheel Mall, West Beach Boardwalk, and the thrilling Aquaventure Waterpark. Guests can also easily explore the iconic Dubai Marina and Bluewaters Island. The 1.6 km beachfront promenade is a hub of entertainment, relaxation, and pet-friendly spaces, offering something for visitors of all ages. TUMBI West Palm Beach Hotel Dubai joins Tapestry Collection by Hilton, a gathering of independent hotels, each with an original, vibrant personality in destinations worth exploring. The partnership with Hilton underscores TUMBI Hotels' ambition to set new benchmarks in hospitality, combining bold, stylish hotels with global expertise. 'TUMBI Hotels are not just a place to stay—they are a sanctuary for rejuvenation and self-discovery,' says Ali Tumbi. 'At our latest hotel, we are redefining the guest experience through a harmonious blend of culinary experiences, wellness and sustainability.' The hotel's unique story comes to life through elevated design and food & beverage inspired by the locale. Onsite restaurants include - Afia: Inspired by the Arabic word for 'good health,' Afia is a culinary haven that offers a fusion of global and local flavours through its vibrant buffet and à la carte menu, crafted to cater to diverse dietary preferences. Perched on the rooftop, Afia provides breathtaking views of Ain Dubai, making every meal a feast for the senses. Deatox: Deatox is a unique dining concept derived from 'detox' that embraces mindful eating and nourishment. The menu features multi-cuisine à la carte options, nutrient-rich, calorie-counted dishes thoughtfully prepared to align with a healthy lifestyle and complemented by fresh juices and detox mocktails designed to refresh and rejuvenate. TUMBI West Palm Beach Hotel places wellness at the heart of its guest experience with offerings curated to revitalize mind, body and soul. Elevated Facilities The hotel offers world-class amenities designed to cater to every guest's needs, including a stunning rooftop infinity pool with breathtaking views of the Dubai skyline, versatile meeting spaces tailored for business travellers, a serene lobby enhanced with aromatherapy and soft lighting to create a calming ambiance, and dedicated family-friendly facilities. TUMBI Hotels remains committed to environmental responsibility, integrating sustainability into every aspect of its operations. The property features energy-saving fixtures, eco-conscious packaging, and sustainable dining practices at its signature restaurants, Afia and Deatox.
