Week 319 ( 2nd - 8th October 2009 )
Madonna joins the cubs and Hulooo acts Cuckoo
The meat that I had bribed the cubs with was sufficient to last them two days and in that time obviously they weren’t concerned with finding food ….. only company.
King Henry was lying at the fence staring forlornly into the Ravine Camp where Hulooo was walking around aimlessly, hoping against hope that somebody other than his sister would talk to him. Princess was crouching in the bushes. King Henry walked up to the main gate and discovered Coco pacing on the other side of the river and plonked his butt down to chat. Princess just exchanged one bush for another, closer to where her brother and Coco were sitting.
Even human company is better than no company and during the observations King Henry padded over to the main gate and sat himself down with a chuff and lay down with a great big yawn. Princess crept closer and they exchanged a chuff and a head rub before she too lay down. By now two days have passed since they consumed their bribe and the number of blesbuck in the camp remains at 25 and company isn’t the only item on their wish list. It is time we send Mum in to continue the hunting lessons.
The next morning I opened the gate for Madonna and she whipped through the gate into the annex, from there she crossed over to the gate to the camp and waited for me to open it. Having made it into Catkins Camp she headed off into the distance and joined me down at the Ravine Camp’s gate and then dutifully crossed all the gates between to join the cubs. As she approached the cubs she chuffed happily at them and they joyfully returned her chuffs. Once she was in the hunting they tried to prove how happy they were to see her by rubbing themselves against her, she wasn’t having anything of that and snapped and snarled at them. Madonna then set out to investigate and the cubs tagged along.
The same night Madonna and the cubs hunted a young female blesbuck and had absolutely no desire to come out and say hi (satisfaction at last).
Hulooo came up to the gate at my arrival and chuffed at me through the mesh. He suddenly got all excited about a meatless blesbuck leg which he carried with all haste into the back portion of the camp and after scuttling around with it dangling from his mouth he suddenly dropped it and walked off.
Hulooo stalked me from the embankment down at the river as I approached and JenB tried to sleep. Hulooo pounced out at me and then sprinted over to JenB and smacked him on the head. JenB lost his rag and whacked Hulooo back. Hulooo became aggressive and bit his brother really hard, in retaliation JenB dug his claws into Hulooo’s neck and Hulooo left him in peace to charge back at me. JenB took this opportunity to disappear into the reeds – thinking that they would protect them…..not so! Hulooo carefully stalked him to within a foot and then gave a tiny pounce to land just in front of his brother. Some more claw-waving by JenB and Hulooo backed off. The next half hour he spent dashing from me to JenB and back again….I think he needs his head read.