Calling all Elephant House Visitors - London Zoo!

In the 1950's I remember they only had Asians.

 

In the early 60s there was at least 1 African elephant among the others.

 

I worked for about a week with the elephants at Whipsnade, I think 1967 I was only 17. In those days they tried most keepers if they showed an interest in elephants to give them a go. The reason was to see if the elephants liked you. There was one called Perry, she was a very disturbed elephant she had attacked a number of keepers so she picked her keeper.

The point of post, the house I thought was quite good, but now knowing what we know now they were terible , the the public could feed them so they ended up getting a constant supply of peanuts,

Most of the time they were chained up in these circular individual parts of the building. There was a sort of dry ditch that they could reach across to reach the public for there peanuts.

As I remember there was an outside area but because of weather, at that time England had a bad outbreak of foot and mouth, the zoo was closed down for about 6 months.

Unfortunately I did not connect with the elephants so carried on looking after the Indian rhinos which were like big puppy dogs. They were great to look after. I was at Whipsnde from 1966 through to 1969 from there I went to West Australia to work at south Perth Zoo.

Now I have a 90 ha bush property in the south of Western Australia that helps Malleefowl breed in the wild.

Malleefowl Conservation Farm

 

I think if my memory serves me the did have a very young African, I remember going in at night helping my friend, keeper Frank Hughs to reed the little one, there might have been a baby Indian to but my memory is a bit foggy on that.

 

I remember that elephant house well also the Indian rhinos of which I still have a couple of pics of them. I also liked the old calk lion and tiger pits

 

I visited London Zoo in 1997 from California. I remember the Casson Pavilion seeming barely adequate for the Asian elephants and black rhinos. The outdoor space was maybe okay for a rhino or two, but seemed really cramped for the elephants.

All of the animals were outside when I was there in June. I did go inside the house to see what it was like. My impression was that it was quite dank. My main memory is that there were some school children running through the building and a girl stopped to ask if we had seen a boy running through. She was surprised when I answered with an American accent.

 

Your quite right it was cramped there I think they can get away with holding 2 black rhinos there, I believe it was done to a cost. If you think that was cramped then you should of seen Whipsnades Dolphin house, there were 2 pairs in there when it opened but was I surprised how small it was, now I believe turned into a sea lion show area.

 

Would the Indian rhinos have been Mohini and her son Manik?

 

Yes those names bring back memory I had completely forgotten their names.

Just a funny story, we used to put peanut oil all over them to care for their skin. We would just be in their pen with them. One time a mother and 2 kids came by, one of the kids yelled out, "mommy why dose that rhinos have five legs ". Me as a 17 year old thought that was very funny.

 

I afraid that I can remember asking my father the same question about Roger, the black rhino bull at Chester. I don't think he answered

 

Indeed the two Indian rhinos at Whipsnade between 1966 and 1969 were "Mohini" (arrived Whipsnade 1952) and her son "Manik: (born Whipsnade 1960).

"Manik" died in 1975; "Mohini" was transferred to London Zoo in 1974 and then went onto Amsterdam Zoo where she died in 1985.

 

I came across this picture while researching some elephants imported to the United States in 1929. I have shared this photo with Dan Koehl as it does not appear to be listed on his database Elephant.se. 18-month-old Peter at the London Zoo appears to be an African Forest elephant (cyclotis). Does anyone have more information about this animal?

From the Brooklyn Times Union 02/27/1929

 

Peter was captured in Sierra Leone by Captain W. B. Stanley on the 30th August 1927 and kept as a "pet" by him until he presented the animal to London Zoo, where it arrived 11th August 1928. The animal is recorded to have been born in January 1927. Peter' left humerus was broken by a black rhinoceros whilst at London so he was transferred to Whipsnade 0n 30th July 1929 where he died on the 1st August.