Dippy,
a 20-year-old penguin suffering from arthritis, who is the oldest in
the 40-strong colony located in the closing Seaview Wildlife Encounter
on the Isle of Wight will be moved to a special enclosure featuring a
ramp so he can gently waddle into the pool of water rather than having
to jump in.
The Humboldt penguin, whose natural habitat
is rookeries around the coasts of Chile and Peru, will make the move to
Norfolk’s Sea Life Centre this evening along with 10 other penguins from
the closing park.
The specially-adapted pool into which Dippy
will dip his flippers is one of a very small number adapted to deal with
arthritic penguins, having been previously had a ramp installed so the
23-year-old Lola could lower herself into the water with ease.
“Lola passed away two years ago aged 23, but
now special arrangements we made for her can be of benefit to Dippy,”
said Lorraine Adams, Seaview Wildlife Encounter’s director.
For almost two decades, Dippy has been the
star attraction at the park, closing after 44 years on the Isle of
Wight. The Humboldt penguin has his own Facebook page, as well as
website, where his exploits are recorded for fans to observe.
“Because he is a hand-reared imprinted penguin, he loves humans more than his other penguin pals,” Adams said.
“He has never taken the slightest bit
of notice of any of the other single females in the colony and only ever
had eyes for the keepers. He is 20 years of age and over the
last couple of years we have had some x-rays taken and he has developed
arthritis in both hips.
“He is on medication daily and this
helps and does not affect his swimming or his appetite or his affection
for the staff,” Adams added.
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