Thomas Dörflein
Thomas Dörflein (born October 13, 1963 in Berlin-Wedding ; † September 22, 2008 in Berlin-Wilmersdorf ) was a German zoo keeper in the Berlin Zoological Garden , who received great international attention in 2007 for raising the polar bear Knut .
Live and act
Dörflein grew up in Berlin-Spandau . From 1982 he worked as a carer in the Berlin Zoological Garden. Initially, he was responsible for apes and predators responsible. As a district keeper, he had been in charge of the bear and wolf enclosures since 1987 .
On December 5, 2006, two polar bears were born at the zoo for the first time in over 30 years. The dam, however, rejected the offspring, causing one of the young to die after four days. The zoo management decided to raise the surviving young by hand through small villages. In the first few months, Dörflein became the polar bear's most important caregiver due to his intensive care and gave him the name "Knut". The rearing of the polar bear took place with great media interest, as a result of which Dörflein increasingly came into the public eye.
For his work in rearing polar bears, Dörflein was awarded the Berlin Order of Merit on October 1, 2007 . He was also with Knut on a silver coinage of the coin Berlin immortalized. In December 2007, the readers of the Berliner Morgenpost and the listeners of the radio station 94.3 rs2 voted him the most popular Berliner. The zoo keeper refused to award two television awards ( Goldene Henne and Bambi ), which attracted a large audience .
death
In April 2008, doctors at Dörflein first diagnosed bladder cancer . However, he died unexpectedly on September 22, 2008 at the age of 44 of a heart attack caused by a thrombosis . On October 10, 2008, Dörflein was buried in the closest family circle at the In den Kisseln cemetery in Berlin's Spandau district .
In honor of the deceased, the support association of Tierpark und Zoo Berlin e. V. donated the “Thomas Dörflein Prize”, which is to be awarded annually to well-earned zookeepers. Posthumously he was awarded the " Berlin Bear " of the BZ as an honorary prize for rearing the polar bear Knut .
Filmography
- 1994: Berlin Zoo Stories (SFB Video)
- 2006: Berliner Schnauzen (TV series)
- 2007: Knut! - From the nursery of a polar bear
- 2007: Hello Knut! (7 episodes)
- 2007: Happy Pentecost, Knut!
- 2007: Knut, the polar bear baby (11 episodes)
- 2007: Knut, the polar bear cub (10 episodes)
- 2007: Panda, Gorilla & Co. (2 episodes)
- 2007: Happy Birthday, Knut!
- 2007: Crazy about Knut - a polar bear conquers the world
- 2008: Red carpet for Knut
- 2008: Knut and his friends
Posthumously
- 2010: Knut - A polar bear becomes half-strong
- 2012: National Geographic- Unlikely animal friends (1 episode)
Individual evidence
- ↑ welt.de: Mourning for Knut's carer Thomas Dörflein , September 22, 2008
- ↑ Focus: Order of Merit for Knut-Pfleger , September 30, 2007
- ↑ State Mint Berlin: KNUT with Thomas Dörflein , December 5, 2007
- ↑ Berliner Morgenpost: He just wants to do his job , December 31, 2007
- ↑ RP-Online: Knut's "Papa" had cancer ( memento of the original from October 29, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , September 24, 2008
- ↑ Knut-Pfleger Dörflein died of a heart attack. In: Spiegel Online. September 23, 2008, accessed January 12, 2013 .
- ↑ Knut-Pfleger Dörflein died of a heart attack. In: FOCUS online. September 23, 2008, accessed March 20, 2011 .
- ↑ RBB online: Thomas Dörflein buried , October 10, 2008
- ↑ Berliner Morgenpost online: Berlin Zoo donates Thomas Dörflein Prize , September 25, 2008.
- ↑ welt.de: BZ Culture Prize for Schlingensief and Lindenberg , January 26, 2009
Web links
- Thomas Dörflein in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Berlin Zoological Garden
- Obituary at Spiegel Online
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Dörflein, Thomas |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German zoo keeper |
| DATE OF BIRTH | October 13, 1963 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Berlin-Wedding |
| DATE OF DEATH | September 22, 2008 |
| Place of death | Berlin-Wilmersdorf |