Woman’s Unusual Friendship with a Bear – But One Day, He Does Something Unexpected
An Extraordinary Friend
A woman would go fishing every day on a lake near the Russian city of Novosibirsk. Patiently sitting there, waiting to catch a fish, everything seemed perfectly normal in her daily routine… except for one captivating detail. She always went fishing with her best friend.
This friend was far from ordinary and conventional. Her daily companion was none other than a bear. And one day, while they were fishing, something strange happened.
Veronica and Archie
The woman, named Veronica, would fish every day to put food on the table. Her wild friend, the bear named Archie, seemed to thoroughly enjoy his time with his human companion.
Sometimes, when Veronica grew tired, Archie would even help paddle the boat. It was incredible to witness the peaceful coexistence between these two. Perhaps delving into the origins of their friendship could shed some light on this.
The Rescuing Act
In 2019, Veronica rescued Archie from a bankrupt safari park. The owner of the reserve intended to release the bear back into the wild, but Veronica was concerned for his well-being and managed to intervene. “You can’t just release an animal like that into the wild?! He has been captive his whole life,” pleaded the young woman.
“He won’t know how to deal with other wildlife. He’ll be in great danger!” She made a decision she believed was right: to adopt the bear. However, there was one major problem – in Russia, it was illegal to keep wild animals, especially a massive, wild bear.
Veronica’s Determination
This legal hurdle threatened the harmonious bond between Veronica and Archie. But she refused to give up and was determined to do everything possible to save him from being
sent back to the wilderness, an environment he wouldn’t understand. With the help of her friends, she sought a way to legally keep Archie. After hours of research, they came up with a brilliant plan.
Archie, the Pet Bear
If Veronica could prove that Archie was her pet, she could legally adopt him. To do so, she had to demonstrate beyond any doubt that she had complete control over the bear. Furthermore, she had to ensure that Archie would have ample space to move around and remain active. So, Veronica and Archie continued to go fishing together to show how much fun they had.
Seeing the bear’s happiness and the good life he had with the young woman, the authorities had no choice but to declare Archie as a pet. This brought immense joy, and they continued their weekly fishing trips. Until one day, something very strange happened.
What is Happening??
Veronica noticed that Archie had suddenly started acting strangely. He began rocking the boat in all directions. Veronica grabbed his massive arm and looked at him, trying to understand what was going on. She saw an emotion in his eyes that she had never seen before.
The bear was fascinated by something. But what was it? She had to find out what was causing her friend’s unusual behavior. Otherwise, their lives might be in danger, who knows?
Archie’s Attempt to Communicate
Veronica set down her fishing rod and held Archie in her arms. “What’s the matter, buddy?” Then, the bear did something she never expected. He started roaring. Louder and louder. Eventually, Veronica realized that he was trying to get her attention so she would notice what he had seen. “What is he trying to tell me?” thought the perplexed woman.
She tried to decipher the roars. Suddenly, Archie raised his paw and pointed toward the shore. “Does he want to show me something?” When Veronica carefully looked in the same direction, she saw something very surprising.
Another Bear?!
On the shore of the lake was another bear?! The animal seemed to be communicating with Archie. Veronica couldn’t explain how, but she sensed no negative tension between the two animals. Archie looked at the other bear with a warm and affectionate gaze. Veronica began rowing toward the shore. As they approached, Archie jumped from the boat and ran full speed toward the animal. Veronica would never forget what happened on that day.
She held her breath, hoping they wouldn’t fight. But, to her surprise, the two animals started embracing each other. A tight embrace. It seemed as if one had been eagerly waiting for the other for years. Veronica had rarely seen Archie so excited, and she even thought she saw a smile on his face. Then, she realized something…
A New Life
Veronica was deeply touched as she watched Archie and the other bear engrossed in a pure moment of companionship. This encounter between the animals made her realize that this was where Archie belonged. It was time to say goodbye to her best friend. She gave him one last hug with great sadness.
“I’ll visit you whenever I can, my furry friend!” It was painful for Veronica, but she knew it was for the best. Archie would be happy here with his new friend.
Heartbreaking Goodbyes
Saying goodbye to her companion was one of the hardest things Veronica had ever done in her life. But knowing that Archie would be happy and in good company with others of his kind made it worth it. She knew it was the right thing to do. The bear would be safe and comfortable living as he was meant to.
Veronica bid farewell to her friend once again as he slowly disappeared into the forest with his new partner. But one thing was certain: this wouldn’t be the last time she saw Archie!
A Husband Introduces His Wife to the Gorilla He Raised, But Things Take an Unexpected Turn!
When Victoria married Damian Aspinall, she also married his passion for animals. As the owner of two zoos, he was no stranger to exotic and dangerous creatures. So, Damian decided to take his wife to Gabon to meet two gorillas he had helped liberate and raise in the wild about a decade ago.
The search for the wild gorillas was long and challenging, but nothing compared to what happened when they finally found the gorillas. Read on to find out what happened when Damian finally got to introduce his wife to two of his long-lost primate friends. Things didn’t go exactly as planned!
1. An Exotic Childhood
Damian Aspinall grew up surrounded by exotic animals. His father, John Aspinall, established Howletts Wild Animal Park in 1957, where Damian spent his childhood. The 700-hectare estate is located in Kent, England, and is home to a wide range of exotic species.
On the estate, Damian was practically raised by a surrogate gorilla mother. He even recalls as a child getting stuck in a tree and the gorilla coming over, putting him on her back, and safely bringing him down. She even wiped his tears and comforted him. But despite the warm connection Damian shared with animals from a young age, nothing could have prepared him for what he would face with a group of gorillas he raised several years later.
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The Aspinall Foundation
Howletts Wild Animal Park was created when John Aspinall established the charitable organization, the Aspinall Foundation. The foundation advocates for wildlife conservation and has led to the creation of two zoos in the UK – Port Lympne Wild Animal Park and Howletts Wild Animal Park.
Both sites breed rare and endangered animals, including gorillas and tigers. The foundation has a project for orphaned gorillas that reintroduces hand-reared gorillas into the Bateke Plateau National Park in Gabon. When Damian became the chairman of the foundation after his father’s passing, he had grand and wonderful plans for the animals, and it all began when he was just a young child.
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Dangerous Animals
Reflecting on his childhood memories, Damian recalls not having many friends over because of all the potentially dangerous animals, and feeling much more at ease with animals than with other humans.
“You don’t have playdates when you’ve got tigers in the garden. It was just me and the animals. To be perfectly honest, I always felt disconnected, and humans inevitably let you down – animals never do. They are far more honest and true than humans,” Damian said to the Daily Mail.
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Animal Friends
Despite all this, Damian says he had an “extraordinarily wonderful childhood.” “At seven years old, I was playing around a tree with tigers and bison or running across lawns with a pack of wolves,” he continued.
Damian also remembers being chased, along with some animals, by a swarm of wasps after disturbing a nest. They had to run to escape, and he had to dive headfirst into a nearby pond to get away from them.
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Forced to Change
While Damian Aspinall may be a millionaire today, that wasn’t always the case. His father, John, had refused to provide financial help, so Damian made his fortune through real estate. When Damian’s father passed away, there was no money left.
“You have to understand, when my father died, there was no money in the bank, and these parks were losing 4 million pounds a year. Now we have to find 10 million pounds a year,” Damian said. “I can understand why other family members didn’t want to be involved. My brother and sister weren’t interested in animals, but I was obligated.”
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Gorilla Babies
During his childhood, Damian helped raise a number of baby gorillas from birth. They became very close, as if they were his own children. Two of them were named Djalta and Ima, both male gorillas.
“Both gorillas were being prepared for reintroduction into a protected area,” Damian explained in an interview. He strongly believed that saving gorillas would secure their right to happiness, which animals deserve just as much as humans. According to Damian, that’s the key to coexistence on the planet. But he had no idea what was about to unfold.
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Wolf Children
In August 2016, Damian Aspinall married Victoria Fisher, who was a Burberry employee at the time, in Tuscany, Italy. She joked that when she married Damian, she also married his animals and his love for them. After all, they come as a two-in-one package.
And according to Victoria, that’s perfectly fine. She loves animals just as much as her husband. “It might sound crazy, but I genuinely love the wolves as if they were my own children,” she says. “Kago even slept in our bed!” But the circumstances under which Damian and Victoria met are even more interesting.
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How They Met
Damian and Victoria met by chance at a dinner, and she, not knowing who he was, agreed to go out with him. “Over lunch, he was telling all these stories about Howletts, so I Googled him afterwards and couldn’t believe all of this,” she said.
“I wasn’t used to this kind of situation,” Victoria admitted to the Daily Mail. “And I don’t think anyone would have been. Damian would say the same thing – neither of us was looking for each other,” she added. That couldn’t have been more true when Damian decided to introduce Victoria to his beloved gorillas.
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Reintroduced to the Wild
It had been over a decade since Djalta and Ima, the gorillas Damian had raised from infancy, were reintroduced into the wild in a protected area. Damian was now eager to locate them and check on their well-being in their natural habitat.
This wasn’t the first time Damian led an expedition to track gorillas that had been reintroduced, but this time would be different. He would be taking his new wife, Victoria, along. But neither of them expected what was about to happen.
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A Unique Bond
During Djalta and Ima’s time at Howletts Wild Animal Park, the two had formed a special bond with Damian. They had a unique connection, and he was eager to see if they would remember him and how they would react to him now that they were living in the wild.
Adult gorillas can also be dangerous, as they are incredibly strong animals, and Damian was well aware of that. He didn’t know how they would react to Victoria, a stranger. However, before Damian could worry about that valid sense of concern, he would first have to locate the gorillas in the vast area.
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The Gabon
Without delay, Damian, Victoria, and a small team of experts flew to Gabon in hopes of locating the gorillas, Djalta and Ima. Damian was thrilled to be reunited with his old friends but nervous about their reaction to Victoria, the newcomer.
The couple decided to put all their fears aside and proceed with the expedition. They were well aware that someone could get hurt, in this case, most likely Victoria. However, finding the gorillas first would prove to be a much more challenging task than they had imagined.
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An Adventure
Attempting to locate the gorillas proved to be more difficult than the team had anticipated. They had to travel from the UK to the coastal country of Central Africa, Gabon, but they had much more to do to find the gorillas.
Damian and Victoria were faced with traversing challenging terrain and embarking on a long boat journey along the river through the jungle to reach the supposed location of Djalta and Ima. The two gorillas had GPS trackers attached to them, but it only provided a rough location.
12. Showing Creativity
Even though Djalta and Ima had been monitored for years, their exact whereabouts in the vast jungle of the region were still unknown. Furthermore, Damian wanted to approach the gorillas slowly as to not startle them.
After hours of searching through the expansive jungle, the team was on the verge of giving up hope of finding Djalta and Ima. However, Damian, his wife, and the team were also prepared for such a scenario and knew they would have to get creative by utilizing technology.
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Drones
Since the devices attached to Djalta and Ima couldn’t pinpoint their exact location, the team got creative and decided that the fastest way to locate them would be through the use of cutting-edge drones with integrated cameras.
The drones were connected to Damian’s smartphone, allowing him to navigate the terrain in search of Djalta and Ima. With the help of technology, they finally managed to locate the two gorillas.
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Confusion
The strange flying object caught the attention of the gorillas, and they slowly emerged from behind the bushes, intrigued by this device. They cautiously emerged, unsure if the drone was a friend or foe. They appeared confused at first.
But they showed no signs of anger or aggression; they were more curious than anything. Luckily for Damian, Djalta and Ima were found near a riverbank. It was the perfect spot for Victoria and the team to slowly approach the gorillas by boat.
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The Moment of Truth
It was almost time to finally meet the gorillas, and tension filled the air. Would the great primates remember Damian? Would they be aggressive after spending so much time away from humans? So many questions that would soon find an answer.
Djalta and Ima quickly spotted the approaching boat carrying Damian, Victoria, and the crew. The two gorillas seemed intrigued by what was happening, but things can change very quickly when dealing with wild animals. That’s exactly what Damian and Victoria were about to find out.
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The Nature of a Gorilla
By nature, gorillas are very shy creatures that generally avoid humans. But they are also incredibly strong animals that can be deadly if provoked. It doesn’t take much to provoke a gorilla, that’s a fact. One wrong move could spell disaster!
If you do something to startle a gorilla, it can easily mistake the movement for an act of aggression and react aggressively in response. But how would Djalta and Ima react to the man who raised them? And how would they react to Victoria?
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Unpredictable
As the boat approached the riverbank where Djalta and Ima were, the crew safely retrieved their drones, not wanting to overstimulate the gorillas any further, in addition to their presence.
The approach of the boat was very, very slow and steady. Knowing that a gorilla’s reaction to humans can be unpredictable and difficult to gauge, Damian and the crew wanted to be as cautious as possible. There was a wave of nervous silence on the boat as they got even closer.
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The Perfect Strategy
Damian decided he needed to be the first one to approach the gorillas on land, considering he had raised them and there was a possibility they would remember him. But it had been 14 long years since Djalta and Ima had returned to the wild.
Slowly, Damian stepped off the boat into the waist-deep waters of the river. He didn’t want to bring the boat too close to the gorillas in fear that the sound of the engine would startle them. Slowly, he moved forward.
20. Growls
Damian remained low to the ground, making sure not to appear taller than the gorillas and to not seem threatening. Fortunately, the gorillas showed no signs of aggression and after being close to Damian for a few minutes, they began making noise.
Damian found the sounds very familiar and knew what they meant. They were friendly noises that resembled a growl or rumble. It seemed that Djalta and Ima remembered Damian after all these years.
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A Relaxed Approach
Damian could sense that Djalta and Ima were comfortable with him, so he decided it was finally time to introduce them to his wife, Victoria. She stepped out of the boat and waded through the water, waist-deep, slowly approaching the riverbank.
“I decided to approach slowly on land. I didn’t want to scare them and wanted to make sure they were relaxed,” Victoria stated. Djalta and Ima liked Damian, as it was possible they remembered him, but they were not as easygoing with Victoria.
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Victoria’s Chance
As Damian sat on the riverbank, Victoria slowly made her way through the waters. When she was just a few meters away, Damian told her to stop and stay where she was. He wanted to wait for a sign that the gorillas wouldn’t be hostile or aggressive.
That’s when one of the gorillas made the same rumble they had made towards Damian—the first sign that they would be friendly with Victoria. Damian then told Victoria to move a bit closer, as things seemed to be going well. At least for now.
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The Slow Approach
Despite his anticipation, the gorillas didn’t immediately come to Damian, so he was very concerned about how they would react to his wife, Victoria. Nonetheless, she slowly approached the riverbank and sat down near the edge.
Damian hoped that the gorillas would accept Victoria as a member of their clan and welcome her the way they had welcomed him. That’s when one of the gorillas made a deep, guttural sound, a sign that Damian took to mean something good.
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Acceptance
Damian understood that the noise meant that the gorillas had accepted Victoria and would be friends with her. Then one of them approached her and gave her a gentle touch with its face—a clear sign that the gorillas had accepted Victoria.
Both gorillas were very friendly, offering warm hugs and signs of affection. From there, Damian and Victoria decided to spend the day and left the riverbank and the two gorillas behind. But it wouldn’t be the last time they would see each other.
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The Next Day
Damian and Victoria returned to the same spot the next day, hoping that Djalta and Ima would be there, or at least nearby. Luckily for them, they were right where Damian and his wife had left them the previous day.
Ima was immediately captivated by Victoria, rushing towards her while making joyful sounds of acceptance. Then, Victoria and Ima embraced and played together. They were extremely friendly with each other. But something happened that shocked Victoria.
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The Hat
In an act of hilarity, Ima the gorilla took Victoria’s hat, sniffed it a bit, and placed it on his own head. Just like a human would do. The video of the interaction between Victoria and the gorillas was uploaded to YouTube.
The YouTube video that Damian quickly captured went viral, garnering nearly 12 million views and 46,000 likes on social media. Both gorillas, Djalta and Ima, were transferred to this protected area in 2013 and still reside there today.
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Gorilla Habitats
Gorillas exclusively inhabit the humid tropical forests of Africa and are categorized into two species, Eastern and Western gorillas. At some point, they were separated, most likely during the Ice Age. These two species have been separated for so long that they now exhibit distinct characteristics.
Gorillas generally do not leave the forest except for food foraging purposes, as they heavily rely on it for survival. However, mountain gorillas have been found climbing higher than the tree line, with traces even discovered at altitudes of up to 4,000 meters.
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Declining Population
Over the past 25 years, the population of Western lowland gorillas, like Djalta and Ima, has declined by approximately 60%. Due to the elusive nature of gorillas, calculating the exact number is challenging, but the decrease is alarming.
The population decline is mainly attributed to human intervention and diseases like Ebola. Poachers sometimes hunt gorillas for their meat, as a sport, or for trophies. Currently, all gorilla species are either endangered or critically endangered. This is something Damian and his family are striving to change.
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Are Gorillas Dangerous?
Generally, gorillas are naturally timid and reserved towards humans. They tend to keep their distance and do not approach humans closely. However, gorillas can become dangerous in certain circumstances, often due to human error.
If a gorilla feels surprised or threatened in any way, it may react aggressively to protect itself, even if there is no real danger. A silverback gorilla may respond with a loud roar or even engage in bluff charges.
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Bluff Charges
A bluff charge occurs when a gorilla charges towards someone but stops around one meter from the target. If the target submits or shows no aggressive response, the gorilla will let them go unharmed, as they have not provoked any violent reaction.
However, if the target of a bluff charge attempts to flee, the gorilla will pursue them. Gorillas are fast and can easily catch a fleeing human. Once caught, a gorilla generally bites the accessible body part of the target.