Chewbacca on Respect-for-senior-citizens Day
2010

In honor of Chewbacca and Crump who live long

Chewbacca,

I still remember your cute round eyes when I saw you for the first time twelve years ago.
You look like a young wombat though 12 years have passed since then.
You don't look like a long living wombat, do you?
I appreciate you living so long!



Crump,

I didn't imagine that the day when I could see you would come.
I'm so glad that you came back here to the Tama Zoo.
I won't forget the day when I met you last year.
I appreciate you doing well and coming back!


May both of you live a long healthy life!

A couple of days before Respect-for-senior-citizens Day

It looked like a goya, or bitter gourd which was planted near the wombat's pen
conglaturated the long life of Chewbacca and Crump.

Chewbacca thought

After Chewbacca knew that the Tama Zoo would give an award to Crump and him on September 20,
he couldn't stop thinking about the "award".

Well, I'll ask my keeper.

Excuse me, is it true that Crump and I will get a prize?
Apparently, it's true........


And...., my keeper, wait! I have more questions about the"award".....


I wonder if the award could possibly be a sweetpotato?


"A-w-a-r-d"


"A-w-a-r-d"


"A-w-a-r-d"


I became obsessed with the "a-w-a-r-d".


Oh, I have to ask Crump if he knows about the "award".
Hi, Crump, do you know anything about the "award"?

I don't know any more than Chewbacca knows about it.


I was absent from the Tama zoo for twelve and a half years.


You'll know it in the meantime.......

　
I'm sleepy now. Let's think about it in the evening, shall we?


(The picures above were photographed on Sept.14, 2010.)

Respect-for-senior-citizens Day has come!
Sept. 20, 2010


Part I
13:30-14:00

A few days later, the award ceremony for celebrating long-life animals was held.
The representative animals this year were Chewbacca and Crump,the wombats!




*All the photos below were projected on the screen in the award ceremony.


Award ceremony for long-life animals

First, 26 long-life animals in the Tama zoo were introduced.

The following showing says, "today's main character was......"


the wombat!

Chewbacca was born in March in 1985, and Crump was born in December in 1984.
Both are 25 years!


An associate zoo director presented two wombat pictures to the wombat keeper.
They were posted at the wombat's pen when the ceremony part II started in thirty minutes.

(Chewbacca's birthday was misprinted, and the keeper corrected it later.
He was born in March,1985.)




The wombat keeper talked about the wombat first, and then talked about
Chewbacca and Crump for about ten minutes.



The summary

(including my sentiment)

Crump had been to Germany for breeding for twelve and a half years,
and he came back to the Tama Zoo last year.

Chewbacca has been in the Tama zoo, and he has entertained the visitors for a long time.





Chewbacca & Crump as newcomers

Crump was very small and he only weighed 10 kg.
Chewbacca weighed 21.5kg.

According to the individual information of the wombats from the Taronga zoo,
"Chewbacca is offensive, and he tends to run away".
(That's so fun to hear!)


*According to the previous keeper, Chewbacca as a newcomer had turned a lock
of the door leading into a hallway two or three times.
When the keeper saw him in the hallway for the first time, he thought that it was by chance.
However, he saw Chewbacca turning a lock with his nose afterwards again.

(Chewbacca tried to run away as soon as he reached the Tama zoo, didn't he?)
(It is so fun to imagine that Chewbacca tries to run away.)




Chewbacca & Crump now

Crump doesn't like rain, and so he doesn't budge an inch in the room
even though the keeper pushes his backside.

Chewbacca doesn't like rain, either, but he walked outside reluctantly




"Chewbacca's room" and "Chewbacca in his room"

They showed a couple of pictures you can't usually see.

Chewbacca's room with floor heating!
（That's good, Chewbacca!)
His favorite "body pillow"(the log) is in his room, too.

（I'd like to enter Chewbacca's room.）



It was fun to hear that
Chewbacca usually moves the hut (it is very heavy) at the corner
to the center of his room.
The keeper brings it back every day.


(I knew you could do it, powerful Chewbacca! You can't help moving it, can you?)


When it is cold, the keeper puts hay in his room, and
Chewbacca sometimes carries hay to the hut by himself, too.



Chewbacca's food
（I wonder what his bread tastes like?）

Chewbacca's food: hay, fresh grass, a piece of sweetpotato, carrot, apple and bread


After he enters his room, what he eats at first is.......

(You do like bread, don't you?)

After he finishes eating, he usually relaxes holding his favorite log.



Chewbacca on the stage

Can you see something different than usual?
The fence is behind Chewbacca.
This photo was taken from the opposite side of the passageway for the visitors.



After the ceremony part I was concluded,
the zoo gave a wombat badge to the participants.


The characters below is "In honor of living long"2010
Crump (the left side) & Chewbacca (the right side)




This is a cake which will be presented to Chewbacca
in the second part of the award ceremony.

The above says,
"The present to the wombat
A sweetpotato-carrot-bread cake"

Part II

14:30-

A little before 14:30, the keeper introduced Crump to the visitors.
Crump went home immediately though he usually enters room slowly.


Crump in the morning on Sep. 20

Crump was outside in the morning this day.
He slept for most of the time, but he walked in the pen for a short time.



Crump passed the torch to Chewbacca
14:25

See you!








The special cake was presented to Chewbacca on behalf of the wombats.


He kept eating for 40 minutes with gusto!


(The person in charge was worried that he might not eat the cake, however, not to worry!)

Chewbacca, you responded to everyone's expectations, didn't you?







The keeper put the cake on the stage at about 14:30.
As soon as Chewbacca came out of the room, he headed to the stage.
He stepped on the stage and began to eat the cake.


A couple of minutes later, he started eating.


The sweetpotato tastes good.


Bread tastes better (or maybe best).
14:31


He has eaten so much.
14:33




He sat and ate more.
14:44


He has already finished his favorite bread.
14:48


How delicious this cake is!
The rest is pieces of carrots and fresh grass.
14:51


Only the fresh grass left!
14:54


He looked like he pleased himself.
14:57


He turned around and ate the grass again.


He is going to sleep on a full stomach.
You wiped your mouth?!
15:08



A little before he went home
a funny mouth!
16:26


Thank all of you who celebrated our long life!

-Chewbacca-

*Sorry my blog on Respect-for- senior-citizens Day will be delayed. -Chewbacca-

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