Surely You Know Ah Meng!

Wow Singapore's beloved and most famous orang utan, Ah Meng has called it quits and passed away. Below, the article from the New Paper

The news was taken sadly but calmly by the man dubbed the 'Father of Ah Meng' by his own family, for the tireless care he showered on his ward. Former zoo keeper Revi Nair, 46, took care of Ah Meng between 1981 and 2005, and he had been a fixture at almost all of her public appearances. He found out about Ah Meng's death from his wife, who called him with the news. He told The New Paper: 'It's sad news, but I was expecting it. She was very old.'

What he remembers most about his former charge, he said, is that she was a good mother. Mr Nair recalled: 'About 15 years ago, there was a baby orang utan, Binte, who had been rejected by her own mother. 'We took the baby to Ah Meng a few times. Initially, she wasn't interested in letting the baby suckle because it wasn't her own - "but eventually, she did - and she became the baby's surrogate mother."

Ah Meng also leaves behind children of her own - she has two sons, Hsing Hsing and Satria; and two daughters, Medan and Sayang. She also has six grandchildren.

Mr Nair used to accompany Ah Meng on nearly all of her celebrity meetings, which included meet-and-greet sessions with Prince Philip, magician David Copperfield, Michael Jackson and Elizabeth Taylor among other stars. He said: 'When Michael Jackson came to Singapore, I went with Ah Meng to Raffles Hotel to meet him. 'Michael... was happy to meet her. It's hard not to like Ah Meng - she's a neat orang utan, well-groomed, and she has good manners.'Mr Nair added that over the years, Ah Meng had developed a keen understanding of English commands, and had learned human behaviour. He said: 'Ah Meng learnt the proper way of holding a teacup and stirring her tea, just by watching people do it.' She was highly intelligent and could learn nearly anything just by observing it.' Mr Nair, who began his career as a zookeeper at the quarantine section of the zoo, started working with orang utans after two years there.

Ah Meng's late daughter, Hongbao, which was born on Chinese New Year in 1984, was in his care until she died in 2004. Zoo curator Alagappasamy Chellaiyah, 57, who has cared for Ah Meng since 1971, said he was 'devastated' by Ah Meng's death. He said: 'Ah Meng wasn't just any other animal - she was the icon of the Singapore zoo.' Mr Chellaiyah said he had gone to Ah Meng's enclosure yesterday morning as usual. 'She looked very weak. We fed her as usual, but she threw up the food we gave her. We were worried and called the vet,' he said. But she had already died by the time the vet arrived. He said: 'I'm just glad she wasn't in any pain when she died - her head dipped downwards and she was gone.' He recalled that whenever he took Ah Meng out for a walk in the mornings, she would place both her hands on his shoulders 'like a hug'. He said: 'She would greet me with a smile, and poke her finger out to touch me.' It's rare that anybody could grow so close to an animal.

'But she has lived a good life.

'With my upcoming retirement, I used to wonder who would leave the zoo first, her or me? It's unfortunate that she has gone first.' Others who have worked with Ah Meng remember her as the superstar of the Singapore Zoo. Former zoo chief Bernard Harrison said: 'She carried herself like a diva because she was a star and she knew that. She loved taking pictures.' He recalled an incident 26 years ago when Ah Meng escaped from a film set at MacRitchie Reservoir. 'She simply decided to climb up a 50m-tall tree and stayed up there for three days. 'Everybody there kept calling for her to come down, but she simply wouldn't,' he said.

Mr Harrison said Ah Meng eventually fell off the tree due to dehydration and hunger, and ended up breaking an arm. He said: 'We had to rush her to Mount Elizabeth Hospital to get her arm fixed.'Undoubtedly saddened by the news of Ah Meng's death, Mr Harrison added: 'I worked with her for 29 years. It's almost like losing an old colleague.' Ah Meng was born in Sumatra, Indonesia in 1960. She arrived at Singapore's zoo in 1971, after she was confiscated from a family who kept her as an illegal pet. In 1982, the zoo began the 'Breakfast with an orang utan' programme with Ah Meng as the star. By 1986, she had been featured in almost 30 travel films and appeared in more than 270 newspaper and magazine articles. Ms Fanny Lai, group chief executive officer of Wildlife Reserves Singapore told The New Paper that special arrangements are sometimes made for zookeepers who have grown attached to animals that have recently died.

She said: 'We understand that keepers work closely with animals over a period of time and need space and time to grieve. 'We make provisions by giving them time off from work, and we have occasionally arranged for the animals to be buried near the keepers' rest area.' Ms Lai said about two small animals have been buried in the zoo this way.

She said: 'In Ah Meng's case, we will be burying her at one of the zoo's most scenic spots - the Garden With a View.' As a tribute, the zoo also plans to name its next newborn orang utan Ah Meng Junior. There will be a special memorial service held at the zoo for Ah Meng tomorrow from 9am to 11am.