Visit to Prani (The Pet Sanctuary)

Visit to PRANI, a mini zoo located in Bannerghatta, Bengaluru.

Sunday, the 20^th August, 2023

It was a cool, nice morning. My parents had already got up and prepared the breakfast. My younger brother, Shivaan, and myself were in the mood to go on a short holiday trip. Fortunately, to our surprise, our parents had already decided to visit PRANI, the pet sanctuary nestled a few kilometers away somewhere in Bannerghetta.

We, therefore, had a quick breakfast at our grandparents’ house nearby. Our grandparents also enthusiastically joined us and gave us company. All six of us started at 9.45 a.m.

A search on Google showed that our destination is about one and a half hours’ drive from our home on Panathur main Road, Bengaluru.

Both of us children were impatient to reach our destination.

We reached PRANI around11.15 a.m. It is nestled in the midst of green, leafy trees and many bushes. My father stopped the vehicle comfortably as not many visitors had arrived by that time, in spite of the fact that it was a Sunday and a holiday.

When we presented ourselves at the entrance gate, the person at the gate checked whether we had already booked our visit. My father had already booked the entry tickets for all of us. We paid Rs.2400/- @ Rs.400/- per head and secured entry. The woman in charge of the entry gate asked my and my brother’s names. She asked us whether I would be leading the group, and I replied in the positive. She cautioned me that she would ask me details of the visit while we come back after winding up the visit. She wished us a joyful and informative visit.

PRANI has been set-up to educate children as well as grown-ups about the nature, behavioral pattern, and living as well as eating habits of animals and birds.

 

We thereafter rushed straight into the first pet house.

It is house to different rodent families like rats, mouses, moles guinea pigs etc. we were allowed to touch and feel them. Although rats generally live in filthy and dirty environment, the inmates in PRANI are kept in excellent environment and are clean and well kept. Rats normally bite on anything and everything they find. You may wonder: why? This is because it is a natural instinct for them to bite everything that comes their way! They have upper as well as lower pairs of ever-growing incision teeth. These teeth keep growing rapidly. The irritating sensation that occurs during the process of growth of their teeth prompts them to keep biting something or the other so that their teeth are maintained in a very sharp shape.

The guinea pigs, belonging to the rat family, are originally natives of South America. They appear very cute with a robust body, short limbs, large head as well as eyes and short ears. They have a life span of about eight years. Their body furs are white, cream, reddish or of a combined pattern.

After spending about twenty minutes with the rodents, we moved to the next enclosure, where a mare (a female horse) and two donkeys are kept. The name of the very well grown-up mare is Maaya. The horse is a one-toed, hoofed mammal. Horses have strong, sturdy and compact body adapted to run fast. Maaya is a quite well behaved mare. Like other fellow visitors, we too fed her with green wheat leaves, which she enjoyed.

Next to Maaya, the mare, were two donkeys. Both of them are Krishnagiri donkeys. They were quite healthy. They weigh about 100 to 150 kilograms. The donkeys are generally used as working animals. They help their owners to carry loads. They have a life expectancy of about 12 to 15 years. Although most of the visitors milled around the mare, not many went near the donkeys either to feed them or to appreciate them.

In the next enclosure were a few goats. Both male and female goats were there. Most of them were white in colour. They are quite cute and gentle in nature and made friends with us quickly. We patted them and took photos with them. It is said that goats have a life span of about 15 to 18 years. They have an excellent sense of smell. An interesting fact about the goats is that it is a cud-chewing mammal.

Next in line were the peacocks. As you know, the peacock is our national bird too. Due to a variety of reasons, they cannot fly long distances like other birds. Their charming beauty, displayed when the male peacock dances, is beyond the words. The shining blue breast and neck and the splendid bronze green tail are the peacock’s main features. Their stunning beauty is a symbol of their dominance and the reason to attract the female of the species to them.

A few healthy and beautiful ducks were swimming in the pond filled with clear water. It appeared that they were playing around after a sumptuous breakfast! These waterfowls are normally seen in ponds and other water bodies like lakes and rivulets.

Next, we were taken to an enclosure where the rabbits are kept. There were two types of rabbits:  the European (Cinnamon) rabbit  and the hare.  It was a surprise to me to learn that,contrary to our common belief, carrot is not their favourite food. They like to eat green grass and leafy vegetables.

We also saw a few monitor lizards. They are considered to be the most intelligent of all lizards. It was told to us that their natural habitat is coastal forests and river beds. There are more than 70 species of monitor lizards.They are native to African and Asian countries. Their colour varied from brown to green and grey with scales on their skin.

 There are a few Emus walking on their long legs. They are large flightless birds found living all over Australia. They are the second largest birds in the world after the ostrich. They have large bodies,strong legs and a long neck. Although they have wings, they are not suitable for flying. Emus are omnivores.That means they eat both plants and animals. However, their diet is primarily made up of plant material,grass and seeds. Female emus lay 5 to 15 eggs, and sit on the eggs for about eight weeks incubating them.

 We also went inside the aviary. The aviary is quite big with a great number of inmates of various colours and sizes.

The last was the visit to the aquarium. 

The aquarium of PRANI is very small. It does not have many fishes in it. But, the fish in the aquarium were very colourful and active. The way they swim is very interesting. Their movements are very organised and systematic. Observing the movements of fishes in an aquarium for longer periods is not only interesting and amusing,  it also helps humans to calm their mind. 

 After spending about more than two hours among the birds, Emus, rodents etc, we said good-bye to them.

We came back after a fruitful visit to the PRANI….

I would recommend a visit to this home of birds and animals so that we keep in touch with our fellow creatures with whom we share our planet.

                                               @@@

By Srihan Rajesh

Grade 3-B