Lulu Bell and the Tiger Cub (3 page)

At the vet hospital, Tom and Dr Bradley took Berani into the operating theatre. Lulu joined the other children and watched through the viewing window. Mum explained to them what was going on.

‘First they'll give him an anaesthetic,' said Mum. ‘Then they'll take an X-ray of his hind leg.'

Tom held Berani tightly while the
cub was given an injection. In a few moments, Berani was fast asleep on the stainless steel operating table. He had a tube in his mouth to help him breathe. Once Berani was safely asleep, Dr Bradley and Tom came out to join the watching children.

Inside the operating theatre, Rachael set up the X-ray machine. She worked the machine from a special booth.

Dr Bradley turned on a computer on the bench. The children gathered around to watch.

‘Berani is nearly three months old,' said Dr Bradley as she worked on the computer. ‘His name means brave and he is always getting into trouble. It doesn't surprise me that he took a tumble.'

‘We saw him climbing a tree trunk this morning,' said Lauren. ‘He jumped
down then, but it didn't look like he had hurt himself.'

‘We need to take very special care of Berani,' said Tom. ‘He and his sisters were the first Sumatran tiger cubs born in our zoo. He is one of only about four hundred Sumatran tigers left in the world. They are critically endangered. This means we need to work very hard to save them from extinction.'

Lulu felt a cold shiver run up her spine. ‘Extinction? You mean the Sumatran tigers might die out altogether?'

She watched the tiger cub lying on the operating table. He looked small and helpless.

‘Not if we can help it,' said Dr Bradley. Her voice sounded serious. ‘Zoos around the world are working
together on a breeding program to save the Sumatran tiger.'

‘When Berani and his sisters are grown up, we will send them to live in different zoos in other countries,' said Tom. ‘Then they can have cubs of their own.'

Some black-and-white pictures came up on the computer screen. They were X-ray images of Berani's leg bones. Dr Bradley enlarged one.

‘Look there, Lulu,' she said. ‘What can you see?'

‘It looks like he has a broken bone,' said Lulu. She pointed to an image of his fractured thighbone.

‘That's right. We call that bone the femur,' explained Dr Bradley. ‘To fix that we'll need to do an operation with a metal plate and some screws.'

The vet pointed to the X-ray. ‘I'll make a small cut here and then straighten the bone. We'll use the
metal plate to hold the bone in place while it heals.'

Lulu nodded.

‘Now let's get to work,' said Dr Bradley. She went to get changed. Tom stayed behind and watched anxiously.

Dr Bradley and Rachael put on sterile surgical gowns over their clothes. They scrubbed their hands and wore hats, masks and gloves.

The children could see everything through the window. First, Rachael made sure Berani was getting plenty of oxygen through a tube. He was linked to a monitor that checked his heart rate. Dr Bradley shaved his leg and swabbed the skin with antiseptic. Rachael passed her the instruments she needed. Dr Bradley straightened the bone. She used screws to hold the metal plate in place.

Finally the wound was stitched up.

When the operation was complete, Berani was placed in a warm, well-padded box. He was still asleep.

Dr Bradley pulled off her gloves, mask and hat. She smiled at the children through the window. ‘Would you like to come in and take a closer look?'

‘Yes, please,' cried Lulu.

Everyone filed into the theatre and gathered around the operating table.

‘Berani will wake up soon. Would you like to pat him?' asked Dr Bradley. ‘You can stroke him along the top of his head. Just be very gentle.'

Lulu ran her fingers over his orange-and-black striped body. His fur felt a bit coarser than the cats at home.

Dr Bradley showed the children one of his paws. ‘Tigers have webbing between their toes to help them swim. They are great swimmers, which is unusual for big cats.'

Berani had soft pads on the base of his paws and needle-sharp claws.

‘And look at this. Can you see his false eyes?'

Lulu wasn't sure what the vet meant. ‘What are false eyes?'

Dr Bradley pointed. On the back of each rounded ear was a large circular white spot.

‘The spots look like eyes, which helps scare off predators from behind,' explained the vet.

‘Tigers really do have eyes in the back of their heads,' joked Lulu. ‘Just like Mum.'

Dr Bradley chuckled. Berani's tufted ears twitched.

‘He's waking up,' said Dr Bradley. ‘It's time for Berani to go into the intensive care unit.'

Lulu looked down at Berani, who was sleeping peacefully.

What an amazing experience to watch an operation on a tiger cub
, thought Lulu.
How could our zoo adventure get any better than that?

Tom helped Rachael carry Berani to the intensive care ward. When Berani was safely tucked away, Tom left to go back to work. A few minutes later, Rachael poked her head around the door. She looked worried.

‘Has someone moved Linh, the leaf monkey?' Rachael asked. ‘She's not in her cage.'

‘No,' said Dr Bradley with a frown.
‘When did you last see her?'

Rachael thought for a moment. ‘I put her away just before you went to get Berani. When I went to check on her, the cage door was open and she was gone.'

‘She must be here somewhere,' said Dr Bradley. ‘Why don't we all have a really good look for her?'

First they checked Linh's cage again. The door was wide open. Inside were her water bowl and her orange ball. Other toys had been thrown out onto the floor.

‘I know I closed the door,' said Rachael. She looked as though she might cry. ‘I'm always so careful with the cage doors.'

‘I know you are,' said Dr Bradley. ‘Perhaps Linh is more cunning than we thought. Monkeys are very clever at opening locks and doors. She's only a baby so we thought she'd be safe.'

The kids split into teams: Molly and Lauren, Mum and Lulu, Daniel and Max. They searched high on top of the cages and low under benches. They looked in Harry's enclosure and in the aviary. With pounding hearts they searched the reptile room. Linh was nowhere to be found.

Rachael was very upset. ‘What if we can't find her? I'll never forgive myself.'

Berani the cub was waking up now. He cried a mini roar when he discovered
that he had a big bandage on his leg.

‘It's all right, Berani,' soothed Lulu as she passed. ‘Right now, we have more important things to worry about.'

Max gave a shout from the locker room. Lulu and Molly rushed in. There was chaos.

Someone – or something – had opened all the backpacks. Hats and scarves were strewn all over the floor.
Paper had been torn into little pieces and sprinkled like snow. Lunch boxes and drink bottles had been overturned. Lulu's lunch box was open. There were nibble marks on the grapes. The salad sandwich had been opened and the lunch paper was crumpled into a ball.

‘Oh my goodness,' said Lulu. ‘I think I know who has been causing trouble here.'

‘Linh, the gentle spirit leaf monkey,' said Molly. ‘Perhaps that wasn't such a good name for her after all.'

Everyone searched the locker room, but Linh was nowhere to be found. Molly and Max set to work to tidy the mess. Mum swept the floor, while Rachael fetched the mop.

Lulu was thirsty. She decided to get some water from the staff room and
search in there. The staff room had a long wooden table surrounded by chairs. There was a small kitchen with a sink, fridge, kettle and a microwave. A large window looked out over the zoo gardens.

On the bench was a plate of smashed chocolate biscuit crumbs. Lulu found a glass and filled it with water from the tap.

A funny noise sounded. It was a soft chittering up near the ceiling.

Lulu wrinkled her forehead. What creature would make that noise? She listened carefully as she stood by the sink.

The sound seemed to be coming from above the kitchen cupboards. Lulu began to investigate. She climbed onto a chair and then the bench. She stood upright on the bench and peered at the top of the cupboards.

A dark shape was huddled at the far end. It had orange fur on its head and legs. The fur on its back was darker.

‘Linh,' whispered Lulu. ‘Is that you?'

The baby monkey turned towards Lulu, staring at her with big black eyes. She looked frightened.

Lulu walked slowly along the kitchen bench, talking softly.

‘It's all right, Linh,' she whispered. ‘Time to come down now.'

Lulu was halfway along when the leaf monkey charged straight towards her.
She leaped for Lulu and landed on top of her head. The monkey gripped tightly. A long tail curled in Lulu's face. Lulu thought she must look funny, as though she was wearing a furry monkey hat.

‘Hello, Linh,' murmured Lulu. ‘There's a good girl.'

Lulu gently lifted the monkey off her head and cuddled her close to her chest. The monkey buried her head against Lulu, making soft squeaking noises. ‘Good girl,' crooned Lulu. ‘It's good to see you safe and sound. Let's take you back. Everyone is so worried about you.'

Dad always said that baby animals felt safer if they were wrapped up in something soft. Lulu found a pile of folded towels on a shelf. She carefully wrapped a towel around Linh and carried her out the door.

In the corridor, Lulu saw Rachael. The woman was hurrying along looking pale and stressed.

‘Rachael?' Lulu called softly. ‘Look who I found.'

‘Linh!' cried Rachael. She flushed pink with happiness and relief. ‘Oh, thank you, Lulu. Wherever did you find her?'

Lulu carried Linh back into the ward while she explained how she had found the baby monkey. She stroked Linh's head. The monkey gazed about with big wide eyes. Linh lifted her tiny front paws and patted Lulu on the chin.

‘Oh, she is simply adorable,' said Lulu. ‘I wish we could take her home.'

Rachael opened the cage door. ‘She certainly is,' she agreed. ‘But if you took her home, Linh wouldn't learn how to be a proper monkey, would she? I hope next time you come to the zoo, Linh will be living with her mother and the rest of her group.'

Lulu thought about it. ‘Yes, I'd rather she was with her family.'

Lulu gave Linh one last cuddle, then put her back in her cage.

This time Rachael made sure that the cage was double-locked.

Mum came in with Molly. Everyone gathered around the cage to look at the rescued runaway.

‘I'm so glad the leaf monkey is safe, honey bun,' said Mum. ‘But we really have to go now. We are running late to meet all the other kids for a picnic in the park. They will be wondering what on earth has happened to us.'