"Knut Day" in Berlin as polar bear cub goes public

By Madeline Chambers

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's youngest celebrity, Knut the polar bear cub, made his much-anticipated public debut at Berlin Zoo Friday and appeared unfazed by the media scrum surrounding his first excursion.

The three-and-a-half-month old white cub padded gingerly round his new enclosure to the gasps and sighs of onlookers.

Fortified by a breakfast of porridge, the puppy-sized cub sniffed the grass and rolled in the dust before delighting the crowds by splashing in a pond.

"I want to take him home," said Daniel Wolff, five, whose mother had bought him a specially made "Knut" cuddly polar bear toy on sale on a stand outside the enclosure.

Knut stole the heart of Berliners after he was born in December but rejected by his mother Tosca. A bearded zookeeper moved into the enclosure to look after him round the clock.

But Knut's fate grabbed global attention after an animal rights campaigner said hand-rearing polar bears was a violation of animal rights. German media interpreted his comments as a call for Knut to be put to sleep.

"We are not worried about Knut's future," Berlin Zoo vet Andre Schuele told reporters. "As a male he will grow big and strong. Polar bears are loners and he will be fine -- it doesn't matter that he has been hand-reared."

At least 200 journalists from around the globe gathered at the zoo for "Knut Day," and his outing threatened to overshadow the start of a major EU summit taking place in the capital at the weekend, zoo official Ragnar Kuehne said.