PETA, the radical animal rights organization, known for its headline-grabbing stunts to put people off wearing furs, says that Knut, Germany's most famous animal, should face one of the cruellest cuts of all.

As a cub, Knut won the hearts of millions around the world after being rejected by his mother, to be successfully hand-reared in Berlin Zoo by his keeper, Thomas Doerflein, who slept on a mattress next to his crate each night.

The Knut Cult

Knut's fame was such that when he was presented to the public for the first time, on March 23, 2007, around 500 journalists from all over the world attended.

But fame is fickle and now the German branch of People for Ethical Treatment of Animals, says that Knut should be castrated because he is currently sharing an enclosure with Gianna, who came to Berlin from Munich last year to keep Knut company.

Frank Albrecht, the group's zoo expert, has noted that Gianna and Knut have the same grandfather and are thus first cousins.

Expert says castration necessary

He says that any offspring would risk suffering from a condition known as "incest depression".

Albrecht has commented on Knut before. At the time of Knut's public debut, Germany's popular Bild newspaper quoted him saying that Knut should have been killed rather than been raised as a "domestic pet."

This led to a national campaign with groups of children picketing the Berlin Zoo carrying placards reading "Knut Must Live."

Albrecht, however, later insisted that he had been quoted out of context and that he had never really called for Knut's death.

td/AFP/APN
Editor: Michael Lawton