Today I joined the Children's Zoo team. My first thought was the typical goats, pigs and rabbits, but I was surprised to find they also cared for the animals in the Wanyama Village. This African reserve, home to meerkats, porcupines, zebra, oryx and many more, is where I spent most of my day.
First task was the morning feeds and cleans. Here I was introduced to the capybara, the largest living rodent in the world. They look like huge guinea-pigs with long legs, and if you know me well you will know guinea-pigs have always held a place close to my heart. The capybara are not shy animals, and will happily sit next to you taking food from you hand. The youngsters were even brave enough to sniff my bright blue wellies, which they seemed to be rather interested in!
Capybara. Photo by: Robert Verzo
Also living with the Capybara were a group of mara, and here I was introduced to Stig. Stig had been hand reared so his nature was much more tame than his very nervous family. As we brought over his food he was eagerly sniffing at the door waiting for us.
We then headed on down to the Porcupines, and Jon told me about their unusual and very terrifying sound they make! As we entered their house I was surprised at just how large they are, with their huge quills standing on end they look like very intimidating animals! As Jon got close they started shaking their quills, making a noise very similar to that of a rattlesnake, but then they erupted into a chorus of noise. I jumped out of my skin. The rattling was immense, loud booming vocal noises. It would definitely be enough to send any predator on its way!
Crested Porcupine. Photo by: Drew Avery
We finished off the final cleans, which included the meerkats, agouti, dwarf mongoose and chipmunks, and then started on the food prep. This was a task and a half! The capybara alone eat two huge buckets of fruit and veg, twice a day! Armed with a knife and list I got to work chopping their food into bite size chunks. Jon was then eager to tell me how much he loved the smell of parsnips, but when I gave it a sniff all I could smell was earthy raw vegetable. Yuck. So I dared him to eat this lovely smelling raw parsnip. He chopped a chunk off and popped it into his mouth. A few munches and he quickly screwed up his face and made a dash for the bin. It was hilarious! I had put him off his favourite veg for life!.....Well.....he definitely wouldn't be eating it raw again anyway!
In the afternoon we revamped a couple of enclosures with more sand, and here I got to meet Charlie, a hand reared meerkat. He eagerly rushed up to the door and Jon quickly scooped him up. He loved having his belly tickled and playfully nibbled on his fingers. Then he passed him across to me. He was absolutely adorable, with soft fur and a cute little nose, you couldn't help but fall in love!
Meerkat. Photo by: davidhc
I also got to meet a red squirrel, some very cheeky skunks, a couple of noisy pigs and some naughty goats. I am very excited for the adventure to continue tomorrow....I am on the carnivore section! Yippie!!!
