Santa's Living Forest

We've given Santa a new spin this year at Derrys Department Store in Plymouth.

Instead of the usual plastic elves and snowmen the management at Derrys wanted something unique for Santa's Grotto this year and we were happy to oblige. The result is “Santa's Living Forest.”

We've basically moved half of our education department – animals, staff and all – to the grotto on the second floor where visitors can see the likes of snakes, giant spiny stick insects, chipmunks, gerbils and bearded dragons (as well as the big bloke with the white beard of course).

We've been open for a few weeks now and it's been an overwhelming success with both kids and adults alike loving the novelty of it all.

You can even pick up that unique Christmas gift for the animal lover in your life. Gift certificates for our “Keeper for a day” programmes, family memberships and tours are available from our staff at the grotto at great prices for Christmas. There's no time limit on the certificates so if you're quick you can beat the price rise next year.

So, if you're in town braving the Christmas crush then why not pop in to see us? Admission is free and you don't even need to bring the kids (Santa won't mind).

An early Christmas present

In a previous blog we talked about our newly arrived reindeer, Blitzen, Comet and Donna. The troublesome trio have outgrown their head collars as they have got older, leading to the collars becoming tight in some places and loose in others. This makes it very uncomfortable for the reindeer when we walk them around the zoo. Fortunately, local business, Libby's in Plympton sell horse tack and have very kindly donated three brand new head collars which fit the reindeer far better. This means it is much more comfortable for them and has also vastly improved their training.

Since we first got them back in March, their training has improved with leaps and bounds (quite literally sometimes). When we first got them it took all of our effort to try to calm them down when we went into their enclosure. Now, they come to us eagerly for their daily walks and will allow public to slowly come up and meet them. Even Comet, the most nervous out of the three, has allowed public to stroke her. As such, we felt it was time to introduce Blitzen, Comet and Donna to a new experience. We are now offering a 'meet and greet' a couple of days a week where visitors get the chance to have an 'up close and personal' experience with them. We take them into a fenced off area with some of their favourite browse and public can come in two or three at a time and meet the reindeer.

Our aim is to have the reindeer comfortable around people, so at Christmas children will be able to come and have their photo taken with santa and his reindeer at his grotto. This is a rare experience and we are working hard to make it a success.