Happy Birthday DZP

It’s July 7^th and we’re celebrating our Fifth Birthday so we thought it might be interesting to briefly reflect on how many ways DZP is just like a typical 5 year old...

We’re growing Fast - the output of our research department has recently more than quadrupled. We now conduct research projects at all academic levels across a broad range of subjects and we have fantastic relationships with a growing number of respected educational institutions. Our education department has also more than doubled its involvement with local schools and colleges offering an increasingly diverse range of tailor-made educational programmes including our award-winning Enterprise Challenge. And our collection has grown to include lechwe and waterbuck antelope, ostrich, Dartmoor ponies, white naped cranes, Bennett’s and Palma wallabies and not forgetting our most recent arrival, Luta the baby tapir. Developments are also underway to add zebra before the end of this year.

We’re resilient - Like any five year old we’ve seen our share of bumps and scrapes – perhaps more so than most. We’ve had to bounce back from some of the wettest summers on record, most of which damage more than just visitor numbers (even today the rain has reduced visitor numbers to a trickle of brave souls and wreaked several thousand pounds worth of damage). We've had catastrophic fresh water and electrical system failures and unexpected vital veterinary interventions that put major stress on available funds. And of course, like any other small business, we’ve been knocked around by the volatile economy, but we’re still on our feet.

We’re making new friends - Well we’ve been doing that since we started, but now we can say that we have a really strong group of reliable friends. A growing number of local companies have stepped up to provide much needed support over the years and we’re proud to number them among our friends. Also, we were recently confirmed as full members of the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA). With full membership we are now a fully participating member of the wider zoological community.

We have big dreams - With a wish-list that includes a radically redesigned visitor access route, a nocturnal house and indoor kids play area, giraffe and elephant exhibits (but don’t tell the local authority), and a whole new research centre, our dreams are always big. But like any five year old we’re also expecting to continue to deal with the occasional nightmare.

Amazing Stoat Rescue

As many of our visitors have come to appreciate, one of Dartmoor Zoo's best assets is its wonderful, woodland setting. We do our best to keep is as natural as possible to encourage local wildlife. Recently our efforts were rewarded when we managed to capture on film a fascinating example of nature at work.

Two baby stoats had managed to find themselves exposed and without parental protection right in the middle of our walk-through enclosure.

At the time we were getting some footage for our Behind the Scenes DVD with Dominic from Viewhear. As our curator, Colin Northcott explains, we were incredibly luck to witness the events at all, let alone catch them on film.

A Dream Night to Remember

We’re proud to announce our first Dream Night at the Zoo event which will be held on Friday 15^th June 2012.

Dream Night at the Zoo is a Dutch based global charity that encourages Zoo’s worldwide to open up free of charge, to children with profound illnesses and/or disabilities.

On Friday 15^th June we will open the doors to DZP to some specially invited kids along with their families to be treated as VIP’s for the night.

The Dream Night project started in Rotterdam Zoo in 1996, and has since been taken up around the world and now almost 250 zoos set aside one day a year in the name of the charity.

Dartmoor Zoo became a partner earlier this year and we set about recruiting partners to help deliver a night to remember. The following local companies and institutions generously agreed to give their time:

Devon Vintage car Club

The Devon, Cornwall and Somerset emergency services

West Country Falconry

Hiphops Bunnies

Plymouth Wow Balls

Mike Snook Disco

Musician Mike Jelly

Mark’s Magic

Together, they’re helping us to provide a wide range of activities and entertainment on the night, including face painting, magic, falconry, dancing and live music. And nobody will go hungry thanks to catering supplies company 3663 who have generously agreed to provide all the food and drink.

Our special guests for the evening will be coming from the Dame Hannah Trust in Ivybridge, Little Harbour Children’s Hospice in St. Austell, and A4e Independent Living Service in Plymouth, and asked them to invite children on our behalf to the event. All have expressed great interest and excitement, and we hope to have 150 people on the night.

All DZP staff have very kindly offered to volunteer their services on the night, we’ll be doing our best to give these children a night to remember.

(You can find out more about Dream Night at the Zoo at http://www.dreamnightatthezoo.nl/)

UPDATE:
The Dream Night was a grea\t success! Many thanks to all that helped to make it happen. Here's a selection of photographs from the night:

Beaver Fever

Head Keeper Mike saying farewell

It was about 10am on a Sunday morning when we got a call from a local farmer asking if we'd lost a beaver.

Well, we don't have beaver in our collection. A beaver is a bit of a specialist with some very particular talents, and containing them is no simple task. Like all our animals, we'd have to provide them with the most natural habitat in which to display a full range of natural behaviour and frankly we're all really attached to our trees.

Anyway, the beaver in question was found under a tractor in the farmer's yard not far from here. Not sure of how to proceed, the farmer did the right thing and called the RSPCA. But before the officer arrived the beaver decided to scurry off into a nearby barn and land himself in a whole lot of mess - cow poo.

Undeterred, the officer waded in and managed to contain him in a portable dog kennel. Keep in mind that the beaver is a very dense muscular beast with a fearsome set of teeth and attitude to match and you'll realise just how brave that officer was.

From there it was a short trip to DZP where our staff were on alert for the new arrival. Cleaning him up was a priority so that we could check him for any signs of injury. More importantly we had to make sure he didn't ingest any nasty bugs through personal grooming. Staff managed to do that very carefully, doing a thorough job whilst keeping him calm and not losing any fingers.

Once clean he appeared to be in good health, if a little grumpy. The next step was to get him into quarantine and keep a close eye on him. After a few essential modifications (steel plate on the door) a vacant stable was ideal for the task.

Throughout this process he was quite vocal in his disapproval and proving to be a bit of a feisty character keeping our keepers very much on their toes; all very good indicators of his health and well-being.

All this time we were wondering, "where did he come from?" - the beaver is not indigenous. They were hunted to extinction here around 400 years ago.

Because the beaver was once a part of the British landscape, experts have in recent years considered its reintroduction. A recent report on a reintroduction programme in Scotland has produced differing opinions on whether or not this is a good idea. More locally, Devon Wildlife Trust have been conducting a controlled experiment involving two beavers at a secret location in North Devon. But neither of these projects explained our new arrival.

In 2008, three beavers escaped from a farm in nearby Lifton. Two were recovered, but the third, a big male called Igor, managed to evade recapture. After a little head-scratching we decided that this was the most likely explanation; Igor's days as a fugitive were finally over. What a great story!

Unfortunately, we were able to write off that possibility fairly quickly simply by talking to Igor's keepers. Apparently he was a 35 kilo monster whilst our fella was about 20 at most - only a youngster. This didn't seem to bother some of the national press who didn't let that fact get in the way of a good story.

So, the question remains. It appears that our beaver is a youngster, around two years old. This is the age at which they'd be leaving the family group to strike out and find a territory of their own. If they stick to the river they can easily cover large distances undisturbed, but it seems this one was a little less conventional and decided to explore the farmer's yard.

Of course, if this is true then mum, dad and younger siblings must be somewhere nearby. But where?

We're happy to report that the young beaver has had a bit of help finding his new residence, back at the scene of the 2008 escape in Lifton. The team there were keen to help out and we're confident that they'll give him the best possible care.

So, if you're out and about in the wilds and waterways of Devon, keep an eye open for fallen trees - you might spot a long lost resident making himself at home again.

Zoo Peter!

Milo and Ella with Blue Peter presenter, Helen

We recently welcomed one of television's most prestigious programmes to DZP to capture the essence of our ever-increasing fame and popularity.

The programme in question was of course, Blue Peter, a feature of childhood for over 50 years! Excitement was rife here at DZP as we've all grown up with this legendary programme and we were honoured to welcome them.

Blue Peter's fondness of animals is a characteristic evident in every past presenter, regardless of the generation you're from. One of the presenters for this generation and one of the most recognisable women on British television, Helen Skelton, came to see what it's like being a part of DZP and spend the day with Milo and Ella Mee, along with the 200 animals that famously changed their lives.

TV crews and cameras are not a strange sight for Milo and Ella, who both agree that it feels "special" seeing yourself and your home on television. However this did not alter their excitement upon realising that the blonde haired woman walking towards them was Helen. Milo recalls saying "Is that Helen? Yes it is!". Ella's disbelief was much more subtle.

They were both quick to mention how enthusiastic they were about the prospect of meeting Helen and appearing on Blue Peter, "I used to watch it all the time before our TV broke!" says Ella. One disappointment added by Ella was that during a meeting with the director on the day before the whole crew arrived, he said he'd be bringing the current Blue Peter dog, Barney, which Ella was very much looking forward to. Unfortunately Barney couldn't make it and Ella insists that it did not dampen the day.

The day commenced with Milo and Ella being woken up 10 minutes before the crew arrived! They were rushed through the morning routine and promptly met the Blue Peter crew near the bears' enclosure. Next, they accompanied the crew as they shot some behind the scenes footage of the keepers unpacking the fruit and veg for that day.

The day involved lots of walking around for the cameras with shots being taken again and again. "You had to do things more than once, which was kind of like being on a TV show" as an actress, as oppose to a guest. Similarly, when asked to talk through how he found the day with Blue Peter, Milo simply exclaimed "Out-takes!"

As the day progressed, the animals of the zoo were involved more. Helen, Milo and Ella were at the centre of public talks involving the Coati, Meerkats and Otters. The female Otter, Attitude, clearly didn't take kindly to sharing the limelight as she lived up to her name by screaming, prompting Ella to ask, with a hint of sarcasm "Can anybody guess which one is Attitude?".

The Coati were much more forgiving, and allowed all three into the enclosure, needless to say, food was exchanged with the Coati as a bribe. Inside the Coati enclosure, Helen conducted an interview with Milo and Ella. Milo found the experience to be enjoyable, as such close encounters with the animals are not often allowed, and the Coati are among his favourites. When questioned about spending the day with Helen, Ella replied "It was amazing, similar to the Matt Damon 'thing', very unusual but fun".

The day was nearly over but it wouldn't be right to come to DZP without paying a personal visit to our big cats; the largest selection in the South West. They made their way to the tiger enclosure occupied by Vlad, Blotch and Stripe and entered the tiger house where all three beasts were waiting for them... Soon after their safe escape, it was time to feed the tigers. Exactly what they'd be fed was unbeknown to Helen. As she grabbed the ambiguous meat, she turned to Ella inquisitively and asked "What is this?". Ella,  said nonchalantly "A horse's neck". Helen got to grips with this disturbing yet understandable concept and placed the meat in the enclosure, ready for the tigers to feast. With authorised clearance, there was a call over the radio system... "Release the tigers!" And with that they came out of their house and went straight for their food. Job done.

After a busy day in the shoes (or wellies!) of a DZP employee, they retired to the Jaguar Restaurant for refreshments. Shortly after arriving, Milo and Ella were presented with the illustrious prize of Blue Peter badges. "It felt good getting one," said Ella. "But I want a gold one!" Milo added "We only thought Dad would get one, but now we get to do free stuff!". Clearly the hot chocolate was reward in itself and perhaps the majesty of the sacred Blue Peter badge is best understood and appreciated by those who may not watch the show now, but certainly remember it fodnly for its influence during their own childhood.

A great time was had by all those involved, Helen even purchased a souvenir from the gift shop. When asked about her day at DZP she responded with characteristic elation and modesty, saying "It was amazing, what I do isn't really a 'job'". Thank you to Blue Peter for this experience, from everyone at DZP.