Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Telling tails
ANIMAL PARK SUMMER SPECIAL
BBC1, 9.15am
CAST aside any preconceptions that this is a gentle daytime show about badgers or squirrels.
Kate Humble and Ben Fogle have been at Longleat Safari Park, where there are constantly high levels of animal drama.
This week already we’ve seen the live birth of two cheetah cubs, before the mother rejected the weaker cub which then died.
Elsewhere, two lemurs were rushed to surgery with shocking injuries and it was fight night for a couple of cave crickets.
Today’s programme doesn’t let up on the emotion as keepers are called to the cheetah cage after finding that the surviving cub has gone downhill overnight.
It’s in a poor condition, barely conscious in the corner of its cage, with mum Wilma completely ignoring it. As vets work to save the cub, it’s a tense waiting game.
Across the park, another team rushes to the aid of Stephanie, the oldest zebra in the park, who is being violently bullied by the rest of the herd. “They have actually turned on her,” explains the keeper. “It’s quite harsh to see.” Expect some tough scenes here.
Meanwhile, penguins are fighting back against a deadly disease and we meet Bert the billy goat who eats so much he’s like a Hoover. The greedy chap will need to start an exercise regime, but it proves difficult to get him motivated and the keepers need to get inventive.
With two more weeks left at Longleat, tune in every day next week for more from this wild safari park.