The chance to experience being a zookeeper for a day
RESEARCH suggests that being a zoo keeper is in the top five list of dream jobs for boys, girls and grown-ups in the UK and now animal lovers have the chance to make that dream come true as Drayton Manor Park launches its brand new ‘Zoo Keeper for the Day’ experience.
At the 15-acre zoo in Staffordshire, visitors can see over 750 animals of 130 different species from all over the world. Rare and endangered species are able to thrive and breed safely, including newest additions Obie the baby Tapir, Kit and Leo, twin CottonTop Tamarins, and two baby Pygmy Marmosets, born in June. The zoo is actively involved in a number of conservation projects both locally and internationally and also provides educational workshops for children, plus research opportunities and work experience for students.
Joining the experts, lucky novice zoo keepers will don their boots and overalls before getting stuck into the day-to-day tasks of maintaining the welfare of the animals they care for, including monkeys, reptiles and cheeky meerkats.
Chris Mitchell, head of zoo operations, said: “It’s a real privilege to care for such amazing creatures and I know for many people it will be a dream come true to shadow our team for the day and play a real part in caring for these animals. We’re really looking forward to welcoming our first keeper!”
Learning all about the different species and their needs, as well as the amazing conservation work at Drayton Manor Zoo, rookie keepers will be given a rare, behind the scenes opportunity to get up close with the animals and will be involved in creating enrichment activities, feeding and cleaning out the enclosures.
Chris added: “This is a dream job for me and people are always really keen to find out more when they discover what I do. Keepers will often be the first point of contact for visitors to the zoo too, so we get asked a lot of questions throughout the day and it’s great to see the excitement and enthusiasm of children and adults alike when they’re learning about the work that we’re doing, particularly our important conservation work and breeding programmes.”
Those who become a ‘Zoo Keeper for the Day’ are expected to be really hands on to allow a very real insight into what it takes to maintain a clean, engaging and happy environment for the zoo’s precious animals. Mucking out is an essential part of the job so those with a sensitive nose might want to think twice before applying!
To book a ‘Zoo Keeper for the Day’ experience, visit https:// www. draytonmanor. co. uk/ zookeeper-for-the-day or call 0844 472 1950.
The research was conducted by FlyResearch between July 7 and 14, 2016 among 1,013 parents and 1,013 children aged three to 12 years old in the UK.
Zoo Keeper for the Day experience is open to over 18s only. See website for full T&Cs - https:// www. draytonmanor. co. uk/ zookeeper-for-the-day