Volunteering for Halloween at Dartmoor Zoo
This Halloween was slightly different, as most teenagers in the years around me were now turning 18 and most of the teenage population went out on the town. Unfortunately, I still have just under 3 months until I can join them, so I searched for something else to do with my weekend...Keeley and I stumbled across an opening for volunteers to work at the zoo over the weekend and so we applied. The job required us to become "frightful characters" at Dartmoor Zoo, running a game for all of the customers to play. The aim was to create a spooky and fun filled atmosphere. It was exhausting to say the least. I had been bruised by children and seen a few cry due to my mask, but all was well and the staff members were pleased.
So pleased that we got paid for our voluntary work... and it doesn't stop there - we were also given a Meet the Tigers experience as a thank you - totally FREE! How wicked is that!
Meeting the Tigers:
The morning arose, my alarm went off at 9am sharp and I was up and ready to go. The day had arrived, not exactly a normal day in the life of me, in fact it was a very special day. Keeley came to pick me up shortly before 10am and we headed straight for Dartmoor Zoo.It felt as though I was being handed an unlimited Topshop voucher or something, I had the excitement of a 4 year old on Christmas Day! To say the least, I was grinning from ear to ear ever since I woke up. I am totally and utterly in love with big cats. I have 2 cats at home, who I treat as humans - probably better than my siblings, actually. I just couldn't hold my excitement in...
We had arrived at Dartmoor Zoo and were taken through the regs and rules... the boring part! By this point I was itching to go and boiling with buzz. Our guide for the day took us around the park and explained each animal to us, the facts around them and answered all of our questions. It was really interesting.
We had taken a long walk around the park. bumping into Sita the Cheetah and the two squeaking otters as we passed. But, it was now for the most important part of the day. We made our way up to the tigers pen and past the visitors stand. It was quite incredible actually, the tigers strolled up to the fence where we stood as if they knew something was happening.
We were guided into the hut where the tigers had climbed into, and we huddled in past the door. There he was... Stripe, the smaller tiger laid behind the door. It was amazing! I had never seen a tiger so close and so calm. Stripe just sat there, taking it all in and searching us with his eyes. Next came in Vlad, the biggest tiger - and blimey, wasn't he huge!
Both tigers behaved so well. There was a cage in which each sat in, which meant we got to get centimeters away from the beauties to take pictures, videos and inspect. They are quite clearly stunning animals, the size of their paws and tails really is fantastic. We all rushed to get our photos with each tiger, mesmerized by how they stride around the area and amazed at how calm and cuddly Stripe was.
It really was incredible. The tigers even had their own perfume!!! The guide sprayed some into each cage and the pair started to lick it off the ground, it smelt really good haha! Their fur felt like a fluffy cushion, yet so thick and lean. We weren't allowed to touch the tigers, because they would probably still eat us even though they were so calm, but tigers tend to malt quite frequently and so we were able to feel their malted fur.
Stripe continued to lay across the floor, rolling around and playing with his paws. I just wanted to leap in a cuddle them - it really was fantastic! It still doesn't quite feel real, but it was definitely the most amazing experience of my life. My heart didn't stop pounding from the moment I entered. The pictures really don't do the experience as much justice as it deserves...
We got to see the animals being fed, which was too very exciting. The staff hide the food away from the tigers, who are quick on their feet to find the luscious meat hidden in their pen. It's quite astonishing how well and behaved they are, if anything - it's only made me want a pet tiger 10x more!
I couldn't thank Dartmoor Zoo enough for the experience we had, it was truly a special day! Click here to check out their website for more details. If you're a cat lover as much as I am, then please have a read. It's honestly worth every penny!
Here are some photos from the day:
My favourite picture of the day - giving Stripe the "knucks" to signalize our friendship. Have you gave "knucks" to a tiger?
Stripe, the big teddy bear...
So I very nearly lost my bobble to Vlad... just look at how big his head is!
Stripe & I
"Give me a cuddle?" as he rolls around the pen.
Starring us out as we entered the hut
Before entering the Hut... he totally knew what was going on!
Vlad is beautiful. And huge.
Vlad & I
Keeley, Stripe & I - Family portrait
Ready to eat me by the looks of things...!
Stripe and Vlad the tigers are a very fierce and happy pair. I'm so glad I was able to share this experience with Keeley at Dartmoor Zoological Park, it was truly amazing!
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