Page 21 - Ratel 2023 Summer

Ratel volume 50, issue number 2

you don’t achieve that you’re gonna be very disappointed. And
equally if you are, if I could give advice to say you might be a brilliant
ungulate keeper but the three days you have to cover on carnivores
because somebody is sick, you suddenly go ‘oh my goodness these
cats are amazing’, you don’t know that until you try it. So don’t label
yourself too early on. My advice is understand everyone is different,
don’t set yourself too tight a target, be flexible and do everything. Longleat is supposedly the first drive through safari park outside of
Pick the litter under the stands and do it day in day out. Wash the Africa. It’s got a big draw with 57 years under its belt. I often think
pots, if you’re washing the pots really well, you will stand out. If to myself ‘why do I like it’ and I think since 1966 all the animals
you’re not washing pots and you’re leaving the sink dirty the other have changed, the people have changed, but it’s still the same thing.
keepers around you are gonna give you a label. Have self-pride, do It’s still lions in bluebells. I can still leave my office now and hear
you best. If you do your best every day, nobody can ask you lions calling and hyena howling and its pretty special. My favourite
anymore. bit is sharing my passion with other people. Many years ago we were
asked to start filming the Animal Park series. I was in the old pets
I think if I was employing (I tend not to get interview stage anymore corner and I had a snake and a barn owl that I used to use for
now), looking back at the team that I’ve managed to build over the presentations and I stood there and I was surrounded by maybe a
years I haven’t always looked for 100% animal experience. I don’t dozen people and we did the whole talk and the flying and we talk
want necessarily the one trick pony, the one person that can only about the conservation and the whole thing was brilliant. Put the
do that. I want the person that can turn their hat to everything. I owl away […] and did the snake. Really the same thing, see the kids
want the person that is trustable, dedicated, will come in late on a and adults faces. I suddenly realised to do that for a dozen people,
Sunday evening no matter what they had planned, they will be there then getting a camera stuck in my chops, viewing figures for animal
with their drill or hold the ladder. So those people are the people park now are in excess of a million per show, 9:15am in the morning
that I think stand out the most. and a million people are watching telly, that’s a million people to
share what I love about the animals here. And there are so many
good things, so many sad things, so many dramas that we live its
what happens and so what I think what I love is we are ambassadors,
we are the salesman for nature and to share what we love and to
I am quite a new on council compared to some of my other give someone that magical memory moment either through looking
volunteer colleagues. However, I have been an ABWAK member at animal or hearing about it.
and huge supporter for many years. My favourite moment so far on
council is the friendships made. It is far easier to pick a phone up
or drop a message to someone you know through being on the
ABWAK council than feel like you are on a solo journey. It is
amazing how many shared highs and lows we all experience.

I think the collection plan we have now probably reflects more about
looking forward rather than looking backwards. Having a collection
I really think the sharing of skills and networking opportunities will plan is hinged on a lot of what you’ve already got. You can’t banish
continue to get better year on year. We offer more workshops to animals. You can’t suddenly have multi-million pound exhibits
more members and have increased accessibility through being overnight. It all does take planning, particularly as a long serving
online, or being more geographically diverse than ever before. Using collection. […] So I think the collection plan going forward does
modern technology we can learn better together, chat more together look different but you have gotta have some historic loyalty. By that
and support each other more. I think ABWAK is a fantastic catalyst I mean the Lions on Longleat. This collection must have lions. So
for learning opportunities, and I want everyone at every stage of actually I can see going forward, collections like us that have held
their career to have a chance to engage and make new friends, new lions historically for a long time focus back on not just the Asians,
contacts and develop the best practices available to them. We are a this is going to be African lion 101, correct gene pool, correct
member’s community and want everyone to be involved. breeding, find out where those best lions to breed are and finding
out the collections to keep them in. […] Some of the changes that
I’ve made in our own collection plan are not necessarily about

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