Episode 3 Dick 'N' Dom Go Wild

This show features highly skilled professionals,

-working with unpredictable animals.

-Do not try any of this at home!

-No!

Moo!

Did you know that right now there's people all around the country

who are working their socks off

to help wounded wildlife and poorly pets?

And we've managed to get VIP passes for some willing helpers

who are going to get stuck in at the busiest vets, wildlife sanctuaries

-and rescue centres.

-We did it!

-He's beating me!

-Ah-uh!

On today's show...

Olly and Oscar enter a secret world of wildlife babies

and get to grips with a feisty, thirsty fawn.

Keisha and Mercy turn donkey dentist,

but can they keep a straight face?

And Dom gears up to be a wildlife warden...

and then squares up to a massive mute swan.

It's tough and dirty work, but someone's got to do it!

-Eeh!

-Oh!

Deep in the southwest of England,

there's a secret hideaway where injured animals go to get well.

Sssh, welcome to Secret World.

It's the southwest's premier wildlife sanctuary.

It's not really a secret,

as it is one of the busiest wildlife rescue centres in the UK.

Pauline Kidner loves animals so much

she's turned her whole house into an animal sanctuary.

So, it's the perfect place for two game volunteers

who can't wait to dive in and help Britain's wildlife.

Meet Olly and his mate Oscar.

There's one thing these pals would truly treasure,

an animal to call their own.

I don't have any pets because my dad's a vet

and he says that some day we can have a pet,

but some day never happens.

Is that fair? Dad works all day with animals, but Olly's not allowed one.

It's a big responsibility and I do work with animals all day long.

It's not only Olly - Oscar's mum and dad don't do animals either.

I don't have any pets because my parents aren't that keen on animals.

You don't need pets when there's a place

full of wildlife to enjoy, come on!

-Now, Olly, your dad's a vet.

-Yeah.

But he won't let you near the pets at his work place.

-Both of you?

-Yeah.

-Well, you're going to see some amazing animals today

and get really close to them.

But your dad said you're not allowed near them, all right?

I'm only joking! There's some lovely animals,

we'll got and check them out, yeah? Let's go!

Olly and Oscar have a full day of action ahead of them.

It starts in Pauline's kitchen. Interesting...

-Badger cubs Flora and Bumble are the first patients.

-They're cute!

-That the first time you've seen badgers?

-Yeah.

Pauline turned her kitchen fireplace into a perfect hideaway for the cubs.

Wow, they're a bit lazy!

Little Bumble is six months old,

but she's tiny for her age because she's really poorly.

Five-month-old Flora was rescued after her mum was run over by a car.

These cubs need feeding five times a day,

and Olly and Oscar are going to be today's in-house chefs.

-OK, you ready to do some food?

-Yup.

We just pull that one down, that's it.

So, what's on the boys' badger menu?

Eggs? Cake and biscuits?!

Peanut butter?!

What's going on here?

-Oscar, what are you doing? Making my tea?

-No.

-OK, what are you doing?

I'm making sandwiches for the badgers.

I thought badgers were vegetarians,

and that doesn't look like vegetables.

They're not an animal that hunts like a fox. Earth worms, fruit,

that's their natural food, but they will sometimes eat small animals

if that food isn't available.

What an effort from Olly. He's all over this job even though,

like me, he doesn't eat meat.

-What have you been doing?

-Cutting up sausages and chicken.

-For a vegetarian, that's not ideal, is it?

-No!

Not very nice, but that's a very dedicated thing to do.

-Yes, done very well.

-Just think how much the badgers will enjoy it.

-Mmm.

Top effort, chaps!

And there's so much more to come! Have the boys got what it takes

to sort out Bumble's painful, dry, poorly paws? Aww!

But first, let's hot-foot it over to Dick

at the Donkey Sanctuary in Devon.

Find out what he has in store for his eager helpers.

If you ever find a donkey down in the doldrums,

then this is the place to come.

The staff have a huge task on their hands,

but today they have two helpers. Will they be able to handle it?

Meet best mates Mercy and Keisha.

Any wildlife in your neck of the woods, Mercy?

I live in London, in Tottenham,

and you don't see much wildlife in Tottenham.

The animals I don't like is snakes, bears, spiders, dogs...

What about you, Keisha?

I don't really like most animals.

Lions, tigers, spiders, dogs...

These girls have yet to name an animal they really love,

but I've heard they're well up for donkey duties. Game on!

The Donkey Sanctuary in Devon

cares for these lovely creatures who have hit hard times.

Donkeys are intelligent, sensitive, chilled out animals.

A perfect choice to show the girls that animal work

can be a right laugh, and very rewarding, too.

-Keisha, Mercy, how you doing?

-Fine.

-Welcome to the Donkey Sanctuary!

-Keisha, never been to the countryside?

-No.

-Like what you see?

-Yeah.

-Mercy, do you like animals?

Not ones that are big and stinky.

Ah, well, you're at a donkey sanctuary, donkeys can whiff a bit.

-Ready?

-Yeah!

-Let's go!

There we are, girls, look. Donkeys!

-Come hither. Hello, Jan.

-Hello!

-Good morning.

-This is Keisha and Mercy. Who have we got here?

Dennis here, and Heidi's hiding behind us.

Do you want to stroke? No, not ready for that yet.

Fascinating donkey fact one -

their big ears are the easiest way to tell them apart from horses.

-What are they doing first?

-Some hard work for you today.

-We've got poo picking first.

-Poo picking and sweeping, girls.

Fascinating donkey fact two - they poo a lot.

As the girls are finding out.

If you make a start here, bit of a squelchy one there for you.

Disgusting!

You're not kidding, Keisha!

Keep it quite close to the poo you want to pick up. Then scrape it in.

It's just disgusting!

It smells like, um...

-Poo.

-It's only chewed up grass, girls.

Donkeys nosh up to three kilograms of grass and hay every day.

It has to go somewhere.

They poo too much!

Top poop clean-up, girls,

but there's still loads more donkey business to follow.

Will Keisha and Mercy be able to handle it?

Olly and Oscar are turning into full on animal angels

at the wildlife rescue centre.

Poorly badger cubs Flora and Bumble are the first patients for the day.

Now the boys need to help check the weight of the badgers.

First of all we'll put the weight of the box, which is 44. Write down 44.

Hopefully their jam sarnie breakfast will help fatten up the cubs.

First into the air-holed weighing box is Flora.

Right up there. Then you need to tell me how much it weighs.

Olly keeps a record.

-300...

-350.

-3 ½ kilos?

Wow, she's more than doubled her weight in less than three weeks.

Bumble has a condition that is stopping her growing properly.

The illness makes the skin on her paws dry and sore.

-The boys use soothing cream to make her feel better.

-That's it.

That's good, cos she's turning her foot for you as well.

Right in between her toes.

She's got such long claws, hasn't she? But they're so sore.

I'll get some more.

OK.

Well done.

In you go, little one.

There we go.

I expect that cream makes her feet feel nice and soft now,

to what they were. You've done a good job there, haven't you?

With their bellies full of jam sarnies,

all snug in the fireplace cubby hole,

it's time for Bumble and Flora to have a bit of a kip. Aaah!

Things turn really creepy for Olly and Oscar later.

Will they cope in the tent with five bats for company?

-There's one on the floor.

-Wahey!

Over at the Donkey Sanctuary,

Keisha and Mercy have almost finished their donkey dirt clear-up.

One last thing, a health check on ten-year-old Ned,

using - you guessed it - donkey doo!

Right, girls. State of the donkey's poo can tell us quite a bit

about the condition and the health of the donkey.

-What do you think? Want to have a touch?

-No!

Nice and firm, you don't fancy that?

-If we break it open, what can you see?

-Wet.

-Yes. That's really good,

cos obviously they've got to have enough moisture.

If they haven't got enough moisture,

they can't pass the droppings through and out.

-It doesn't look like normal poo.

-And it stinks a bit!

The girls have worked so hard,

but they've not managed to get their hands on a donkey yet.

But here comes Ned, he really wants to say hello,

and the girls are looking interested.

He loves meeting new people.

Do you want to give him a touch, see what he feels like?

That's it.

THE GIRLS GIGGLE

-He's quite nice and warm, isn't he?

-Yeah.

-Is he coarse or soft?

-Soft.

-Yeah, most people are surprised at how soft donkeys are.

Get in, girls!

They might have started off nervous of Ned and his pongy pals,

but they've got their tails up now. Great work!

But will Keisha and Mercy end up tongue tied

when they do donkey dentistry at the sanctuary?

Eurgh!

We shall find out later.

But first, Dom has a swan to sort out. And I even help...a bit.

Isn't it lovely? Just the two of us,

-getting away from all those animal antics...

-Duck!

-What?

-No, not Dick, duck! Large, big, white duck.

-That's a mute swan!

Oh, yes! Who'd get that confused? Duck and a swan?

-Come and meet Claire.

-Oh.

Ah, Claire, what have you got for us? Well, him, to be more precise?

-We're going to bag a swan.

-Swans, yeah, been there before. Easy!

-So, when you say "bag a swan"...

-Put a swan in a bag,

to check him out and move him to a nice clean pool.

This mute swan was found with an injured wing.

We need to help Claire get him netted, so the vet can check out

if the injury is healing properly.

If the swan is recovered,

it could be ready to return to the river where it was found.

It's a tough task, this.

I provide the work clothes for Dom, so he can do the swan catching bit.

-Deal. Great outfit.

-You're trying to make me look like a swan.

Um, yes. I am.

I'm not wearing this anymore!

Right, you get on with the swan catching, and I'll help by...

finding out some swan facts.

Let's do it, I'm all ready.

-Which one are we going for?

-The one on the water.

This one, the mean looking sucker!

Amazing, swans have a wingspan of up to 2½ metres. Steady on, Dom.

-He knows, doesn't he?

-He does know.

-He's had it done before.

-Not the net again!

-Are we all set?

-Almost, Dom!

-From the back, backwards?

-That's the one, that's great. Right.

-Steady him.

-OK.

-Lovely.

Now, Dom here is in the capable hands of Claire.

So, please DO NOT try and catch a swan yourself!

Oh, my goodness!

I haven't got hold, he's beating me!

It says here that swans weigh around 13 kilos,

making them one of the heaviest flying birds on the planet.

"Hello, Mum!" Stop showing off. I told you, it's silly!

The bag helps keep the swan nice and calm for the journey ahead.

It's harder work than it looks.

He's all bagged up for you now.

Bring him in and we can get him weighed and checked over.

The latest LA accessory,

forget small dogs in bags, I've got a swan in a bag.

Top job! Swan, bag, done. Work that floor.

Hopefully the vet will give our swan the all clear

and he can be released.

-Well done.

-Thanks for all your help(!)

-Duck!

-No, no, Dick.

No, duck.

Mmm, nutty.

Olly and Oscar are busy caring for poorly badgers

at a busy wildlife rescue centre.

These boys don't hang around. This bat does, though.

It's a noctule bat, recovering here after being found in a garden,

injured and unable to fly.

The boys have got their tweezers at the ready.

-Who's this and what are we going to do?

-OK, this is Fred.

He's a noctule bat, and he's getting very excited,

because I think he knows he's about to be fed.

-You ready to give him food?

-Yeah!

-One at a time.

DING!

It's fight night!

In the white corner, Fred "The Flapper" Bat!

In the green corner is the challenger Mealy "The Wiggler" Worm!

It promises to be the fight of the century. Who will win?

Oh, right.

-Look at that.

-Tearing his face to pieces.

-It's not a good way to go, is it?

-No.

It's your back end and then it's coming down to his head.

-His head's gone.

-It's gone.

Go on! Get it down you, Freddy!

Or you can take your time. Any time. Now?

This is a good opportunity to tell you that some bats

eat up to 3,000 insects in a night.

Though, how they have time

after this display is anyone's guess. Go on, good lad!

BURP!

Pardon you!

More bats need the boys' help. These are two-month-old pipistrelle bats,

they're almost back to their full health

and could soon be free in the wild.

First we need to check they can fly at night.

How do we test that in the middle of the day?

You use a custom-built indoor night-sky-imitating

bat testing flying area, of course.

Otherwise known as a tent.

-Are the boys allowed to be in there?

-They are, yes.

-Great.

Keep nice and still.

This is going to be a first for all of us. Me, the boys and the bats.

This is the pipistrelles' very first test flight.

If their flight muscles aren't strong enough,

they'll have to wait for their return to the wild.

We've got the pipistrelles in here,

they're going to fly for the first time.

I've got a night vision camera to try and film them. Go away!

Bats can carry some nasty diseases,

so if you ever see one injured and lying around, don't touch it.

Ask an adult to call your nearest animal rescue centre instead.

Boys, can you help me by keeping an eye where they all go?

A sticky start. Our bats seem more interested in just hanging around.

The boys need to encourage them to flap those wings and fly.

It's really dark in here.

The boys are doing their best to get the bats flapping,

but Oscar's a little nervous.

Think I just need more confidence.

It's your first time seeing a bat, ever.

Confidence will come the more you're around them.

-I think you're doing well.

-I think you are. You're very brave.

Then they're off! Wow, look at them go!

He's landed on you!

Well done!

-Can the boys hold one?

-You can.

Pipistrelles are the smallest bats in Britain,

they weigh less than a 2p piece!

Wahey!

Now, with the boys' help,

these bats are one step closer to being released back into the wild.

-That feels...

-You can hardly feel it, can you?

-Yay!

-That feels really good, I really like bats now.

-Good.

Cracking effort, Oscar!

An amazing, if slightly scary, experience for everyone.

Oscar, how are you feeling about the bats?

At the beginning I was a little scared,

but I think I've conquered my fear. I like bats.

I think you probably have. There's one on your back. I'm joking!

Our boys are heading for a sensational reward

for all their hard work later.

Oh, yes. Imagine hand feeding a baby deer?

I think they're just gorgeous!

Keisha and Mercy are helping out at the Donkey Sanctuary in Devon.

There's loads of work for the girls here,

and next up is a job I'm not looking forward to.

This is Keisha and Mercy and this is the dentist, am I right?

-Yup, you're quite right.

-We're going to do some dentistry!

Mmm, seems the girls are in a state of shock.

I'm not surprised! Donkeys have up to 44 huge teeth,

so the girls are in for a long appointment.

First in the chair is two-year-old May,

who was found neglected and covered with lice and mites.

-Little stroke.

-Come and stroke her, she might move her legs a bit

cos there's a few flies around. Don't worry, give her a stroke.

May's big gnashers need a careful close-up inspection.

They reach as far back as the level of her eye. Right the way back here.

She will have some sharp edges on those teeth.

-Will we get bitten?

-No. I won't let you get bitten.

The dentist uses a special gag to keep May's mouth open.

Oh, ouch!

But it's painless and will help calm her.

-How often do they go to the dentist?

-Every six months.

Do you get a sticker after?!

Say, "Aaaagh!"

Eurgh! Look at that tongue,

it's a giant 30 centimetres from tip to tonsils.

-Ooh!

-Eh?

It's so disgusting!

Donkeys use their big tongues to shovel grass and hay

to their back teeth, where it's ground down and then scoffed.

May's needs a mega mouth wash

to help clear some of the munched grass that's left behind.

A fast jet-stream of antiseptic water should blast it away.

-Think she likes it?

-Yeah!

At last, clean gnashers and, after a thorough examination...

..it's an all clear.

Great, you've done an excellent job.

We can give her a clean bill of health.

Next in the dentist's chair, it's May's old mate Molly.

The bottom ones are much, much longer than the top ones,

which is a bit weird.

Good spot, Keisha.

Unlike ours, donkey and horse teeth never stop growing.

That's why we call old horses long in the tooth.

-Wouldn't be very nice if we had teeth like that, would it?

-No.

Molly and May had a terrible life before they were checked in here.

They were very underweight,

they had a lot of lice and they had worms, also.

Why would someone be so horrible to a donkey?

In some instances it might be that they just don't know how

to look after them, which is where the sanctuary can help.

-Cos they're cute, aren't they?

-Yeah.

-Not big and stinky?

-No.

-So you like them?

-Yeah.

-We're getting there! This way!

It gets so much better, the girls are going to be blown away

when they get a chance to help Ivor, the tiny foal, with a big heart.

Can you hear the heart?

Duh-duh-duh. That's the noise it's making!

Argh!

But first, mice... of the edible variety.

I won't say it again. You don't belong here.

-I'm going to eat every single one of you.

-Dom!

-Hm?

-These are chocolate mice!

These are the glis glis, also known as edible dormice.

They ones I was telling you about.

-Oh, yeah, little rodents that don't actually live in Britain.

-Correct!

They only used to live abroad,

and then a few escaped into the wild here.

Now, tens of thousands of them live all over the south of England!

-Nuts!

-No, these are nuts.

Romans used to feed glis glis with walnuts

and then scoff the nutty critters at posh banquets. Delicious!

Oh, that's why they're called edible dormice!

Glis glis!

Oscar and Olly have had a top day at the wildlife rescue centre.

Their hard work is going to be rewarded with a very special job.

Hi, we've got bottles of milk. One for each of us?

Bottles of milk for the baby fawns, which are little baby deer

that have come in as orphans and are still taking bottles.

They're very nervous, you have to be quiet and calm.

-A bottle for everyone?

-For you.

-Thank you.

-You.

-Thank you.

-We'll go and feed them.

-Great, good luck.

Fawns are often found alone in woods and brought to rescue centres.

Sometimes Mum is just out looking for food, so don't pick up a baby deer

if you discover one yourself.

We need to be quiet so we don't spook these three-week-old babies.

-Give him his bottle.

-Red, the red deer, is coming on fine.

Look at that! Really thirsty little fella!

George is a smaller roe deer. A little timid, but doing great.

I really like the deer, they're really cute.

I think they're just gorgeous.

There's going to be lots of people watching at home, going,

"I want a deer as my pet!" Surely it's not possible?

No, they need an awful lot of space

and they are naturally nervous wild animals.

So are they going to be released into the wild together or separately?

Hopefully together, even though they're a different species,

they've been together as a little group. They interact together,

-we wouldn't want to separate them.

-Right.

The fawns need to be bottle fed milk three times per day,

until they are three months old.

-So, how have you found the day? Good?

-Awesome.

-Really enjoying it?

-Yeah.

Good. I know you were animal crazy before,

-but now you're off the scale?

-Super!

-Yeah.

I thought today was absolutely amazing,

-and probably the best experience of my life.

-Great! That's really good.

-And, Olly?

-Same.

-Do you think your dad will let you have a pet now?

-Hopefully, yeah!

Fabulous feeding, chaps! A job truly well done.

Keisha and Mercy have really got into the swing

of their donkey work at the sanctuary.

But we've saved the best until last.

Time to meet Ivor the two-week-old foal.

His mum, Domino, arrived here

after being rescued from a field with no shelter.

-Awww!

-Oh, my gosh!

-That's so cute!

I think it's amazing! I think it's beautiful.

Keisha and Mercy need to assist vet Elena Barrio

complete Ivor's very first health check.

He's really soft and fluffy and he's really cute.

-I think he's just great.

-He is, isn't he?

-Really fluffy.

The girls help make sure that Ivor knows how to feed properly.

You can put your finger through here to see if he's suckling.

Remember, the girls have an expert to help them.

-Please, don't try this yourselves.

-How does it feel?

-Weird!

-Do you think he'll be able to drink milk?

-Yeah.

Now the girls are allowed a rare treat.

Time to listen to Ivor's tiny heart.

Can you hear the heart?

Duh-duh-duh, that's the noise it's making!

Well played, girls! Ivor has a clean bill of health.

There's just time for a drop of milk from Mum.

It's been a long old day for Ivor, Domino and Keisha and Mercy.

-You thought donkeys were covered in flies and smelt a bit?

-Yeah.

How do you feel about them now?

I think they're great, and not covered in flies.

-They're fun and lovely to brush.

-Yeah.

-And beautiful.

-Aw!

We've sorted you out, what about you, Mercy?

You thought that they were big, stinky animals.

-What do you think of them now?

-I really like them,

and I think they're cute and I don't think they're stinky.

-They're really nice, gentle and cute.

-Get in!

Get in!

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