Episode 7 Dick 'N' Dom Go Wild

This show features trained professionals working

with dangerous animals.

Do not try anything you are about to see yourselves.

Did you know that now,

right now, there are people all around the UK who are working

their socks off to help wounded wildlife and poorly pets?

We've managed to get VIP parties for willing helpers to get stuck in

at the busiest vets, wildlife sanctuaries and rescue centres.

Rats!

It's tough and dirty work, but somebody has got to do it.

On today's show,

William and Josh are flying high with young owls.

Nice job! Well done!

Aina and Alisa muck in and lead Blue the Shetland to pastures new.

He should be excited.

He's going to go to a new home with new friends.

And I kick up a right stink at the doggie dentist.

-I don't want to smell...

-Get in there!

-It's part of your training.

HE MOANS

Are you all right?

Yeah. I thought I'd do some animal calls. Animal noises.

-Ah right, go on, then.

-OK.

Watch this.

HE SQUEALS

What's that?

-That's a badger that's a bit upset.

-Ah, good lad.

GROWLING

I had no idea you could do it too. Really good.

Let me guess. An elephant kissing itself.

That was my breakfast.

Here at Wildwood, they are dedicated to Britain's

more rare native species.

I mean, walking around this impressive 40-acre site

you can see all sorts of animals.

Badgers, and in the scientific world they are known as Meles Meles

or even wolves. Scientific term is Canis Lupus.

See? What I'm after is one of Britain's more elusive creatures,

the Childo Helpalotacus,

otherwise known as helpful children.

I spotted some.

And on the spot today are William and Josh.

William is a big fan of exotic animals.

But he's not a liker of what lives in the UK.

Sometimes I think places like Brazil are sort of, like, showing off

their cool features while we are stuck with deers

and pigeons that pooh on my mum's head.

Josh likes things crawly and creepy,

but hasn't had luck with furry things.

I've seen a few foxes wandering around the street

and a dead fox by the roadside.

I've seen dead squirrels.

Dead rabbits.

We can do better than that.

To Wildwood and, yes, there is plenty of wild stuff that

lives in the woods.

William, Josh. How you doing, boys? You all right?

-Yeah.

-Good, welcome to the show.

-I've got a treat for you William, apple.

-I don't exactly want it.

-Why not?

-A worm came out of one once.

-You found a worm in an apple?

-Yes!

Well, it's British wildlife. What more could you want?!

-Josh, you think European wildlife is more interesting, yeah?

-Yeah.

Well it's not, OK? British wildlife is fantastic.

We are going to get you into it.

Look, here's some glamorous outfits. Put them on.

Get changed. I will see you out here in a minute, all right?

Pronto. Go!

Check out this ace ancient forest.

There are more than 50 brill species ranging from wee little water voles

to big, not so bad, wolves.

A lot of the animals here are endangered in the UK.

Some don't even live in the wild here any more.

So, come on, chaps, time to swing into action, all change!

Hey, we're not messing around here.

It's straight to the big, brilliant stuff for our boys

with wildlife expert, Peter.

Wow, look at them.

'How about giant, wild roaming beasts for starters?'

They are absolutely beautiful. Boys, do you know what they are?

-Bison?

-Are they right?

Yes. These are European bison that used to live in Britain.

Is there any intention to bring them back into Britain?

Not at the moment. They are a dangerous wild animal.

They are incredibly powerful. You don't want to mess with these guys.

What do you need the boys to do?

We need to get them out of their night quarters there

and into the big paddock behind them.

Do you think you can do that?

Um...maybe.

Don't forget they are extraordinarily dangerous.

Let go.

And later, our boys turn gatekeepers as these wild things make a move.

Whoa!

But first, Dick rides east and gets a bit "horse".

Today on Dick and Dom Go Wild, I'm in Norwich

at the UK's largest horse sanctuary.

-PHONE RINGS

-Excuse me.

Hello. Yes.

It's Dom. Hello, I'm on my way.

I know I'm a bit late,

but I'm having trouble with the horse you got me.

Yes, it's a bit... Just press play on the video

and I'll be there in a minute.

Come on.

Cousins Aina and Alisa are batty about animals.

Aina prefers cute and cuddly rather than big and barking.

The pet I would want is a cat.

Sadly, I'm not allowed one.

I know she would never look after a pet.

I'd end up cleaning after it.

And Mum might be onto something.

When I'm older, I would really want to be a zoo keeper

and look after all the animals.

But the only thing I don't want to do is muck out the pooh

and I would make someone else do it.

Alisa loves carrot-crunching bunnies.

But it's a big "neigh" to horses.

I was on a horse with my auntie and there was this really steep hill.

Me and my auntie were so screaming

and so much just wanted to get off it.

Once bitten twice shy, it seems.

I tried feeding a horse and it nearly bit me.

Hit the road, girls! Animals need helping.

Aina and Alisa, welcome to the UK's largest horse sanctuary,

which is probably not a very good thing for you two, is it?

BOTH: No.

But we want to overcome our fear.

Good. But is there anything that you wouldn't like to do today?

The only thing that we don't want to do is muck out horses' pooh.

Muck out horses' pooh... in a horse sanctuary. Hmm.

Let's go and explore and find out more.

When a horse need help, this place rides to the rescue.

At the moment, they're helping more than 1,000 horses, ponies, donkeys

and mules that have been treated badly or just don't have a home.

And whenever possible, they find them a perfect new pad.

Our girls are teaming up with Ellie for some full-on four-legged graft.

Ah, Ellie, who have we got here?

This is Cola and she was rescued with a hundred other horses.

They were all really thin. They hadn't had enough food or water.

Some of them had some horrible infectious diseases as well.

How do you feel about being around Cola?

Quite calm. It's OK.

Do you want a little stroke?

Good, good. We're getting there already.

'Well done, girls! Cola can't get enough of his hands-on attention.

'Horses love to be scratched and stroked it relaxes them.'

-You're keeping her calm?

-BOTH: Yes.

'Cola is nice and chilled and so are our horse-wary girls.'

I bet you never thought you'd be this close to a horse, did you?

BOTH: No.

They're doing all right, aren't they, Ellie?

Yeah, you'll be pros in no time.

'Well, that's the first difficult hurdle over with.

'What do you think, girls?'

HORSE WHINNYING

When I found out that I was going to be spending the day with horses,

I felt quite scared because of the bad things that have happened

to me, but I felt quite happy that I could overcome my fear.

The horses aren't as scary I thought they were.

They are quite really nice.

And later, it only takes heartbeat to get our girls

hooked on little Blue the pony.

It stops for a few seconds and then continues.

It's quite slow, isn't it?

Josh and William are in wildest Kent and have a massive move going on.

These mighty bison can weigh as much as a small car

and have made a right old mess of their enclosure.

Our lads need to move them into the outside paddock

so they can complete a mammoth clean up.

Come through here. Mind the pooh.

Squish, squelch!

They're going to use leafy treats to tempt the bison out.

It's important to spread them evenly so there is enough to go around.

We don't want to create a grumpy rampage.

Now we need it in three piles so they don't fight over it.

Time to let the bison in here, but before that the team

need to safely separate themselves from these huge beasts.

First of all, you've got to pull that one, arm round there.

Pull it, hard as you can, harder, harder, harder.

Right, let go.

The big moment.

Once these gates are opened, the bison will be free to stomp.

Release the safety catch.

Release.

That's it, keep pulling and pulling and more and let go.

BOTH: Whoa!

Whoa, indeed. These beasts can charge at 35 miles an hour.

Running into their favourite snacks stops them in their tracks, though.

Right, it's time to move all that pooh that they left here last night.

Come on.

Sorry, boys, but this stinky job has to be done regularly to keep

the bison in good health.

Where does the pooh all go to?

Well, all this pooh gets put into a giant composting site we've got.

We mix it with straw and other vegetable waste

and it all comes out as lovely soil.

How's that for a bit of go-wilding, chaps?

It's really cool being really near the bison,

cos it's the first time I've been near to, like, proper wildlife.

BOTH: Whoa!

I like the bison, because they're really, really strong.

And to think that they were actually in Britain quite a bit ago,

it would be quite amazing.

'And we all branch out later.'

Off you go. That's it. I'm doing my bit...

You just do yours. Never mind me.

'..as we continue our close-up wildlife encounters.'

Back at the great big horse sanctuary

Aina and Alisa are handling their four-legged fears in style.

HORSE WHINNYING

All right!

'They need to help a tiny pony who's had a really tough time of it.'

So, this is Blue and he was abandoned in someone's garden

because nobody wanted him any more.

Blue is a 17-year-old Shetland pony

who first came to Redwings seven years ago.

This could be a big day for little Blue.

There's a chance he could have a new home later.

Hopefully, he's going to be re-homed.

He's going to go to a new home, but first of all, Eve our vet

will check him over and she wants you to help out.

So, to make sure that Blue can go to his new home,

we need to have a listen to his heart

and have a listen to his breathing to make sure that it all sounds OK.

Have a listen.

So, what sort of noise can you hear when you are listening to that?

Bum, bum, bum. It stops for a few seconds and then continues.

-It's quite slow, isn't it?

-Yes.

Good spot, Aina.

A fit horse has a heart rate twice as slow as a human's.

Does that mean that he has a healthy heart?

Yes, that sounds perfectly normal for a pony of his size.

A promising start. Now time to look for itchy lice.

What we need to look for is they are usually in his coat

and sometimes in his mane or along his back.

They're tiny little creepy crawlies which will just move

very quickly through his coat.

Perfect. Not a nit in sight.

So, the next step that we need to do is to check that his eyes are OK.

Blue has had a little problem with his eyes in the past.

We want to make sure that it's all definitely cleared up.

You need to put it really close to your own eye.

And it looks like Aina

and Alisa are starting to see horses in a whole new light.

Even better, vet Eve has given Blue an all clear.

Because I want to be a zoo keeper,

I want to know how to do these things, so it was quite amazing.

I'm glad that I'm helping animals

and I can now say that I'm a good vet.

That you can, Aina, and Blue can look forward to a new home.

Get in!

And later, our two help Blue prepare for his move.

Have you done his neck and his mane? And that bit there.

That bit there.

Why don't you do it?!

But first, we deal with Diesel the dog's mucky mouth.

Can you smell something?

Is that your breath?

-You are a right filthy stinker you, aren't you?

-Not me. Not me.

It's Diesel.

That does not smell like an engine.

Not diesel as in, glug, glug, into your car! Diesel the dog.

He needs his teeth cleaning.

Now, this is the job for a professional.

Cue vet Jason.

Tooth and gum problems are very common in dogs

and cause halitosis, otherwise known as stinky breath.

-Get in there.

-I don't want to go in there.

It's all part of your training.

'Diesel whiffs all right.'

As you can see, all the teeth are covered in plaque,

which is basically just bacteria and food debris

and big cement on his teeth and we need to crack that off today.

It's a scale and polish for the big lad.

We're on this one.

Jane.

Jane.

They've spelled Jane wrong.

With Diesel sound asleep, it's time to get scraping.

First, Jason scales each tooth, removing all that stubborn plaque.

By the age of three most, dogs are showing signs of gum disease

and so they need lots of regular expert care.

-How bad can it get if you don't clean his teeth?

-Very serious.

It can be a source of infection elsewhere for the kidneys

and the heart.

With all the plaque gone,

we're in there, polishing his pointy pearly whites.

Smells a bit better now.

Last tooth. Lovely.

Thank you, Jane.

-So, what now, Jason?

-We'll just let him wake up now.

Beautiful. See you, Diesel.

Sorted. Fresh-breath Diesel will be up and running in no time.

Right then, I think it's about time you went

to the dentist, considering your breathy stink bombs.

I've been eating boiled onions.

Why?

I like them.

Josh and William are in Kent,

spending the day at a wildlife sanctuary.

Our boys have another cracking behind-the-scenes job ahead of them.

Look at these beauties.

What can you see down there?

A deer.

Come closer. Look.

Fallow deer!

Good spot, William. Fallow deer.

Next task for our boys is to assist vet Laura

and keeper Alan in making sure that the herd is in tip-top shape.

Right then, Alan, what do you want the boys to do today?

So we can get a good look at the deer, we need them to come over,

which means we are going to use all this browse.

It's a very natural thing for them to eat.

They don't get it through the winter

so we make the most of it during the summer.

While I've got the use of two helpers,

I'm making the most of you two carrying it for us.

Flex your pecs. Here we go! Pick it all up!

Come on. Put your back into it, lads. Off you go, that's it!

You can't say much!

I'm doing my bit. You just do yours. Never mind me.

This is a great opportunity for William to get

a direct deer experience at long last.

I remember seeing a deer a million miles away

and I had binoculars and so it didn't turn out too well.

Fallow deer originally came from the sunny parts of Europe

and the Middle East.

The Romans brought them here around 2,000 years ago.

If you can start spreading out a little bit.

These are gentle timid creatures.

Our boys are using the fallow's favourite food

to attract them closer so we can look for signs of injury or disease.

Easy does it. And it's working.

They shy deer have come within touching distance.

So Laura and Alan have got just enough chance to give them

a close-up inspection, then the herd are away.

They're a bit nervous and a bit flighty today.

We haven't actually got to get a hands-on examination,

but we've been able to look at them from a distance and see.

They look to be in great condition.

-Lads, how was that for you? All good?

-Yes.

-Excellent.

Another great British wildlife first for these two.

I really liked meeting the deer

because I have seen loads of deer in the wild

but I've never actually been really close to them.

I felt really, really cool feeding the deer.

Because as I say, they are one of my favourite animals

and just being so close to them was really, really cool.

And later, can the boys get to grips with a wild bird workout?

At the UK's biggest horse sanctuary, Aina and Alisa

have bonded with Blue the Shetland pony.

He's passed his health check,

but there is more work to do before Blue can move to his new home.

Now, our girls made it pretty clear that there is one job

they really didn't fancy.

I wouldn't be able to clean a horse or a donkey.

Donkey's pooh, I wouldn't be able to do it.

Just terrible.

But they don't take "neigh" for an answer around here,

Except from the horses, obviously.

And the girls have volunteered to get the muck in

and get the muck out.

How many poohs do you think a horse does in one day?

I don't know, 50?

No, it's more like about 10.

Ten piles of poop weighing around 10 kilograms every single day.

Enough to make your eyes water.

Are you enjoying doing that?

Not really.

Understandable, Alisa.

I quite enjoy it.

-Quite enjoy it?

-Yeah!

I'm with the girls on this one.

I'm not sure if I'd enjoy poop scooping. Let's move onto lunch.

These hay nets have quite small holes,

which kind of makes it harder for Blue to eat it,

because we don't want him to gobble it quickly.

We want him to take his time with it.

Horses nosh on fresh grass for most of the day in the wild

and hay is a perfect replacement and is packed full of nutrients.

-He's enjoying it, don't you think?

-Yeah.

So what's next, Ellie, on the list for Blue's preparation for rehoming?

We'll make sure he's clean for his new home by giving him a bath.

Ah, that'll be nice, won't it, girls?

And it just so happens, you are in luck,

because down here we've got a couple of buckets. So get cleaning.

Before today, these two were horrified by horses.

They are all over them now, though.

And his ears. And his mane. And that bit there.

-We get it!

-And that bit there.

Why don't you do it?

Blue's brushing up a treat, thanks to Aina and Alisa.

Are you enjoying the wash and clean today and spruce up?

Having your hair shampooed by the ladies at the back.

Going anywhere nice on holiday this year?

It was quite nice to do it, because you knew that he would like it.

I have never ever shampooed a pony, but erm,

I did it today and it was really amazing.

Now I'm not a man who knows about things like this.

But that looks like one well-fed, one poop-cleaned, well-washed

and dried Shetland pony. Don't you think, girls?

-BOTH: Yes.

-Is Blue ready to be rehomed?

BOTH: Yes.

And later, Blue runs free in his new home.

Off you go, Blue.

I think Blue is really happy.

But first, it's a wild walk in the park for us two.

There's nothing better than taking man's best friend for a walk.

Aw, am I really your best friend?

Not you. Him!

-Where's my dog?

-You haven't got a dog.

Well what's that thing?

That thing is actually a polecat.

-Shall I tell you why it's called a polecat?

-It's a Polish cat?

No, it's actually a translation of the French phrase, poule-chat.

Chicken cat.

Ah, a chicken that can climb trees. Amazing.

No, it's because polecats used to hunt down chickens

and then eat them, which is why they nearly became extinct

because farmers were hunting the polecat.

-Here you are, cop a whiff of that.

-Get out of it! It honks.

As lovely as they are,

polecats are famous for being a little bit smelly as well.

They have got pea-sized glands either side of his tail

and they release a bit of an odour

whenever they feel over-excited or threatened.

You better put him down, I think he's feeling threatened.

That was me. I'm just over-excited.

Josh and William have been spending the day getting to grips

with British wildlife in Kent.

She's a bit of a wriggle.

They thought it was boring before.

They've dug deep to help out today

and the next job looks like it could be a right hoot.

This is Gimli and that is Falcor.

Do you know what animals they are?

Are they a tawny owl?

Exactly right. They are a tawny owl.

Gimli and Falcor's parents arrived here 12 years ago,

after they were found injured. They completely recovered

and this pair were born here just over a year ago.

These are young birds. They are only a year old.

Because they're young birds we really need to fly them

to get lots of exercise so they can build up their muscles

and learn to be healthy birds.

-Now, would you like to fly these young owls?

-Yeah!

It's now time to stretch those one-metre wings with our boys

stepping up to train as fab falconers.

Hello, people.

Today, it's Gimli's turn to fly and she's looking raring to go.

She's getting impatient. She wants to go.

Josh seems confident.

Bring her away from that.

How does that feel, Josh?

-It's cool.

-Is it nice?

Steady hands, Josh.

Owl's away!

Well done.

Nice job, mate.

It's all about getting those flight muscles trim.

That's it. And off she goes.

Nice job, well done!

You're up next, William.

There you go.

Another natural!

-And throw her.

-Throw her?!

Hey, nice job. Well done!

Whoa!

Our boys have given this magnificent bird a right old work out.

William and Josh haven't shied away from one single task today.

Brilliant effort and top teamwork.

There we have it. The end of your VIP day into British wildlife.

Did you enjoy it? BOTH: Yes.

Really good fun, eh? William, your favourite bit?

Probably feeding the deer.

-What about you, Josh?

-I really liked flying the owls.

It was amazing to see them soar through the air.

Has your attitude towards British wildlife

-changed now you've spent a whole day with British wildlife?

-Yeah.

Good stuff. Lovely to meet you guys. Job done.

At the horse sanctuary in Norfolk,

Aina and Alisa have been on the go all day.

Who'd have thought that these two used to have the hump with horses?

They haven't stopped helping them.

I think he's enjoying it.

It's not time to prepare Blue the Shetland pony

for his big move to his new home.

I think he's pretty excited.

Yeah! He should be excited.

He's going to a new home with new friends.

And a short journey later, the team have arrived at Blue's new pad.

Good work, girls.

You've brought Blue to his new home and his new owner

and his new field. Let's get him out!

Unlucky Blue has had four different homes in seven years.

Fingers crossed this will be his last ever move.

Hello, mate!

Aw, look at him, all clean and pristine.

At last, he may have found the perfect permanent home

with new guardian, Victoria and a possible new pal, Percy.

How do you know they'll get on with each other?

With their first meeting and if they squeal and kick.

Hopefully they will like each other.

-Shall we find out?

-Yeah, why not?

Enjoy your new stomping ground, Blue.

Off you go, Blue!

-There he goes. It looks like a nice new home, doesn't it?

-Yes.

Blue, go and say hello to Percy.

With a final nod of thanks to his two helpers,

Blue goes to meet his massive new mate.

Ah, look, here comes Percy.

Aw!

-Looks like they've hit it off straight away there.

-Yeah.

Looks like Blue has found a happy home at last. Wonderful!

I don't think that could have gone better, do you, Ellie?

-No, I think they'll be the best of friends.

-Perfection.

Girls. Spot on.

Yeah.

-Yeah they are going to be BFFs.

-BFFs, I like it.

What are your thoughts on horses now, then, girls?

I think they're very lovely as before I was very terrified of them.

But now my mind's changed. I feel very happy with them.

I was quite scared before I was coming here, but now I'm

really, really happy and I would like to have a horse as a pet.

What has been your favourite part of it?

My favourite part was when I was washing him.

My favourite part was seeing him get on with Percy.

Brilliant.

And now you can see all your hard work has come to a head.

Nice one, ladies.

-Are you sure you went to the dentist?

-Of course.

I can still smell boiled onions.

-Don't know why. They gave them a good clean.

-Weird that, isn't it?

Yeah, very weird.

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