Episode 2 Pet School

This is the most amazing school in the world.

You won't find nothing like it. Two unforgettable weeks,

-nine pet-crazy kids...

-I'd like a dog.

I'd really like a scorpion or a snake.

I would like a rabbit.

..and 51 hungry mouths to feed.

But can Pet School give our nine Pet Heads

the skills to become responsible pet owners?

-Sit. Kiki, sit.

-And when term's out, will they persuade their parents

to get them a pet of their own? Is he going to get a pet?

Previously on Pet School:

The top team were given their pet buddies for the entire week.

I think I've got a name... Brett.

Liam was well stoked, so was Tej.

I absolutely love Kiki more than any animal in the rest of my life.

-Ysabel conquered her fears.

-I feel relieved about holding her.

Some lucky peeps were living the dream.

I've always wanted a snake, now I've got one,

-it feels awesome.

-But is Sam's dream about to be crushed?

I don't want to alarm you,

but we've had a bit of an activity going on in here.

-And things get hairy when an extreme pet visits.

-Oh, my God.

COCKEREL CROWS

Over in the egg shed, there's been some amazing overnight activity.

We've got some fluffy chicks, how about that?

There's still one last egg to hatch,

so I've sent Sophie, Rachel and Liam straight over to keep an eye on it.

-Trying to escape out of its egg. Oh, gosh, look.

-Proper trying.

-Oh, there's the beak.

-It's got a hat!

-Wait, is that two?

It's come out! It's come out!

-Oh!

-She's hatched.

Ah! They're so small and so beautiful.

You wouldn't think they'd fit inside the eggs.

Ah, such a tiny, tiny little chick.

You're not going to see anything like that much in your life.

It's so amazing.

Wow. It's a beautiful moment.

And our little chicks have a new home to go to after Pet School.

That really was something special,

but these guys are joining the other Pet Heads

to find out what's happening for the rest of the day.

I'm giving the gang the lowdown on today's chores.

I'm going to tell you now what groups you're in,

and what animals you're going to be with.

We got Sophie, Rachel and Liam,

you're going to be doing the chicken run.

It's been magical seeing chicks born -

but our Pet School chickens need some TLC this morning too!

Trying to catch them is a nightmare!

We got Tej, Guilia and Micah - you're going to the stables today.

HORSE NEIGHS

-How you feeling about that?

-I'm OK with that.

-Yeah, horses.

-You know their poos are about this big?

-Yeah, yeah, yeah.

-OK.

Ysabel, Sam and Chris, you're with the dogs, and me!

-Yes! The boys.

-Ready to rock and roll?

If I guide, you can follow. Let's go.

Over the two week term, Pet Practice will show

who's got what it takes to be a top pet person.

And because there's loads to do at pet school, each team

have only got 45 minutes to get them done.

-So, what we doing today?

-We got a result. We've got the dogs.

-And you!

-And me.

-Yeah.

-That's what I was talking about.

Check this out for a doghouse.

Waiting for the dog squad are the pet school pooches, Kiki and Molly.

They're waiting for you. Hello, Kiki.

Old Molly over there, she's excited.

Time's-a-ticking away in the dog room

and today's doggy to do list includes brushing their teeth

and checking their poo. This is the poo chart.

I don't know if I want gravy any more!

This is the sort of issues you're going to come across

when you have your own pet, if it's eating right, if it's well,

if you need to take it to the vet.

And this is one of the things that will indicate that. You know?

Sophie, Rachel and Liam head back towards the chicken coop.

They'll be in charge of collecting the eggs, feeding them and,

you've guessed it, cleaning up the poo.

Unlike the eggs that hatched this morning,

these could be used for lunch. My lunch hopefully!

-Take one of them out.

-Oh, my gosh!

-Just take one out.

-It's looking.

-Sophie, you take another one.

-That's it.

-There aren't any other eggs.

As well as a cockerel, Pet School has four hens,

who have all been saved by a rescue centre.

Most of our hens are from an old free range farm.

When they reach the end of their productive life at 18 months,

still young for a hen, they're normally sent for slaughter,

so we rescue these ones, offer them a home

with someone who can give them a longer life and some happy times.

The worst thing about keeping chickens

is their poo is smelly, and they do a lot of it,

so you have to clear that up all the time.

-Before poo-picking duty, it's food and water time.

-Yeah, that's right.

-Are you sure?

-I'm certain, because it's meant to balance, not click.

-Are you sure?

-No. Right, someone else do water,

and I'll start mucking out.

Rachel did take the lead a bit, but she was just trying to help.

And we also need to clear some of the stuff in here up.

I kind of did have to take the lead a bit.

It's a lot of work in, to be honest, not very much time.

Micah is at the pet school stables with Guilia and Tej.

They've got 45 minutes only to give the stables

a good mucking out with no mucking around.

In my mind, I was thinking, if there's a Pet Practice,

and it's a task, we're going to be picking up poo.

Put all the clean straw up the back, and then all the poo, like this,

you're going to lift up, and put in the wheelbarrow.

-OK? I'm going to leave you to it.

-Bye.

-OK, bye.

Wow, I just found a big piece of poo, here.

It's quite disgusting, I think. It stank quite a lot.

Right, let me just stick a bit of poo.

Oh, my gosh, that's a lot!

Back with the chickens, once again Liam is doing the best job he can,

to avoid poo that is. Same as yesterday.

I really can't look at that poo.

We need to get the hens as well inside. The sooner the better.

Liam didn't want to go near the poo,

so he tried to get the chickens in while me and Rachel cleaned up.

-I need two people.

-We're not done yet.

I know, but it'll be easier to get a chicken in.

One person in my group who managed to do the things

that didn't involve getting mucky or anything.

I got along with Sophie. I thought Rachel was a bit bossy.

Can you not to scatter too much hay when you're doing that?

What else is there to do?

-Come round the back, look at this!

-Teamwork.

Over in the house of woof, it's time to give

Molly and Kiki's gnashers a good scrub, and Reena,

Pet School's resident Pets-pert is here to help.

This is special dog toothpaste,

so don't use your own, or your own toothbrush. Urgh!

You only need to do the outsides,

because inside will be kept reasonably clean

by the action of the tongue. OK, off you go. Good luck.

There's toothpaste. Molly! Kiki!

SHE WHISTLES

Good girl, good girl.

No, no, no, Kiki, Kiki.

Remember, you'll really need to get the dogs' trust

if you're going to go near their mouths.

That's not brushing the teeth, Kiki's just eating toothpaste.

-Unbelievable!

-Say, "Ah!"

I'm hoping she'll go, "Ah!" I've got it, I've got the tops.

-Yay.

-We've still got to do Molly.

-Try and open up her top lip.

Molly's not got a great gnasher clean either.

-Not top teeth work team.

-I don't think we'll get Molly.

15 minutes to go, and there's no horsing around at the stables.

-No offence, fellas.

-That's a lot. There's some more over there still.

It's not as bad as I expected.

-It smells disgusting!

-That's true, it's not as bad as I thought.

Why did you put the other one down?

It was more fun that I expected it to be.

We got on with it. We picked up most of the poo that was in there.

Got to check under this piece of hay. I think we did well.

Ahh. All completed within 45 minutes. Nice work, team.

Mucking out is an essential part of good horse care.

Back with the pooches, there's just ten minutes to go,

enough time to do the final part of the task.

Find a nice fresh poo, courtesy of Molly or Kiki,

and compare it to the poo chart. Simple.

This stinker's been left just for them,

but normally leaving dog mess is huge no-no.

What do you think?

I think it's OK.

-Em, grade two and three.

-You can see a bit of like juice there,

-so it looks like it's just come out.

-Yeah.

It's like they did grade two around the edge

and then they did grade three slap bang in the middle.

That was actually the first time I ever really had to examine dog poo

and, yeah, it wasn't good.

The good news is we think that looks more healthy.

Yeah, well, we'd better get rid of it then. Come on and pick it up.

Urgh!

-What did they eat?

-I'm going to be sick.

We all nearly threw up because of the smell.

Out of the three of us,

Ysabel looked most like she was going to be sick.

It wasn't a nice job.

It, like - urgh! It smelt really bad.

Job done. Let's go wash our hands.

Task almost complete, but they need to brush up on their teeth cleaning.

With only five minutes left, because of all the bickering,

they still haven't got the chickens back in the coop.

I'm a little bit concerned we haven't got one chicken yet.

That's what I'm trying to do.

The best person to talk to would be the person who put himself

in charge of the chickens.

I might help him out, shall I? Is that all right?

Sophie nearly had one,

but it turned around and she thought it was going to bite her.

-That's it - go, go!

-What's going on?

-Oh, one's in.

-Yes, another one. That's two. Shut the door. Quickly!

-That's it, he's got one!

-I've got another one.

OK, he's got another one. That's it.

Oh! Big Rach is going in!

-Cornered!

-Get in there, Rach.

-You've got it. Get it in, get it in!

-Can I hold it? Can I hold it?

Ah, teamwork.

Task completed - just.

A tough morning for our Pet Heads. But some of the team are doing well,

and could be on track to get a pet of their own.

That's Pet Practice done for the morning.

The gang now go off and meet their buddies,

and get on with the rest of the daily routines here at Pet School.

Coming up, Pudsey meets more fans of the furry kind.

Giulia tries to convince Ashleigh that rats have also got talent.

Aw! They're actually quite nice.

And Chris gets a grip on the goats - just about.

-Oh, look, they're running.

-Don't worry. They're very calm.

Pet buddying is about forming a closer bond with the pets

on a one-to-one basis. And out of all the pet buddies,

Tej and Kiki are really hitting it off.

Sit! Kiki, sit!

Tej, it's a dog.

I'm so happy that I got a dog. I absolutely love Kiki.

Kiki, no! Sit here! Sit! Sit! Sit!

I can hold her like this.

Does he always take control?

Let's find out - here he is with his Mum, Dad and brother Aman.

Tej likes playing cricket,

travelling the world,

and performing magic tricks. Wow, that's amazing!

At the moment, Tej is petless.

Mum and Dad said if I got into a good school with a scholarship,

I could get a dog, because I was slacking off a little bit.

-Aw. So what happened, mate?

-Then they changed their mind.

It's not an easy task, to look after a pet, whether it be a dog or cat.

I don't think he fully appreciates

the responsibility that goes with having a pet.

My ideal pet would be a Maltese puppy.

So to show my parents that, I did a Powerpoint presentation on it.

The results were conclusive. A dog is the best pet for me.

Well, with such thorough research, what's the problem?

I think he'd be great with it at the outset,

but over a period of time I think he'd lose interest.

It'd be nice to see if, two weeks down the road,

he's as enthusiastic about the pet or not.

Well, Mum, it's fair to say Tej is certainly enthusiastic about Kiki.

But can he get her to sit?

Sit, Kiki! Kiki, sit! Sit down, sit down! Good girl.

It seems Kiki's confused by Tej's inexperienced training approach.

No, no, no!

I wonder if Liam is having as much fun with Molly?

She doesn't, like, run around crazy like Kiki,

so Tej has more things to do.

It's like Molly's always relaxed.

DOG SNORES

Oh, gosh, she's fallen asleep.

-Kiki, sit, sit.

-Well, give her some praise for sitting, mate.

-Get it!

I've also been teaching her tricks, so lie down.

Kiki, lie down again, lie-down.

OK, go down, Kiki, go down. Go down, go down. Completely down. Paw.

Paw, paw, I want paw.

And jump. Come on, Kiki, ooh.

That's really confusing her, Tej.

She's sitting. She's... I taught... There we go.

I think I've just about taught her to sit on my lap.

Or stand, maybe.

At least Tej and Kiki are loving their time together.

I wonder if Liam and Molly have got any tricks for us.

Watch this. I can straighten her leg out.

Uh, yeah, that's...that's really good. Any more?

Nice.

Sam's heading over to the exotic room for more quality time

with one of his dream pets, the corn snake.

Sam? You're getting a corn snake.

-Yes!

-All right? I knew you wanted that one.

I've always wanted a snake and now I've got one in my hands

and it feels awesome.

What a result for him

but what would happen if he took more of an unusual pet home?

Here's Sam with Mum, Dad and little sister, Lara. Sam likes basketball,

playing trombone,

and spooky zombies.

HE LAUGHS

He does not like milk.

I do not like milk.

So what's the deal with the pets at the moment, Sam?

We do have a rabbit called Elvis.

Uh-huh.

But she's more of my sister's than mine.

Aw, so you want something cute and cuddly of your own, Sam?

-I'd really like a scorpion or a snake.

-Ah!

But my mum's too scared to have one.

There is no way Sam can have a scorpion

because I'm absolutely petrified of creepy crawly animals.

-What about a snake?

-There's no snakes coming in this house.

I'm absolutely petrified of snakes.

I'd like to learn more about scorpions

and reptiles at Pet School in case I was ever allowed one.

Ur, did you not you your mum, Sam?

There is absolutely no chance Sam would be allowed

to have a scorpion as a pet.

I suppose I could settle for a shark.

THEY LAUGH

I don't think our garden's big enough for a shark.

So no scorpions, snakes or sharks.

What options does he have?

Any animal that we did get, what Sam wanted,

-would have to get on with our other pet, Elvis.

-Uh-huh.

Anything that's cute and fluffy, no sharks, no scorpions.

Not even in the shed in the back garden. Nope.

So, no snakes at home and now I've got to give him some more bad news.

-Hi, Aaron.

-Hello, mate, how are you going, you all right?

-All right.

Nice to see you. Well, here we go, with your pet buddy.

-Mm-hm.

-What you've always wanted.

-Mm-hm.

-A snake.

Well, listen up.

I don't want to alarm you

but we've had a bit of an activity go on in here.

-What's happened, he's started to shed his skin.

-OK.

I'm really feeling for Sam.

He's always wanted a snake and because it's shedding,

handling the snake will cause it distress.

The thing is, the snake, takes about five days.

It takes about five days for that skin to be healed.

I can't touch it. I can't pick it up. There's nothing really to do with it.

Sam is gutted because he can't buddy with his pet buddy.

Micah also isn't touching his pet buddies. The rabbits.

But not because he can't.

Hello.

Come on.

What I'll do, I'll stroke it, try playing with it a bit.

And get to know it like one bit.

Do you want some food?

Yeow! Them rabbits are really close.

Micah seems a bit wary around these bunnies.

It's fair to sit down to get to know them.

My time with them now has been really boring

so they're quite boring and, like...yeah.

At Pet School we like to bring in animals that some people

do keep as pets but they're definitely not for beginners

because they're extreme pets.

Our first one is a tarantula and honestly I am terrified of them.

I've chosen three Pet Heads who aren't too keen on them either.

So we can face off here together.

I definitely wouldn't recommend it

as your first pet.

It's a big commitment. A tarantula like this could live for 30 years.

Sophie, how are you feeling at the moment? You've been keeping quiet.

Erm, I'm not a big fan of spiders

but I'm all right at this distance.

-Should we be scared of them?

-You shouldn't be scared of them.

What would you should have,

the same with any animal, is a healthy respect for them.

Generally speaking,

we don't recommend that you handle tarantulas.

If I was to drop it, its body would burst like a bag of jelly.

It would seriously damage the tarantula

and with any wild animal,

there's still always the potential

to get bitten.

So how are you feeling now, guys, if he was to come a little bit

closer so that you can have a little look, how would that feel?

Would you be all right with that?

-Yeah.

-Yeah? You not too sure, Soph?

OK, I'll do it very, very slowly.

You notice how slowly the tarantula is moving?

This is quite a slow tarantula but you get some that move very,

very quickly indeed.

Do you want to hold it by any chance, anyone?

Are you not confident enough? Michael wouldn't go near the rabbit.

I think touching a tarantula just ain't going to happen.

If I let the tarantula crawl along the floor

and you put your hand down on the floor

and let the tarantula crawl across your hand.

We can all do that, can't we?

Oh, my gosh. This is...

-Oh, wow.

-There you go.

That's amazing.

Micah, it's easy. It doesn't even feel like anything. Close your eyes.

-I might as well.

-Go on. You can do it.

Now... Oh, my days!

It's like a little cloud.

Oh, my days, this is actually really cool!

There, you need to try this, Sophie.

-Oh, my God! That's horrible.

-Well done.

-I don't know.

-I feel like I want to hold it. Would you? Any of you hold it?

-Yeah.

-There we go.

-How does that feel?

-It feels nice.

It's like I'm... it's like I'm bonding with it.

Did you ever think you'd be sitting here in Pet School

holding a tarantula?

No, I think it's really cool.

That's mad, isn't it?

-He started shaking his body.

-Oh, my gosh!

-Sophie.

-Fingers out.

Nice like that.

Gently move it across.

-My hand.

-There we go.

Look at that. Good girl.

-Is that enough?

-Yeah, OK.

OK, no problem.

Wow. Well done, mate.

Well done.

THEY APPLAUD

It's all right.

-It's just... It's like holding a teddy, really.

-I might have a go.

Yeah, why not?

That's it so it's got a nice flat thing to sit on.

-This is one of the coolest moments of my life.

-Wow, look at that.

Had enough? You've got a friend for life there, look.

Well done, Micah, made up about that.

-Looked at that.

-Go on, then. Are you going to try it then, Aaron?

-She's had enough for today.

-Aarrr! Don't you...? Come on, Aaron.

-Wow. Look at that, eh?

-I'll take it.

Wow, that's unbelievable, isn't it? Extreme pet.

At first I was a bit anxious and a bit nervous to hold it,

but after I saw the others do it, I was a bit more relaxed.

It hardly even felt like anything was on my hand

and I think I overcame my fear of tarantulas but maybe not

normal spiders because they're a bit more small and a bit more horrible.

Famous folk are always popping in to Pet School and Ashleigh

and Pudsey are this week's surprise celebs.

They couldn't wait to have a grand tour

and see all our amazing animals.

And whilst Pudsey's having a bowl of water, Giulia is telling

Ashleigh it's rats, not dogs, that are man's best friend.

This is my first time actually being around a rat.

-Their tails slightly do scare me.

-I'm with you there, Ashleigh.

So I really thought they were dirty filthy creatures. A bit like you.

Oi! That's not nice.

A bit like me?!

THEY LAUGH

OK, then.

No. Back.

I think I probably hate rats more than you do.

-Oh! Now I get you. Would I be able to hold...hold her?

-Yeah.

You would have to get it out for me.

THEY LAUGH

-Unbelievable, so it is.

-Hello.

Aw, they're actually quite nice. It's just their tails that freak me.

She's not going to poo on me, is she?

No, no, no, they don't poo a lot.

The tail's flicking!

-It's like a helicopter.

-It is. It's got a life of its own.

Giulia may be convincing Ashleigh of her new found pet-caring skills.

But what do Mum, Dad and sister Giovanna think of her pet talents?

Giulia likes playing violin...

..dancing...

..and eating crisps with grapes.

Delicious.

So, any previous experience with pets?

I do have a dog.

But I'm not bothered about him.

He can be really annoying when I'm doing something like homework.

I think she likes Jiju but she doesn't like to take care about him.

You know you need to work, you need to clean, you need to...

So many things to do.

I have to pick up poo all the time

because he poos a lot.

Poo all picked up, job done.

One day, I don't know when, I don't know how, but I want more pets.

You need to learn to feed Jiju first to have another pet.

Going to Pet School,

I'm going to have to learn all different animals,

take care of all different animals,

be with all different animals and then I might care for animals

and like them more.

So Mum and Dad really need convincing.

I wonder if Ashleigh can help with the dog-bonding issues?

So what problems have you been having with him?

I don't know how to bond with him exactly.

Are you the one that does the feeding him and all of that?

I, honestly, I only pick up his poo.

And then sometimes feed him.

-See, that's why.

-That's why.

-I just think, by the sounds of it,

you need to get more involved with him.

-Yeah.

-At the moment, if you're just picking up his poo,

He's not appreciating that much because he doesn't care, does he?

So, erm, try to get involved with him more and...

you know, take him for walks and play with him

so he associates that playing with you and you get a stronger bond.

Some of our cheekiest residents here at Pet School are Primrose

and Pickles, and Chris has got the pleasure of buddying with them.

You never know with these goats. Never turn your back on them.

-How's it going?

-It's good.

-Now you've got a silent goat.

Are you happy with that?

I have to admit, it wasn't my first choice

but then I realised I didn't really know much about them.

So, um, I was pretty excited about having a go afterwards.

If anyone else was thinking about having a go, what would you say?

-What, you mean as a pet?

-As a pet, yeah.

Is it something to do or something you just keep on a farm?

Well, I guess if you have a garden big enough you could have a goat

but I guess it's still suited for er...they're still suited for...

-It's still...

-Where are you going? You said it doesn't run.

Just let it run. You've just got to let it run.

You haven't got much control over it, then?

-If it's pulling you too hard, you've got to let it go.

-Yeah, yeah.

That's starting to run. What does that mean?

-No, that's just... They're just playing.

-Is that?

That's them playing. Don't worry. They're very calm.

I'm not sure if I completely trust these goats.

And I'm not sure if Layla and Misty will trust Sam yet.

It's early days and he'll have to work hard to buddy with them.

Layla.

Ah, Layla is finally showing a bit of interest.

No, she's spotted something else to do, like sitting under a chair.

They're keeping their distance so far.

But that's probably because they're not used to me being around them

but if they get around me, then they might like me.

Maybe some cat nibbles will tempt them over?

So, will Sam stay with his shedding snake he can't touch

or go with the cats that are keeping their distance? Tough call.

I finally decided that my new pet is going to be the cats

because I can touch them, I can just interact with them

better than the corn snake.

CAT MIAOWS

A mammoth decision for Sam.

And a roller coaster of a day of pet buddying.

Sam's left his perfect pet to give it a go with the cats.

Liam's dream pet is not such a dream and Kiki and Tej are in pet

and Pet Head paradise. Happy days.

Phew.

That's the end of another action-packed day here at Pet School

and I tell you what,

it certainly is the best school in the world bar none.

I had to hold a tarantula today. Can you believe that?

I'm not going to forget that one in a hurry. Cor!

Next time on Pet School...

Liam still won't scoop the poop...

Oh my gosh!

..Brett's getting stuck into some fast food...

He's found him.

-..Micah's habit of not touching rabbits continues...

-Come on.

-..and Tej gets some top tips from Ashleigh.

-Show him where it is.

There we go. Good.

If you've got a pet at home, are you looking after it properly

and being a responsible Pet Head?

Check out our Pet School website for all the advice you need on pet care.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd