Episode 4 Roar

Today on Roar, Johny will be facing his fear...

when he meets Sophie, the eight-legged fiend.

-Hello and welcome to Roar. I'm Johny!

-And I'm Rani.

We're out here on the African Experience,

waiting to lend a hand at the animal-poo clean up!

There's a hundred tons of poo here, the equivalent of 27 elephants!

And with 150 acres to cover, the job would take us around five weeks,

so we need a lean, mean, poo-picking-up machine to help us!

It takes a massive piece of machinery to do this job!

-Listen to that engine roar!

-It sounds massive!

-Here it comes!

Hang on a minute! Are you having a laugh?! That thing's tiny!

-It'll take us forever!

-That's right, it will take you forever.

I've got to go and do something! ..Here's what's coming up!

The vet and her team have got to act fast

when a tiger needs an operation.

Can the Red River Hogs find their buried treasure?

And we'll try to discover why these monkeys always look so grumpy!

I've done quite a few things here at the park,

but if I'm being completely honest with you, I've avoided one thing.

So I've come down to the Discovery Zone to meet keeper Rich Barnes

who's going to help me get acquainted

with something I've never really liked - an eight-legged fiend!

-Hello.

-How are you doing?

-All right. How are you?

-It's a tarantula.

I'm good, how are you?

-It's massive.

-I thought we'd start small and work our way up.

-There's bigger?

-Yeah.

-Who have we got here, then?

-This is Sophie, a Chile Rose spider.

-Such a gentle name!

-Well, if we gave it a name like Fang or Biter,

then people won't want to hold it!

We want kids to pick it up and be happy to do so,

so we try to make it as least scary as possible, really.

-Kids have handled spiders like this before...

-Yes. And they're all fine.

Normally, the kids take a couple of seconds to work up to it.

-The adults normally take longer.

-Before we do it, just sit beside me

cos it'll make me feel more comfortable!

Since being little, I've been scared of spiders,

and there's not much to be scared of with spiders like this, is there?

Most of our reaction to them is unfounded.

Because it doesn't look like a cuddly dog or a cat, it's a bit different,

a bit unusual and we're afraid of the unusual.

It's just a lack of education, really.

Once we spend a bit of time around them, they don't seem as bad.

Before I even think about touching "Sophie", is she venomous at all?

She does have venom, all spiders have a certain amount of venom.

Hers isn't particularly dangerous towards us.

It's used, mainly, to kill their prey, to subdue it.

-Things like small mice, baby birds.

-Baby birds?!

This isn't a large spider so it won't eat many things like small birds.

-Can you just see the fangs on the underside?

-Yeah, I can!

They're not particularly large,

but you wouldn't want them sinking into your hand.

-Shall I give it a go?

-Just put your hand out and I'll let her walk on.

If you don't like it, just say and I'll let her walk straight off.

The best way to do it to start with is to hold a hand out

and let her walk across straight onto mine again.

-After that, if you want her back, I'll put her back on your hand.

-Oh!

In your own time. There's no point rushing you to do it

because you'll be more nervous about it.

But if you're happy and ready, then we'll let her walk across.

-Do you want to just touch her leg?

-Yeah.

She does...feel quite soft, actually.

You wouldn't say she's cuddly, but...

she's not that bad.

Go on, then, let's give it a go.

Just a quick one, yeah?

Once she's walked across, I'll take her back off.

-Wow!

-And then...

-That is actually not that bad at all!

She's really gentle.

She is. She's quite sure-footed as well. Feels a bit like pipe-cleaners.

It does! Let's have another go.

It's a bit like a roller coaster. At first, you don't want to go on it...

-And then you want to go on it again and again!

-Yeah! Wow!

-She's so gentle.

-Anyone that's held it that's been worried about it,

-once they've had it, it's all gone, straightaway.

-Wow!

It's just something they had to get over.

Who would have thought it? I'm holding a tarantula!

This is a breakthrough! Rich, thank you so much

Maybe I'll get one as a pet!

-One step at a time!

-Yeah!

Up in the Big Cat section, there's a lonely Bengal tiger named Munas

who's about to move home.

For years, he shared his enclosure with a female tiger, but she died.

Poor old Munas has been here by himself, pining, basically.

We're now going to move him so we can pair him up with another female.

But the keepers don't want Munas and his new companion to breed.

He's going to have a minor operation

so he can't breed, because his bloodline is over-represented.

Park vet Jane Hopper has arrived to carry out the operation.

The first thing will be to knock him out with a tranquilliser dart.

As soon as Munas is shut in his house, Jane can start.

She needs to act fast before he gets too agitated about being shut in.

She's got a special dart gun to inject Munas with the tranquilliser.

But the dart must hit where he's got a lot of muscles.

Like at the top of his legs.

TIGER ROARS

If the drug was to be injected straight into a vital organ,

it could kill him.

TIGER ROARS

I'm sure you can hear he's really very stressed and worked up,

which we try and avoid.

But he doesn't like being shut in his little shut-off area.

DART FIRES

Jane's happy with that shot.

Erm, that went quite well.

I wouldn't be surprised if he does need another dart,

because he's so worked up. That may counteract the drugs a little bit.

But we'll see. It's good to get a dart in

and hopefully he's sitting in there going to sleep now.

And while they wait for Munas to drop off,

they can set up a make-shift operating table in his enclosure.

The reason why we do these things in the cage is because it's safer.

Because if you darted a cat, especially a tiger, being his size

and then taken him somewhere else, off the premises,

can be a bit more of a, you know, a worry.

15 minutes later it's time to check on him.

His breathing is still nice, is it?

It looks like the tranquilliser has worked.

But with an animal this dangerous, you have to be really careful.

It's hard to see. I can't see a blinker.

We seem OK but we need to proceed with caution.

Don't open it all the way for the minute, please.

Hi.

Go on. Go on.

Go on.

Bit more, please.

OK, and this stick.

Jane's leaning in and poking him with a rake

to see if he's unconscious.

It's not a very scientific method, but it usually works.

It's OK, now just proceed with caution,

cos he's a bit of a faker now, we've had a problem before.

Jane's going in, but is Munas really asleep?

We'll be back shortly to find out.

It's Ask The Keeper time now here on Roar,

and amongst the mayhem we've got four clever-clogs

and a very terrified-looking Matt Crittenden.

Now, Matt, we've got some great questions for you, I'm going first.

What are these?

-They're black and white colobus monkeys.

-Yeah, first one right.

Now, can these guys help you today?

Yeah, they can. Help give them a few peanuts.

I'll give them some first. Put your hand out.

Any tips on how to feed them?

Yeah, just throw them on the table.

Now, we've got loads of questions for you as well.

Bethany, do you want to ask your question first?

Why are they called colobus monkeys?

Colobus monkeys, it comes from a Greek word meaning mutilated.

Because they've got no thumbs, if you have a look at them.

-Oh, wow.

-Mutilated thumb, evolution has made it disappear.

Are they endangered?

Colobus are not critically endangered, but as with all monkeys,

they are a little bit persecuted in the wild, through deforestation

and the way people are expanding where they live.

So, yeah, we have to look after them.

Where do they come from?

Um, these come from the middle to top end of Africa.

From Ethiopia right the way across, they are quite widespread.

Why do they have long hair on their back?

They've got very long hair. Black and white, comes right out.

And one of the beliefs behind that, is that when they jump

it helps to stabilise them when they're jumping from tree to tree.

Can I just point something out, guys? Have you seen this?

There's a little baby.

We're so lucky to be so close to it. How old is it, Matt?

The baby up there's about two and a half months now.

Is that the mum with the baby?

No, that's not mum with the baby. What they do in here

is all the others will look after the babies. We call it aunty-ing.

It's good for them, because they get used to looking after youngsters

so when it comes round to their time to have babies, they know what to do.

Oh, Matt, what is that smell?

It wasn't me.

I think it's probably the camera crew.

No, what is that smell, Matt? Unless it was you and you're not owning up.

The colobus monkeys have got a very complex digestive system.

They're like cows, they've got two or three areas in their stomachs.

They eat all day long, this is what keeps them well.

But because they eat all day long, they make a lot of wind.

So they're either burping, or blowing off, so that's what that smell is.

Nice! Thanks very much for that.

Matt, you've done really well so far but, guys,

we should have a get-together and come up with a killer question.

THEY WHISPER

Yeah, OK, fair enough, all right.

Yeah. We know the answer.

We've done our research and this is the question we're asking, Matt.

What's the highest height ever recorded that a colobus monkey

has been found, above sea level?

It's a tricky one.

I think you've got me there.

Don't even want to guess?

I have not got a clue.

You haven't got a clue?

Ah! I thought you'd get it as well.

The correct answer is 2,835 metres.

That's like ten Eiffel Towers stacked on top of each other.

So you've got to say, those colobus monkeys can certainly climb.

So what do you think, guys, thumbs up or thumbs down for Matt here?

Definitely a Prince of Primates.

Make sure you join us next time for more Ask The Keeper on Roar.

Well done.

At the tiger enclosure, Jane the vet

is checking that the tranquilliser dart has worked

and Munas really is asleep.

He's out for the count.

So it's time to move him.

-Oh.

-One. Two. Three.

But that's trickier than it sounds because Munas weighs over 200kg.

That's like the weight of three refrigerators.

Lovely job.

OK, check him.

Let's go.

Munas is being moved to another enclosure today.

But first, he needs a minor operation.

There's a female tiger in the new enclosure

and the keepers don't want them to breed.

So he's going to be neutered, just like most pet cats.

Some animals don't react very well to being under anaesthetic.

So Munas is being hooked up to an oxygen tank, just in case.

It's up to vet nurse Kerry to check that his breathing is all right,

and to make sure he doesn't wake up.

Basically, I'm trying to look at all his different reflexes.

See whether he's got a reflex in his eyelids, touch the corner of the eye,

make sure the eyelid contracts.

Doing things that would stimulate him, to see if I get

any response from him. Checking his jaw tone, the tone in his muscles.

If I can easily open his jaw, he's nicely asleep.

He's an amazing creature.

You don't often get to be this close to a tiger.

This is the only way you can do it, when he's sedated,

rather than when they're running around the enclosure.

Always a worry, the last thing you want is them waking up

and hurting anyone, which they would do.

It's not as routine as it is when you do domestic animals.

You do five or six cats a day in a normal practice.

Hopefully we don't have to do too many of these big boys!

And with the big boy out for the count,

it's a great opportunity for Jim to check him over.

You can just see there's a bit of wear on the enamel.

That's normal for a tiger of his age.

When they're chewing through bones, you're going to lose some.

There's nothing unusual.

The operation doesn't take long, and our Jane's finished.

He'll be sore, but he had some painkillers before the surgery.

That's the best way, before the pain even gets there.

I hope he's going to be feeling OK.

When he wakes up, he'll be grumpy.

Again, it shouldn't be for long. Possibly, you know, a day or two.

Now Munas needs to go in his crate to be moved to the new enclosure.

And Jane is about to give him a drug

to bring him round from the anaesthetic.

But if he wakes up too quickly and finds himself trapped in a dark box,

he could panic.

We'll be back later to see just how fast the team can move.

What's a toad's favourite ballet? Swamp lake!

WAH WAH WAAAAH!

Grrraaahhh! Rrraaaargh!

Where do bees go on holiday?

To Stingapore! Bzzzzz!

SHE WHINNIES

-What's grey, has four legs and jumps up and down?

-I don't know.

An elephant on a trampoline!

ALL: Boooooooo!

-Boo!

-Hahahaha!

I've popped up to the red river hog enclosure

to meet up with hoofstock keeper Helen who's prepared a fruity feast!

Helen, it all looks very nice

but a rather strange place for a dinner date!

Yeah. This is the pig enclosure,

and I thought I'd bury some melons for them.

Really? And you think they'll find them?

Yeah, I hope so.

They have a good sense of smell, so hopefully they'll dig them up.

-We'll see what happens.

-Wicked.

What shall we do here, then?

-Put some gloves on, cos it's quite mucky.

-Yeah, go on, then.

Then if we can bury some... I've made sure they're showing,

so they can see them when they come up, a couple of them.

If you want to chuck that one in that hole?

Yeah, just...cover it down with mud.

I don't want to cover them too much, then?

Because they'd never get them, would they?

They probably would. Once they've got the scent,

-they'll have a dig round.

-OK.

-How am I doing, Helen?

-Yeah, brilliant.

Little bit more over it?

That's perfect, actually.

That's brilliant.

-OK. They're all in place. Shall we get them in here?

-Let's do it.

-Let's get out of here!

-Cool!

Helen, the pigs have gone straight for the fruit.

-How did they know it was there?

-They must have smelt it.

-Mr Pig was straight in there. That's the male there.

-Right.

-He's digging right in.

-Will he always be first to get the fruit?

Yeah, Mr Pig generally will be. He's very astute.

He's the male, the dominant male. So he's normally first in.

I've noticed we've put in some watermelon,

which is a strange thing for a pig. Do they have it often?

Well, we try to vary their diet a lot.

They eat lots of things in the wild - fruits, shoots and leaves,

and some meats as well. So they've got a wide variety of food.

So who else have you got in here? Is this a family of red river hogs?

Yes. This is Dad, this is Gosho.

And we've got... Mrs Pig's wandered back down there.

That's Tafika. These are their three piglets.

Is it all happy families here?

They're quite good. They're very greedy, as you can imagine!

They've got these massive snouts.

Does that mean they've got a good sense of smell?

Yeah, very good. They use their snouts to, for example,

to dig up anything that they might want to eat, like this.

They almost use it like a shovel.

Helen, as Dad's eating and stuffing his face,

I've noticed he's got massive teeth.

Is that why we're this side of the fence?

It certainly is. They can be... As you can see from their teeth,

they could potentially be very dangerous.

We make sure we're safe at all times.

Good to know! They seem quite playful. Do they often play around?

Yeah, they run after each other and chase each other.

They're really playful animals, lovely to work with.

We can see they've enjoyed your fruity feast.

Next time, you'd better bring some tissues down.

They've made a right mess of themselves!

It's wild, it's hairy,

it's the Roar game on the CBBC website.

This year, there's a brand-new area called Ice World.

So it's extra cool!

Now here comes today's cheat code.

It's wind4. Type that in,

and see what you get. Good luck, and happy gaming!

Ahh...ahhh..ahhh...atchoo!

Ohhh! Oh, you'll have to excuse me, I'm really suffering with hay fever.

I'm not the only one. Keslo, the male drill is also suffering,

and making a lot of noise! The head keeper is Simon Jeffries.

He has a plan. How can I help you today?

What we're going to do is give out some honey sandwiches.

-Right.

-Giving local honey can hopefully boost their immune system,

and stop them having bad eyes and things.

-So where is Keslo?

-He's just here. There he is.

-And he's got hay fever?

-Yeah, you can see his eyes, look.

-Oh, yes! They're all red.

We'd better get on and make these honey butties.

Now, Gorbi's here. Does he have hay fever

or is he just interested in the honey?

He's just interested in the honey, I'm afraid.

He doesn't have hay fever at all.

What am I doing with this? Putting them together?

What we'll do is we'll fold these in half like this,

so they can go through the mesh easy.

Then we're going to have to wait until Keslo comes a bit closer.

Let's give out some bread as well, to distract some of the others.

Otherwise we'll never get to him.

When Kelso comes to your side, you might have to give him some.

-He's just here...

-No, he's just here, actually.

There you go.

There he is, he's come in there!

-Keslo!

-Where is he?

He's got his honey butty there but he's still after more bread.

Well, he's got his honey butty and hopefully this will kick in.

How long would it take for honey to start work on him?

It can take up to a year. They need to get used to having it their system

so it's a long-term process but it's better to have something natural

than giving them medication all the time.

We've got to try new stuff to see what works, really.

I've noticed with my hay fever, I only have it over a certain period of time of the year.

It's just when the flowers come into bloom, right at the beginning of the season.

Is he the same?

He is seasonal but it seems to last a very long time.

He's coming over your side this time.

-Ready?

-But it seems to last a long time?

-Go!

THEY LAUGH

I love that, "Go! Go with your honey butty!"

I've come up here so I can have a little look at him.

Apart from the red eyes, any sneezing, anything else?

Not that we've seen. He seems all right in himself.

I've never seen him sneeze. Doesn't mean he doesn't

because we can't be here 24 hours.

But he does seem generally all right, apart from the eyes.

But the eyes are just so bad.

They've been so bad in the past, they've been almost closed.

That's why it's important that you guys are here all the time,

watching them, because the drill are an endangered species.

These are one of the rarest animals in the zoo.

There's only about 3,000 of these left in the world,

so it's very important you do keep an eye on them.

I've got to say good luck with it. I hope it goes well

because hay fever is terrible. Like I said, I've got it

so I'll have a honey butty as well if you're making.

Typical! Thanks, Simon.

Munas, the Bengal tiger is being moved to the other side of the park.

Jane the vet has just given him a drug to start waking him up.

So now the team need to get him into his new enclosure

before he comes round completely.

But halfway there, he's wide awake

and has started crashing about inside his crate.

They've arrived but still need to check if everything's ready

for Munas to go into his new house.

The crate is strong enough to keep him in but he could hurt himself.

Steady, steady, steady!

Don't stand on this side.

And just as they arrive at the new house, Munas calms down

so it's panic over.

Back a little bit. That's it.

Well done.

We're going to need to get the nail out.

Well done.

He's all right.

Yeah, he's awake. He's awake in there.

A bit anxious to get out so that's why we were rushing a bit

to get him in here, just in case.

When they open the sliding doors, Munas goes through to his new home.

After all the excitement, he'll stay in the house

and the small paddock for the rest of today,

while he gets used to the place.

Then, when he's ready, he'll be meeting his new companion,

out in the large enclosure.

Well, that's it for another show and after all that,

I've worked up a right appetite, so it's a good job

that Tom and Ron here have brought me a delicious feast. Thanks, guys!

Johny, this isn't for you but this is,

because did you know that an adult elly can eat 227 kilos of food?

So you've got a lot of food to dish out.

-Tom, we're ready to give you a hand.

-Excellent, well done.

Now, you've got loads of stuff here so what do the ellies eat?

On the menu today we've got carrots, swede, apples, pears, beetroot.

-They definitely get their five-a-day then, don't they?

-Oh, yeah.

That's a lot of food that they eat. Are they generally in need

of that much food or are they a little bit greedy?

No, elephants aren't necessarily greedy. They have a big appetite.

They've got a big belly and they're going to be eating for 18 hours a day

so this kind of food is... it just fills them up.

And scattering it around, it means they're going to spend a lot of time

finding their food, which is important.

Now, you said they eat for 18 hours a day. Sorry, John!

They can't have a great digestive system,

if they've got to be constantly eating.

Elephant digestive systems, at best is about 45% efficient.

A lot of what they eat, if it doesn't get mashed up by the teeth

will go straight the way through, and quite often inside the poo

you actually see bits of fruit.

So we might find a whole carrot in elly poo.

What happens to that? Do you have to go round and pick it out, Tom?

Sometimes, you quite often see elephants,

what they'll do is when they have a quick poo,

-they turn round and then they pick it back up again.

-No!!

So you're saying that elephants essentially eat their own poo?

No. No, they recycle.

Right, OK, well that's something that I definitely won't recommend

kids to do at home.

That's it from the show but why don't you stick around

to find out what's coming up on the next Roar. That's gross!

I'll find out how the gorillas eat nettles without getting stung.

We'll be setting the meerkats a challenge

to see how smart they really are.

And what will the tiger cubs think when they find out the Roar ranger

has thrown all their toys in the pond?

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