Episode 19 Roar

Today on Roar, the first time two baboons were released

into their brand-new open-top enclosure, one escaped.

The keepers are trying again.

But this time, they're releasing the whole troop.

Welcome to Roar. I'm Johny.

And I'm Rani. And over here is head of big cats, Rich Barnes.

In his arms is the cutest baby meerkat, Tig.

Tig is only five months old and she may look cute, but don't be fooled.

If anyone but Rich holds her, she might give them a nasty nip.

It's best if we keep our distance.

But why don't you guys sink your teeth into the rest of today's show.

Ah!

You can come in now.

Coming up - head keeper Jim has to catch one of the park's

most aggressive cats.

But will this dangerous moggy manage to outsmart him?

Anything that stands in his path will be fair game.

Er, that might be Jim!

Find out what the cute baby tapir has been getting up to

in his paddock.

And have this bunch

finally got the better of head of small cats, Neville?

Well, now, have you got me here?

-ALL:

-You're going down!

But first, it's a big day for the primate section.

They're planning to release the whole troop of baboons

into their new open-top enclosure.

Keepers have worked hard to build

this incredible space for these tough monkeys.

It's the size of two football pitches and gives the baboons

loads of room to run around and play in.

But how will it go?

The first time they tried this with just two baboons, disaster struck.

-Oh, no!

-We've got a baboon out of the enclosure.

Everyone, don't panic!

It was a tense and dramatic moment, but the baboon was recaptured.

Now they're about to release the whole troop,

and anything could happen.

The primate team are getting ready for the second attempt

of releasing the baboons into their new fantastic open-top enclosure.

I just need to stress all the safety precautions are in place.

We've got some fully trained members of staff here as well.

Keepers have increased the power of the electric fence

around the enclosure, to make sure the baboons don't climb it again.

The fence will shock them, but it won't harm them.

During the first attempt, only two were released.

Today the keepers have decided to let all 29 of them out together.

I've up with animal director Adrian to find out why they're doing this.

We originally thought if we let two out, then we'll see what they do

and we will be able to... collect them up again

if things don't go right. Indeed, we did.

But they went wrong, because the two that were out

wanted to get straight back in with all their friends.

So they got very stressed. This time we'll let them all out,

all those that want to go.

And then...see if they explore

rather than try and get back to each other and reform with their troop.

-Is everything kicking off, Mel?

-Yeah.

-We're getting in our places now.

-All right. Adrian's gone.

Thank you for chatting to us, Adrian.

Hopefully then won't escape. But if they do, then we have

to also follow very secure safety precautions.

Here's Jane, the vet, as well.

We know things are hotting up, getting to go.

OK, Jane. Morning!

It is a big day here at the park.

So fingers crossed it all goes well.

There's only one way to tell if this new plan will work,

and that is to release them.

But how on earth will the keepers cope if the entire troop escapes?

Over on the cat section, the keepers are preparing to move

two fishing cats - female Femay and aggressive male Rondu -

out of their separate enclosures into a new one,

in the hope that they will go on to have kittens.

Up to now, these two haven't been the best of friends.

This is because Rondu is one mean moggy.

He will take a swipe at anyone who comes too close.

He's quite aggressive.

RONDU SNARLS

Having them in the same cage and living together, they'd just fight.

Fishing cats are squat, powerful wild cats from India

and Southeast Asia.

They are known to be aggressive,

and males can sometimes attack females on first meeting.

So it was no surprise, really, that they didn't get along.

Unfortunately, at the moment, they're not living together.

In fact, to a degree they hate each other!

It's very important this pair have kittens.

The species is in endangered and with only 83 captive males

in the world, there aren't very many other options for a mate for Femay.

Hiya, big fella.

How are you doing, eh?

So Jim's trying one last thing before giving up on breeding them -

a fresh start!

The keepers have built them a new deluxe enclosure,

and Jim hopes it will make Rondu a happier and more relaxed cat.

At the moment it's empty.

We've been revamping it.

Obviously to make it more enjoyable for them.

So as you can see, we've put new chip beds in.

And branches. Some new shelving, just to make it more interesting for them.

And a bit more space for them as well.

The cats absolutely love wood chip.

The smell, you know, certain smells, it turns them a bit wild.

And this will do the same for them, hopefully.

Obviously, the most important thing for a fishing cat is a pond.

We've raised the level so they can get in there

and get their heads under.

That's probably the most important thing - their pond - for them.

With its outdoor swimming pool,

the new enclosure is now ready for the cats.

But catching this aggressive twosome could well prove tricky.

Can the cat keepers outwit the toughest fishing cat on the block?

There could only be one winner, but who will it be?

I have a trail of troublesome children with me,

which can only mean one thing - it's Ask The Keeper time.

Today, head of small cats Neville Buck's knowledge

is going to be tested on the incredible caracals.

-Neville, are you ready?

-I'm always ready.

Oh! He's a confident man. Are you confident, guys?

-ALL:

-Yes!

-They are.

-Neville, what...

what's the caracal's habitat?

Oh, good question.

Well, most of the habitats are kind of like scrubland,

so they don't live in jungles, but they don't live in true deserts.

But they will live in quite dry areas.

But they've usually always got access to water.

What three things should you not do when you're inside the cage?

Well, the most important thing is not to turn around

and run away, because if you run away from a cat,

it will think that's prey and run after you, and they'll pin you down.

You've got to make sure you always know where the animal is

when you're in there with it.

And probably another good thing not to do

is wear a lot of perfume and aftershave,

because cats love the smell of perfumes and aftershave

and they'll come and they'll try and rub on you and claw you

to get to the smell.

Oh, Neville, now you tell me! I might be in trouble.

(Put quite a lot of aftershave on earlier.)

How high can a caracal jump?

A normal height that a caracal will jump,

from a standing position, is six foot.

They can jump higher if they use something else to bounce off

and leap higher, but six foot from a standing position.

That's pretty high, isn't it?

I'm about six foot, just under six foot.

-So they can jump higher than me!

-Wow!

-That's pretty impressive.

You know how you say they're part of the cat family?

Do they, like, miaow, or have they got a different noise?

Well, caracals are quite different to other cats.

They make some really strange noises, and one of the main noises

that they make is they chirrup like a bird.

They will also do other noises a bit like a domestic cats,

because they can't purr like your cat at home.

Where does the name "caracal" come from?

Oh! Now that is a tough one.

Well, now, have you got me here?

No, you haven't!

The name is to do with the black ears that they've got.

Their name originated from the Turkish name, "karakulak",

and they think that is a derivative...

The English name "caracal" has actually been derived from that name.

Well, I think we've really turned the heat up.

And you've answered all our questions, Neville.

Apart from one -

it's Killer Question time. Come on, guys.

We need to come up with an amazing question.

THEY CONFER

What do you reckon, guys?

-ALL:

-You're going down!

-Oh, yes!

They're confident, but are you, Nev?

Are you ready for the Killer Question?

Here it is...

which well-known phrase comes from the caracals?

Well, have you got me here?

I reckon it's... cat among the pigeons.

-No!

-ALL:

-Oh, no!

I thought we had him then.

So why is that, then? Tell us that for an extra point.

It's known that, in the past, that...

people would actually pitch two caracals together in a bet

to see which one of the caracals would bring the most birds down

in a flock of pigeons.

And I think, if I remember rightly,

the highest number, before the whole flock flew off, um,

I believe it was 12 pigeons.

That's where the phrase comes from.

That's pretty impressive, isn't it? He knows everything about caracals.

Thumbs up or thumbs down?

-ALL:

-Thumbs up.

-Thumbs up all round.

-Well done.

-We were good...but you were better.

Well, it's good to know that you know who the master is.

Well, you did really well this time,

but see how the experts get on next time in Ask The Keeper.

What do you call a donkey with three legs?

A wonky. Eee-aww! Eee-aww!

Baaa! Baaa! Baaa!

How do you sell cat food?

I don't know.

Usually PURR can!

Roar! Roar! Roar!

What's small and cuddly and bright purple?

A koala holding its breath.

THEY LAUGH UNCONTROLLABLY

At the new open-top baboon enclosure,

the keepers are just about to release the entire 29-strong troop.

It's a nerve-wracking time as anything could happen.

As you can see, it's getting more tense.

People are getting in position. There's Jamie. Nervous, Jamie?

Not at all.

Simon is now releasing the baboons.

-RADIO CRACKLES

-All the radios are going.

Everyone knows exactly what is happening today.

There's no members of the public here, so it's safe.

And we've been briefed. And we're next to Jamie as well

who will protect us!

The slide is open, baboons are approaching.

They are all free to come out.

Just to clarify that, they are all free to come out.

It's amazing, they're so tentative.

It's such a new place to them.

BABOON SHRIEKS

OK, so he's just felt the fence.

He got an electric shock. Are they clever enough not to do that again?

I'm surprise the dominant male hasn't come out yet.

Jamie, one thing that's really shocked me is that

normally they're like...raah, raah!

And they're really, really quiet.

Yeah, they're all too busy exploring.

You can hear the constant, um, low grunts of inter-group communication.

-Right.

-So it's just basically, "You all right? Everyone all right?

"Everyone happy?"

-They're constantly doing that to reassure each other.

-It's very low.

Really quiet.

There's so much space for them to explore!

This just looks amazing, just to see them out walking.

You can see the little ones running around.

Look at the little one running off!

Where are they going?

Jamie, last time, the two that were in here,

the first thing they did was they went for the fence.

This time they...

they seem to be keeping their distance.

Do you think that's because they saw what happened to the others,

or is it like Simon hoped for this time,

that by bringing them all out, they're less stressed?

-Like, "Hey, my mates are here."

-Probably a combination of the two.

-The group's relaxed because some of them aren't separated.

-Right.

A few of them have touched the fence...

..then sort of shouted out.

So the rest of the group know there's something bad happens

when you touch the fence.

So they probably all will end up touching the fence at some point.

-They generally only do it once.

-Right, OK.

Well, they say you can't beat the great outdoors,

and it looks like the baboons agree.

They seem to be having a great time out here.

The second attempt seems to have been a fantastic success.

Hopefully, I haven't spoken too soon!

So far, so good.

But it's early in the day.

The keepers can't rest easy just yet.

Back at the fishing cat enclosure,

the keepers are preparing to catch moody male Rondu

and female Femay, to move them into their new home,

where they hope they'll have kittens.

Catching carnivores with big teeth and sharp claws is never easy.

Two brave keepers are stepping up to the challenge -

head keeper...

..and his deputy...

You take the black net, Ben.

First task - catching Femay.

Although she's not as aggressive as Rondu, she's still quite dangerous.

The far back corner, far right.

Hey, Femay. How are you doing?

FEMAY GROWLS

All right, Ben?

Oh, steady. Steady, steady.

They have razor-sharp claws and they're not afraid to use them.

-She's coming back up.

-It should be OK.

Which is why our Roar crew are filming this

from outside the enclosure.

This agile cat is giving the keepers the run-around.

Shall I just go for it?

Or climb-around more like!

But the keepers are determined.

Right, got her!

-Hang on, just hold it. Got her?

-Yep!

This net is the safest way to catch the cats and it won't hurt them.

Good girl.

That's one cat in the crate.

And that just leaves the vicious Rondu.

Let's hope that he hasn't worked out a better plan than we've got!

So fingers crossed.

Whatever Rondu's plan is, it's likely to be a cunning one.

He's not even slightly nervous of the keepers.

Normally, loud noises scare the cats.

The slide's seized a little bit, so we've had to bang it a bit.

He's just stood there watching.

There's no fear in him at all!

I think he's more intrigued in going through the slide to see

if the female's in there. But anything that stands in his path

will be fair game.

Er, that might be Jim!

Watch out, Jim, Rondu's coming for you!

He's getting closer and closer!

Hang on a minute! Scratch that!

He's walked straight into the net.

I've never seen a cat walk into a net before!

Seems like Rondu is not as clever as we thought.

Nice one, boys.

-See, his plan wasn't as good as ours, was it?

-No.

JIM CHUCKLES

Both cats are now ready to be moved to their new home,

but will this amazing enclosure mean a more relaxed Rondu

and a gentle mate for Femay?

Or will he still be the deadliest cat around?

If you're animal mad,

then you'll love the Roar online game

on the CBBC website.

You can run your own wildlife park,

and every day, we'll give you a cheat code

which unlocks hidden features, like new animals, food and treats.

Today it's gold90. Happy gaming!

Now we're catching up with one of the biggest babies in the park,

who, when fully grown, could weigh up to 300 kilos.

It's the Brazilian tapir.

We filmed this baby boy, called Diego, just after he was born.

And in just a few weeks, he's grown up fast.

He's recently had a tummy bug,

but he's now fully recovered.

Keeper Barry thinks he's fab.

Well, we have here a baby tapir.

He's got a fantastic personality.

He's into anything and he's letting me give him a lovely scratch.

If you look at his face, it's very much like his mum's.

It's getting lovely and scratchable.

And he just adores it, doesn't he? Look at that!

He's just smashing.

He's got a lovely little nose, and we're thrilled to bits

with his progress. He's putting on weight, he's into everything.

As you can see, he's got quite an appetite.

He just love looking after him.

Diego is very important, as tapir's are endangered in the wild.

They come from the South American rainforest

and are born covered with spots and stripes

to camouflage them in the undergrowth.

When he was born, he was probably no bigger than about that.

So look at how big he's grown now.

He's putting on quite a bit of weight, aren't you, Mr Chunky?

When he first arrived, he was just sucking from Mum.

It wasn't long before he started to test out was Mum was getting

for her breakfast and her dinner,

and started to eat all sorts of things, like leaves,

banana, apple - he pretty much just tried out everything.

He is getting plenty of exercise, so that's helping his muscle tone.

And, yeah, we've been really pleased with him.

He's going to be a big chap, I think, when he gets a bit older.

In time, Diego will turn brown like mum Wilma.

She was pregnant for just over a year before giving birth.

Mum's been really good with him.

It's not her first, and she's just really fantastic.

She looks after him.

If you thought Diego couldn't get cuter, then check this out -

our cameras captured his first swim.

A tapir's long nose acts as a snorkel in the water.

So baby can enjoy a dip not long after birth.

He's acting just like a normal tapir now.

He's just followed Mum into the pool, he's had a swim,

he's pulled himself down and now he's going to spend some time

across the paddock, I think. Hello, mate!

See you, then!

Enjoy the rest of the day.

After two attempts at releasing the baboons into their new enclosure,

the primate team seem to have cracked it.

Well done, Simon!

How are you feeling now?

A lot happier. Still vaguely stressed.

You can see the baboons behind us - they're quite relaxed.

They've been running around all morning, so it's going well.

With baboons, they spend a lot of time climbing, running around,

but to come out and see sky, is that quite daunting for the baboons?

It can be very daunting, yes.

They don't know 100% that they've been let out or escaped

or come into a new enclosure.

Luckily, I think they settled down quickly,

because it was the whole group. The youngsters were getting on,

playing and everything, it was a nice atmosphere.

Every day, are you going to have to get these guys back in here?

And with trees like this, they'll be shimmying up them,

will you have to take a register every night?

Exactly. You've got to do a head count, make sure

you have the right amount of animals in.

We're hoping we can train them enough with food and treats

to get them in every night. The idea is you shut them down at night

and then let them back out in the morning.

Occasionally, some might stay out, and we just have to wait and see.

It's all new to us as well, but we hope we can get them in.

But, yes, a head count.

Each morning, you would have to make sure there's 29 in there.

-You can't take any chances.

-Then you'll be out on the rhinos.

Yes, it can be quite complicated.

Because they can see rhinos here every day,

they are used to seeing them.

It's just different when you put them much closer to them.

So we don't know how they'll react. We don't want the rhino to chase

after the baboons or vice versa. And you have to make sure they're OK.

Well, Simon, I've got to say the second attempt went brilliantly,

and it's fantastic to see them making use of this space.

They seem happy to us. Do they seem happy to you?

I think they seem very, very happy.

-They're having a whale of a time out there.

-Let's hope this continues.

Thanks for letting us come down.

Over at the new fishing cat enclosure,

and it's been a week since Rondu and his mate Femay

were moved to their new luxury pad.

The keepers daren't put them together yet until they are settled.

So there's a mesh in between them.

However, Jim is feeling positive about their future.

They seem to be settling in reasonably well.

It's still early days, but as you can see, he's sitting there

looking at the female, which is next door.

Which is a good thing.

Whereas before he would ignore her,

or when we tried putting them together,

he'd beat her up.

So, all in all, it's gone reasonably well.

We're, you know, quite happy with the way things are.

His temperament's changed quite a bit.

He has calmed down quite a bit.

Which is the desired effect that we were looking for.

We assumed that we would never get him and Femay together.

But his attitude's changed, and as long as that continues,

it's a slow process. But as long as that continues,

we feel more confident that we can put them together,

and it's safe for them and for us, of course.

And how's Femay doing?

Femay is next door, the female. She's settling in slowly,

but in time, we should be able to get them together and, er...

hopefully, get some kittens.

All in all, I'm extremely happy the way things have gone.

It couldn't have gone any better. It's still early days, but, yeah,

in the long-term, we'll be OK.

Once they've both got used to their new enclosure,

hopefully, the pair of them can get together without the fur flying!

But can love blossom?

You'll have to keep watching to find out.

Well, unfortunately it's almost time for the end of the show.

But before we leave you, we've popped up to the African Experience.

Not only are we going to have a chance to catch up with Bob Savill,

but also find out why this water buffalo isn't in the water.

What's going on with Blue? Why is he walking around here?

Well, he's, can we say, our heir and spare.

-Um, he started falling out with his brother in the paddock...

-Right.

He was starting to get beaten up.

So we had to move him.

-Something as big as THAT got beaten up?!

-How big is his brother?

He's not quite as big but he's got a bad temperament, shall we say.

-OK.

-So we split them up, and he's out here on the African Experience

where he's got well over 100 acres, lots of other animals to play with,

lots of wallows.

Granted, there are no other water buffalo out here,

but he's having a wonderful existence, I think.

Definitely. These guys look a little scared of him.

And I am a little bit as well, to be honest.

So, should we be doing what they're doing and wandering off a bit?

Or are we safe?

-You're all right. Just show him a great deal of respect.

-Right.

Most of the time, he's got a very good nature...

Well, Bob, it's amazing,

but we do have to ask about his horns...

-Mm-hm.

-What can they possibly be used for, curled out like that?

Hang your washing out on them?

Joking!

It's there for defence.

They're not nice. When they are in a herd, they do squabble a lot -

that's what they fight with.

He's a bull so he's got much thicker and bigger horns than the cows.

But, basically, it's there for show.

It looks like Blue's wandering off and it's time for us to as well.

Check out what's coming up in the next episode.

The prickliest customers in the park need catching,

but which keeper is man enough to do it?

To be honest, I'd like it to happen on my day off.

I'm not going anywhere near them!

Plus how do you look inside a gorilla's mouth

and not get bitten?

With lemon curd, of course!

And he may be the most handsome cat in the park,

but the bad news for our ranger is he's also the smelliest.

It's the worst thing I've ever smelt!

That's all coming up on the next Roar.

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