0:00:02 > 0:00:03CLASH!
0:00:11 > 0:00:14INSTRUMENTAL
0:02:28 > 0:02:30BARKS
0:02:36 > 0:02:40Few families in Britain are without a pet of some sort.
0:02:40 > 0:02:43There's no country in the world so crazy about pets.
0:02:43 > 0:02:45CHIRPS
0:02:46 > 0:02:49Most probably, it's one like this.
0:02:49 > 0:02:53For today, the budgerigar is by far the most popular pet in the country.
0:02:53 > 0:02:55WOLF-WHISTLES
0:02:55 > 0:02:58More than eight million of these fascinating little birds
0:02:58 > 0:03:00are kept in Britain today.
0:03:00 > 0:03:02THEY CHIRP
0:03:03 > 0:03:05The, wait for it,
0:03:05 > 0:03:08Melopsittacus undulatus, that's the budgerigar's fancy name,
0:03:08 > 0:03:12comes from Australia, where he flies in dense flocks.
0:03:12 > 0:03:14THEY CHIRP
0:03:18 > 0:03:20His natural colour is green.
0:03:20 > 0:03:22He was brought to Britain in 1840
0:03:22 > 0:03:25and has now found his way into every fourth home.
0:03:25 > 0:03:28His popularity is due partly to increasing restrictions
0:03:28 > 0:03:30on keeping cats and dogs in flats.
0:03:35 > 0:03:38You'll find him in every kind of home.
0:03:38 > 0:03:40Even in Buckingham Palace.
0:03:45 > 0:03:48Many homes have more than one pet, of course.
0:03:50 > 0:03:52Perhaps the dog has a slight inferiority complex.
0:03:52 > 0:03:56For dogs are third in popularity.
0:03:56 > 0:03:57Second are cats.
0:03:57 > 0:04:00Some cats have been known to make friends with birds,
0:04:00 > 0:04:03but it's a risky business.
0:04:13 > 0:04:16MEWING
0:04:19 > 0:04:22Yet in a nation of so-called cat lovers,
0:04:22 > 0:04:26there are today about 200,000 stray and unwanted cats.
0:04:26 > 0:04:28And the number is going up.
0:04:31 > 0:04:33For nearly 40 years, the Cat Protection League
0:04:33 > 0:04:35has been coping with the problem.
0:04:35 > 0:04:41Stray cats are brought in regularly to the League's headquarters in Slough, Buckinghamshire.
0:04:42 > 0:04:43MEWING
0:04:45 > 0:04:47Once they've been registered, they're fed
0:04:47 > 0:04:49and put in a pen with the other strays
0:04:49 > 0:04:52until their owners claim them or a new home can be found for them.
0:04:52 > 0:04:56But there's a limit to the time they can be fed and housed.
0:04:56 > 0:04:59Fewer cats are now being kept as household pets in Britain.
0:04:59 > 0:05:02There were about six million in 1952
0:05:02 > 0:05:05and today, the number is estimated at less than four million.
0:05:05 > 0:05:08This is mainly because more people live in flats.
0:05:08 > 0:05:11Some people, no longer able to keep their cats, give them away,
0:05:11 > 0:05:15only to have them fall into the hands of unscrupulous operators
0:05:15 > 0:05:17who sell them for scientific research.
0:05:17 > 0:05:19Cats are sometimes stolen for the same purpose.
0:05:21 > 0:05:25Occasionally, an identification parade is held for cats
0:05:25 > 0:05:29when thieves have been caught before they could dispose of them.
0:05:36 > 0:05:40At this branch of the RSPCA, people who have recently lost their cats
0:05:40 > 0:05:43see whether they can recognise them among those rescued.
0:05:43 > 0:05:45Ownership of the cat can then be established
0:05:45 > 0:05:47when the case comes up in court.
0:05:52 > 0:05:53HIGH-PITCHED WHISTLE
0:06:17 > 0:06:21Dogs officially became part of Britain's police forces in 1947.
0:06:21 > 0:06:23They've since proved so effective
0:06:23 > 0:06:25that today, there are nearly 1,000 of them.
0:06:25 > 0:06:28Most are trained at the various police dog schools
0:06:28 > 0:06:30such as this one in south London.
0:06:30 > 0:06:32BARKING
0:06:38 > 0:06:41Run by a superintendent and five instructors,
0:06:41 > 0:06:45this school attracts policemen from all over the world, as well as from Britain,
0:06:45 > 0:06:48who come for a 14-week course in dog handling.
0:06:51 > 0:06:54Alsatians make the best police dogs and many of them,
0:06:54 > 0:06:57like these two, come from the general public.
0:06:57 > 0:07:00They're accepted only after they've been thoroughly checked at the school.
0:07:00 > 0:07:04For police training, the dogs must be less than 18 months old.
0:07:10 > 0:07:12To keep up the supply of first-class dogs,
0:07:12 > 0:07:15the schools also breed their own puppies.
0:07:15 > 0:07:17The Metropolitan Police alone
0:07:17 > 0:07:20need about 60 highly-trained dogs every year.
0:07:31 > 0:07:34These six-week-old bundles of mischief are kept in check
0:07:34 > 0:07:38by the London school's only kennel maid, Valerie Andrews.
0:07:42 > 0:07:45Food, affection and plenty of exercise
0:07:45 > 0:07:48is the routine for these school-bred dogs.
0:07:48 > 0:07:51The dogs first go to their new master's home for a few months
0:07:51 > 0:07:55and then, when they're about a year old, they come back for training.
0:07:55 > 0:07:57It's simple, easy training at first.
0:07:57 > 0:08:00The dog has to understand his master,
0:08:00 > 0:08:02the master understand his dog.
0:08:02 > 0:08:04For if it's successful, this partnership
0:08:04 > 0:08:06will be for the dog's working lifetime.
0:08:06 > 0:08:09Anything from seven to ten years.
0:08:11 > 0:08:15By the fourth week of training, when obedience is improving,
0:08:15 > 0:08:18the dogs are taught to attack a man.
0:08:18 > 0:08:20To attack at a command.
0:08:20 > 0:08:22And to come off at another command.
0:08:26 > 0:08:28Then follows more advanced obedience tests
0:08:28 > 0:08:31with pistol shots to get them used to gunfire.
0:08:32 > 0:08:35As the course advances, the jumps get longer and higher
0:08:35 > 0:08:38and now everything is done without hesitation.
0:08:38 > 0:08:41The dog is obedient and controlled.
0:08:41 > 0:08:43But on the word, he'll attack and hold the man.
0:08:53 > 0:08:57He's also learnt to make use of his nose.
0:08:57 > 0:08:59An instructor hides in a nearby wood.
0:09:01 > 0:09:03The handler sends his dog off to find him.
0:09:10 > 0:09:13BARKING
0:09:14 > 0:09:19Having tracked him down, the dog will attack only if the man runs.
0:09:19 > 0:09:21At the end of the 14-week course,
0:09:21 > 0:09:24the handlers and their dogs go through rigorous tests.
0:09:24 > 0:09:27And for the successful teams, it's back to duty.
0:09:45 > 0:09:49In Oxfordshire, the 115 recognised breeds of British dogs
0:09:49 > 0:09:51are well represented in these kennels
0:09:51 > 0:09:54where John and Mary Holmes train them for almost any career,
0:09:54 > 0:09:56including screen and stage.
0:09:56 > 0:09:59If you don't recognise the stars of show business,
0:09:59 > 0:10:02they're always ready to tell you of their latest successes.
0:10:02 > 0:10:04BARKING
0:10:07 > 0:10:11After appearing in a television series, Tuck, with another collie,
0:10:11 > 0:10:14keeps in practice with sheep. She's a born worker.
0:10:21 > 0:10:22If there aren't any sheep about,
0:10:22 > 0:10:26she's just as happy taking to the water and rounding up a few ducks.
0:10:36 > 0:10:40Having got them into their wire cage, she doesn't call it a day.
0:10:40 > 0:10:42She doesn't trust wire cages.
0:10:42 > 0:10:44A busy girl, this border collie.
0:10:44 > 0:10:47Next day, she's off to London to do a bit of modelling
0:10:47 > 0:10:49for a television advertisement.
0:11:03 > 0:11:06This sort of work can earn a dog about £20 a day.
0:11:06 > 0:11:10But for owners who think their dogs might earn money this way,
0:11:10 > 0:11:11it takes endless patience
0:11:11 > 0:11:14to make a dog do what you want it to do at the right moment,
0:11:14 > 0:11:17under strong lights, amongst strangers and strange noises,
0:11:17 > 0:11:20without wasting expensive studio time.
0:11:37 > 0:11:41Thousands of people in Britain nowadays rarely see a donkey,
0:11:41 > 0:11:43except perhaps when they go to the seaside.
0:11:43 > 0:11:45Yet, in the last few years,
0:11:45 > 0:11:49the donkey has been making a comeback as a popular pet.
0:11:49 > 0:11:53Tiny Tim from Ceylon is a pygmy donkey.
0:11:53 > 0:11:54He belongs to Jacqueline Dinnich.
0:11:54 > 0:11:57She bought him from Whipsnade Zoo for £70.
0:11:57 > 0:12:00Like all donkeys, he's friendly and intelligent.
0:12:06 > 0:12:10Donkey owners say they are still the most misunderstood of animals.
0:12:10 > 0:12:13Apparently, they are neither stupid nor obstinate.
0:12:13 > 0:12:17They just take time to think and then form fixed ideas.
0:12:19 > 0:12:22Many donkeys go to coastal resorts to spend their lives
0:12:22 > 0:12:25giving rides to children along the sands.
0:12:25 > 0:12:27The seaside donkeys have a charter
0:12:27 > 0:12:29nearly half a century old to protect them.
0:12:29 > 0:12:31A dozen rules are enforced.
0:12:31 > 0:12:32They must be fit for the job
0:12:32 > 0:12:37and no-one older than 16 or weighing more than eight stone may ride them.
0:12:37 > 0:12:42Like most of us, they're entitled to at least one rest day a week.
0:12:43 > 0:12:46If ever cars are banned from town centres,
0:12:46 > 0:12:49donkeys could provide an answer to shopping problems.
0:12:49 > 0:12:53Once you really get to know a donkey, it'll follow you like a dog.
0:12:56 > 0:12:59And be sure it won't starve.
0:13:30 > 0:13:32Do you fancy a giant chameleon?
0:13:32 > 0:13:34He's nature's camouflage artist.
0:13:38 > 0:13:40The green acouchi is a rat from Ecuador.
0:13:40 > 0:13:44His friend, the bush baby, is a little monkey from East Africa.
0:13:45 > 0:13:48The owl-faced monkey is also from Ecuador.
0:13:49 > 0:13:52And who wouldn't love Chumley the chimp?
0:13:57 > 0:14:01Woolly monkeys come from Brazil. This chap's called Sweep.
0:14:04 > 0:14:07The beautifully-marked regal python is not a poisonous snake
0:14:07 > 0:14:10and some people say they find him affectionate.
0:14:13 > 0:14:16The alligator's all right when he's eight inches long,
0:14:16 > 0:14:20but when he grows to 8.5 feet, he'll have to live in the bath.
0:14:20 > 0:14:22And then what do you do?
0:14:23 > 0:14:28Members of the parrot family have been close friends with man for hundreds of years.
0:14:28 > 0:14:30SQUAWKING
0:14:47 > 0:14:49Animal air traffic is a very big business.
0:14:49 > 0:14:52Particularly if there's an elephant involved.
0:14:52 > 0:14:56The best way to ship young Jumbo is to give him a nice comfortable crate
0:14:56 > 0:14:58with a slot for an enquiring trunk.
0:14:58 > 0:15:02His ticket from Central Africa costs twice as much as a man's,
0:15:02 > 0:15:06but he gets free food and his own attendant on the journey.
0:15:09 > 0:15:12The animals are usually collected as soon as they arrive.
0:15:12 > 0:15:16But sometimes they have to wait. Possibly for an outgoing flight.
0:15:16 > 0:15:18In that case, the airline knows what to do.
0:15:18 > 0:15:23It sends them to the RSPCA animal hostel on the edge of the airport.
0:15:23 > 0:15:25This was opened in 1952
0:15:25 > 0:15:28to look after the ever-increasing animal passenger traffic.
0:15:28 > 0:15:32Nearly one million living creatures go through it every year,
0:15:32 > 0:15:34most of them stopping only a few hours.
0:15:37 > 0:15:40Animals of every conceivable shape and size.
0:15:40 > 0:15:43Fearless, ferocious little minks from Finland.
0:15:45 > 0:15:48Frogs, imported for medical research.
0:15:56 > 0:15:58And sometimes, a tapir.
0:15:58 > 0:16:00This is a pretty rare, valuable fellow.
0:16:00 > 0:16:03A quiet, docile vegetarian.
0:16:03 > 0:16:04He's flown in from South America
0:16:04 > 0:16:09and is in transit to Johannesburg to go to a private collector.
0:16:09 > 0:16:12Neville Whittaker, manager of the airport's animal hostel,
0:16:12 > 0:16:15gives him a special feed all to himself.
0:16:17 > 0:16:20The correct diet for the hundreds of different animals
0:16:20 > 0:16:23is one of the first things the 12 girl attendants have to learn.
0:16:23 > 0:16:26SQUAWKING
0:16:34 > 0:16:37One famous monkey really got attached to the airport.
0:16:37 > 0:16:41Bimbo was at large there for months until finally caught
0:16:41 > 0:16:43and sent to the hostel on her way to a zoo.
0:16:46 > 0:16:48Zoos have to comply with the quarantine regulations
0:16:48 > 0:16:51laid down by the Ministry of Agriculture.
0:16:51 > 0:16:54And they always work a voluntary isolation system of their own.
0:16:54 > 0:16:56Maybe even with an elephant.
0:16:57 > 0:17:00New animals are always carefully kept away from the main collection
0:17:00 > 0:17:04until it's clear that they're not bringing in any sort of infection.
0:17:04 > 0:17:06These are the quarantine quarters at Plymouth.
0:17:06 > 0:17:09And every sort of animal, from a bird to the largest mammal,
0:17:09 > 0:17:11has to go through the isolation routine
0:17:11 > 0:17:15until the veterinary surgeons are satisfied with its condition.
0:17:28 > 0:17:33There are times when the main quarantine pens look like a zoo in miniature
0:17:33 > 0:17:36with new consignments of giraffes, llamas,
0:17:36 > 0:17:39antelopes and zebras all corralled separately.
0:17:56 > 0:17:58To keep them contented and healthy,
0:17:58 > 0:18:01you need to recreate their old environment for them.
0:18:01 > 0:18:04Dry footing to protect the feet of the giraffe
0:18:04 > 0:18:06or sandy mud for the wild pig to root in.
0:18:06 > 0:18:10Some creatures need the steamy swamps of a dank, dark river.
0:18:16 > 0:18:18Others need the brilliant light,
0:18:18 > 0:18:21the coral and the warmth of a tropical sea.
0:18:24 > 0:18:27For some, a patch of burning desert is all they want.
0:18:27 > 0:18:29And for the oxpecker from South Africa,
0:18:29 > 0:18:31who likes to live on the back of an ox,
0:18:31 > 0:18:34a substitute made from wire and sacking.
0:18:34 > 0:18:37You can't get a real ox into a birdcage.
0:18:37 > 0:18:40And what about the animals that come out only at night?
0:18:40 > 0:18:44You create an artificial moon - turn day into night -
0:18:44 > 0:18:46to maintain their natural living cycle,
0:18:46 > 0:18:50yet still give people a chance to see them in their moonlight world.
0:19:13 > 0:19:15It is in the park of Longleat House,
0:19:15 > 0:19:18the Wiltshire seat of the Marquess of Bath,
0:19:18 > 0:19:21that Britain's biggest collection of lions has been formed.
0:19:21 > 0:19:2446 lions and lionesses eating the equivalent
0:19:24 > 0:19:27of one-and-a-half cow carcasses a day in raw meat
0:19:27 > 0:19:30are roaming 100 acres of fenced-in parkland.
0:19:35 > 0:19:38ROARING
0:19:40 > 0:19:43These lions were bought from British zoos, from Africa
0:19:43 > 0:19:45and from zoos all over Europe.
0:19:45 > 0:19:49It's hoped eventually to bring up their strength to 50.
0:19:53 > 0:19:55ROARING
0:20:03 > 0:20:05ROARING
0:20:11 > 0:20:12They're the latest attraction
0:20:12 > 0:20:15and certainly a winner so far as the British are concerned
0:20:15 > 0:20:19in the battle to keep up one of England's fine old stately homes.
0:20:19 > 0:20:21But there's a heavy investment involved
0:20:21 > 0:20:24in showing such a large collection of lions to the public.
0:20:24 > 0:20:27The two miles of double fencing, one fence electrified
0:20:27 > 0:20:31surrounding this stretch of Lion Country, cost £18,000.
0:20:31 > 0:20:34The two-mile road for the public to drive through the area
0:20:34 > 0:20:36cost £23,000 to build.
0:20:36 > 0:20:39The scheme needs a permanent staff of 20
0:20:39 > 0:20:42as cars have to be logged through a series of gates
0:20:42 > 0:20:44to enter or leave the area.
0:20:44 > 0:20:47But Lord Bath, here selling tickets, was right.
0:20:47 > 0:20:49The British do like lions.
0:20:49 > 0:20:52In fact, they're fascinated by them.
0:20:52 > 0:20:543,000 cars turned up on the third Sunday
0:20:54 > 0:20:57of the opening of Wiltshire's Lion Country.
0:20:57 > 0:21:00They just streamed in from all over Britain from morning till night
0:21:00 > 0:21:04with everyone intrigued by the warning signs at the entrance.
0:21:13 > 0:21:15They certainly saw lions.
0:21:15 > 0:21:18Everyone saw lions. Plenty of them.
0:21:18 > 0:21:19And close, too.
0:21:25 > 0:21:29For some, a little too close, perhaps.
0:21:30 > 0:21:32The rule of the road in Lion Country,
0:21:32 > 0:21:34pull over to the left to park.
0:21:34 > 0:21:37Leave the right-hand lane clear for moving traffic
0:21:37 > 0:21:38and keep the windows shut.
0:21:38 > 0:21:40And never, never run over a lion.
0:21:42 > 0:21:45If anything goes wrong with the car, don't get out.
0:21:45 > 0:21:47Just sit tight and blow the horn.
0:21:49 > 0:21:52HORN SOUNDS
0:21:54 > 0:21:57Three patrol crews, each with an armed guard, cover the area.
0:21:59 > 0:22:01ROARING
0:22:01 > 0:22:03With a crack shot keeping a lookout,
0:22:03 > 0:22:06an overheated car is towed to safety.
0:22:06 > 0:22:08ROARING
0:22:11 > 0:22:15And this is one place where nobody ever tries to twist the lion's tail.
0:22:44 > 0:22:47On whose say-so do we haul a free-roaming animal
0:22:47 > 0:22:49out of the infinite plains of Africa
0:22:49 > 0:22:51to keep it for the rest of its natural life
0:22:51 > 0:22:55in a paddock in Regent's Park London, NW1?
0:22:55 > 0:22:58Why shouldn't we? In captivity, animals live far longer.
0:22:58 > 0:23:03Carefully supervised, lovingly tended, scientifically fed.
0:23:27 > 0:23:29In the wild state, the large cat
0:23:29 > 0:23:32consumes the entrails of freshly-killed animals,
0:23:32 > 0:23:36from which it gets valuable nutrients.
0:23:36 > 0:23:40In captivity, we have to feed quite a lot of raw meat.
0:23:40 > 0:23:44And to this, therefore, we add bone-building substances
0:23:44 > 0:23:47in the shape of sterilised bone flour
0:23:47 > 0:23:49and calcium and vitamin supplements.
0:23:49 > 0:23:52We do this not only with the large cats,
0:23:52 > 0:23:55but with a great number of other species as well.
0:23:55 > 0:23:58Flamingos lose their colouration in captivity,
0:23:58 > 0:24:01so we feed a dye substance which is quite harmless,
0:24:01 > 0:24:04called carotenoid, in their diet.
0:24:05 > 0:24:07Normally, these birds in the wild
0:24:07 > 0:24:12get this from small crustaceans, things like shrimps and prawns,
0:24:12 > 0:24:18from the mud in the bottom of the rivers and ponds in which they live.
0:24:18 > 0:24:20Zoos are modern places now,
0:24:20 > 0:24:23tearing out old-fashioned bars and cages
0:24:23 > 0:24:27to bring the public closer and give the animals more freedom.
0:24:27 > 0:24:30But some say bars or no bars, it makes no difference.
0:24:30 > 0:24:32They are still captive.
0:24:35 > 0:24:37SQUAWKING
0:24:39 > 0:24:42Now they are prisoners. Once they were free.
0:24:42 > 0:24:44But think a moment.
0:24:44 > 0:24:47Perhaps equating captivity with unhappiness
0:24:47 > 0:24:51is a human concept and not an animal one. Sentimental.
0:24:51 > 0:24:55Some people pity the big cats in their narrow dens.
0:24:55 > 0:24:58But maybe the tiger wouldn't want to swap his one splendid meal a day,
0:24:58 > 0:25:01the affection of his keeper, the companionship of his mate,
0:25:01 > 0:25:06for a hazardous life back in the jungle and a hungry old age.
0:25:09 > 0:25:13Some people say, how would we feel if it were the other way around?
0:25:13 > 0:25:15Would any of us be prepared to spend the rest of his life
0:25:15 > 0:25:18enclosed in one restricted space with bars or without,
0:25:18 > 0:25:20whatever the compensations?
0:25:20 > 0:25:24But experts believe animals can't make such comparisons.
0:25:24 > 0:25:27Animals live only in the present tense.
0:25:28 > 0:25:32It's obvious that for a great number, zoo life is no deprivation.
0:25:32 > 0:25:35Nowadays, European zoos largely restock
0:25:35 > 0:25:38by buying or exchanging animals reared in captivity
0:25:38 > 0:25:42so many of their inhabitants have never lived in any other way.
0:25:42 > 0:25:46And let's face it, it has its compensations.
0:25:47 > 0:25:49LAUGHTER
0:25:55 > 0:25:59Are zoo people overprotective, too kind?
0:25:59 > 0:26:01Do we do too much for animals?
0:26:01 > 0:26:04What do they give us, apart from fun?
0:26:04 > 0:26:08Firstly, the chance to study rare species closely and preserve them.
0:26:30 > 0:26:35In well-run zoos, there is a steady increase in population all the time.
0:26:35 > 0:26:38And modern housing makes it possible to keep animals in colonies,
0:26:38 > 0:26:40rather than merely in pairs.
0:26:49 > 0:26:51BLEATING
0:26:52 > 0:26:56It is only when they are properly cared for and feel secure
0:26:56 > 0:26:58that animals will breed in captivity.
0:26:58 > 0:27:01Though not every new baby has the popular appeal of Pipaluk.
0:27:03 > 0:27:07Success takes skill, patience and know-how,
0:27:07 > 0:27:10plus that extra indefinable something that comes with
0:27:10 > 0:27:14wanting your animal to be happy, taking a pride in its fitness,
0:27:14 > 0:27:15its perfection.
0:27:15 > 0:27:18Professionals have these qualities.
0:27:18 > 0:27:24Do ordinary people like you and I really care enough to match them?
0:27:24 > 0:27:28Not long ago, a man was asked if he had any children.
0:27:28 > 0:27:31"Oh, no," he answered, "my wife has Pekinese."
0:27:31 > 0:27:34Everybody knows just what he meant.
0:27:37 > 0:27:40All right, we do love animals.
0:27:40 > 0:27:42Or do we just love owning them?
0:28:24 > 0:28:27Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd