All language subtitles for Inside Taronga ZOO s01e10

Famous the world over, Sydney Harbour is
home to some of Australia's most iconic

landmarks and one of the world's most
celebrated zoos.

Throughout its 101 -year history,
there's never been a more exciting time

granted access to both of Taronga Zoo's
locations.

From caring for a single animal... Just
hang on to him and keep calm.

...to saving an entire species.

She's a gorgeous little frog and one of
our most critically endangered.

We'll take you inside Taronga.

On this episode, the zoo's most
ambitious project yet.

This is beautiful.

Bringing the African savannah to Sydney.

As we redefine what a 21st century zoo
is all about.

But as the big move begins, Larry and
the team. How is it?

received some tragic news.

She just looks really unwell.

How do you treat the world's largest
lizard?

Hey, big fella.

With the world's sorest shoulder?

This is something we hadn't done with
reptiles before.

And what otter nonsense.

They're like a three -year -old child on
Red Quarter all the time. The tricky

business of teaching a distracted
student.

That's it.

That's it.

Taronga Zoo is always investing in ways
to improve how they care for their

animals.

And this year, Taronga is finishing one
of their most ambitious undertakings

ever.

Recreating a savannah watering hole for
the African animal.

This is one of the most exciting
projects that we've worked on as we

what a 21st century zoo is all about.

It's actually a multi -species exhibit.

We've got giraffe, ostrich, zebra, and
then tiny species like meerkats. And

you'll experience them just the way they
live in the savannah. And they interact

with each other. The lions at the
western end will look across and see

species, and I'm sure that'll stimulate
them, of course.

This project has been in the pipeline
for almost six years.

The grand opening now just months away.

Quite a logistical exercise and the
hat's off to all the team that are

on it.

As the construction phase draws to a
close, the next challenge is organising

transportation of the animals to their
new home.

Some, like the lions and ostriches, will
be relocating from Taronga's Western

Plain Zoo in Dubbo and others...

will have it a little easier and only
need to travel a few hundred metres.

But one of the trickiest animals to move
are at the opposite end of the zoo.

And the months and months of training
needed to prepare them falls on the

shoulders of Jimmy and the giraffe team.

So we have three giraffes, two females
and a male. This one here, he's our

youngest. His name's Jimmy Yu.

He's only just turned 13 years of age.
He's our biggest, so he's quite an

impressive male.

So this is Nyota. She's the second
eldest giraffe in Australasia. She's 27.

So she's quite an achievement to still
be working with such a magnificent

at her age.

With her advanced age, Nyota has not
been in the best of health. So that's

much at the front of mind for everyone.

Good.

As are all the other challenges.

Moving a five and a half metre animal is
a lot more problematic than people

might think.

Focus, buddy.

Giraffe, as a rule, can be quite
temperamental. They are quite flighty

Tug it.

Good. Tug it.

Good.

Hold. Hold.

Hold. Tug it.

Good boy.

Very nice.

We often get told, can't you just put
them in the trailer and walk them up?

look, that all sounds great in theory,
but they're not pet dogs.

They are still wild animals, and here at
the zoo we try and keep them all as

wild as they can. We would like them to
display their own natural wild

behaviour, so we don't treat anything
here like a pet.

Giraffes are easily spooked.

So the first step in training the
giraffes is getting them used to the

they'll be transported in.

Today's just a first visual for us to
see the trailer and for the giraffes to

start getting used to the trailer. And
what we'll do is over the next couple of

days is we're going to start driving the
trailer in and out every morning and

they'll just get used to the paddock
having activity in it.

But one thing's for sure, anything that
sounds this easy never is.

Ah, the pole.

The pole's given us nightmares because
the way the fence is built on a curve.

I'm worried about backing up. We're
going to get more wedged

into this corner.

Yeah, we're stuck against the pole. So
now we've got to try and figure out how

to get it out.

Can you imagine doing this if we had a
giraffe in there with the well washing?

I wouldn't be happy.

Jimmy wouldn't be happy.

No pressure.

Breathe, boys, breathe.

Let's all stay together as a team. Let's
breathe.

Taronga Zoo is home to a unique
educational space, the Institute of

Learning. So she has to come to where my
hand is, straight up onto the rock.

We've got these incredible immersive
classrooms, different laboratories like

science labs. We teach university
degrees out of it.

So it's a whole space that science and
education has really brought together.

But out the back, off display, is its
greatest asset.

It's pretty much a mini zoo within a
zoo. We have a mix of around 40

species, around 200 animals.

It's a very unique space.

Every day is different, and that's what
I love about my job.

But today is extra special, as one of
the Institute's residents is moving out.

Hi, little one.

Wednesday, the short -beaked echidna.

You ready?

Along with the platypus, echidnas are
one of only two egg -laying mammals in

world. And just like the platypus, they
are notoriously hard to breed.

They're so elusive that not a lot is
known about their breeding behaviour.

They also are very selective with their
mates. You can't just pair two. They

have to choose their own.

For 29 years, there were no echidnas
born at Taronga Zoo, but three years

Wednesday changed all that.

And now that he's matured, Wednesday
will soon leave the only home he's ever

known to bunk in with the mother
echidnas for his own chance to breed.

Got a date with the doctor.

But before he can start breeding, he
needs to get a clean bill of health from

the vet.

Shall we go and see them?

What do you reckon?

Well, all keepers at Taronga are
passionate about the animals they care

It's hard to go past Reptile Keeper
Stu's infectious love of all things

So here at Taronga, we're at the back of
the reptile house.

And we're going to show you guys the
range of different lizards, because we

all different lizards here. And our
lizards range from the smallest little

dragons and skinks to the biggest
iguanas, monitor lizards, chameleons,

monster. So we've got the whole range,
from the smallest to the biggest.

The first one I want to show you is our
little single -backed lizard.

Here we go.

This one is actually a subspecies from
Western Australia, known as the

shingleback. And look at the colouration
on his head, that beautiful gold or

orange sort of colouring.

And he's 100 % herbivore. The next thing
I want to show you is an insectivore,

or an animal that loves to eat insects.

So this is our eastern spiny -tailed
skink.

And I mean, look at the face on that
animal.

Again, found from Western Australia.
We're seeing a bit of a theme, aren't

The ones from Western Australia have a
bit of orange on them. This is one of

more unusual lizards that you'll see.

spiky tails, spikes all over his head.
This is a defence.

This is to stop an animal trying to grab
a hold of him. Any predator that bites

that is going to get a mouthful of these
spines, spit him out and go, I want

nothing to do with that. I want to find
something that's juicier and softer to

eat. They're not dangerous to us. I can
pick him up. I can pat them.

They're not razor sharp, but they're
definitely a defence against a predator

that wants to chew on him.

So if we come over here, we've got our
red barred dragon, and these are

the fastest moving little guys we've got
in the reptile house.

So we feed this guy insects.

Only insects. They don't eat salad.

They don't eat worms. They're an
insectivorous dragon.

They're not dangerous to humans. They're
so small, even if he was to give a

little chew on my finger, I'd probably
just have a bit of a smile and go, oh,

aren't you cute? Look at you trying to
be a big lizard.

As much as he loves them, Stu wouldn't
offer his finger to just any lizard.

This is a Gila monster.

These guys are found in the southern
United States and northern Mexico, and

they're one of the only true venomous
lizards in the entire world, hence me

wearing this protective glove.

It's not known to be a fatal bite, but
it would definitely ruin my day.

These guys have great camouflage on
them. They live in the desert, so this

colouration helps blend into the sand,
and these black markings actually make

them cryptic.

Even though you think black would stand
out against the red, it's when they're

moving, it just breaks up their body
shape so a predator can't see them.

Now, these guys, they've got a very
interesting diet. They tend to find the

burrow of a ground nesting bird or a
small mammal, go into that burrow, eat

whatever's in there, eat whatever babies
or eggs are in there, and then take

that burrow on as their own. But Stu's
all -time number one lizard won't be

found lathing around here.

So even though he has the name Monster
in his name, he's not the biggest one

here. We do have the big guy. His
favourite lizard takes centre stage.

Naga, our Komodo dragon, the world's
biggest lizard. Biggest lizard in the

world. I spend almost every day with
some form of interaction with him, so I

really do have a very close affiliation
to Naga. And it's because of this

closeness that Stu has noticed that Naga
may need some medical help.

The grand opening for one of the biggest
projects in Taronga's history, the

African Savannah, is now only months
away.

And the first animal going in is also
one of the trickiest.

Giraffe is a big animal to move, you
know. You want to make sure everything's

right. So we're doing trial runs on this
in and out. So when the day comes with

us and the boys, it's all smooth.

Great.

It's only day one of training and
already they've hit a snare.

The pole's given us nightmares because
the way the fence is built on a curve

and I think the pole will have to be
removed for us to get it out.

But keepers know, despite these early
difficulties, they can't let on to the

giraffe that there may be some hiccups.

Good. It's nerve -wracking for us. It's
nerve -wracking for them. It's nerve

-wracking for everyone involved, really.
But the thing is, around animals, they

pick up on your behaviour.

So if we're nervous, they'll be nervous.
So it's sort of an acting game. We've

got to come in here and act as confident
as we can to get them to be as

confident as they can.

Am I hooked out of the way of the poles?

While the giraffe look on curiously, the
first test run...

comes to an anticlimactic end.

Good. But unfortunately for the team,
they're about to be blindsided by

something that will put a halt to their
training.

Good.

Naga, the Komodo dragon, has an injured
shoulder.

We noticed Naga's right shoulder. He
seemed a bit sore, a bit lame.

He wasn't lifting it all the way.

Whether he fell on it, he might have
hyperextended the shoulder behind his

one day. We don't exactly know how it
happened. So we got our vets in. We have

team of amazing vets. And they came down
to assess it. And the vets decided to

go ahead with a laser treatment.

So we've got a specialised laser here
that we have to treat him with.

And our very fashionable safety device.

It's quite a small device. It emits
different coloured lasers. The laser

going to be using is a red laser, and
you'll see red light emitting out of

laser. The way that it helps to treat
Naga's issues is it repairs individual

cells as we run it over Naga's body.
This is something we hadn't done with

reptiles before, but it's a great non
-invasive way of treating it.

Even with 10 years of experience, Stu is
well aware of the risks of dealing with

a wild animal.

Naga is a dangerous animal, so whenever
we go in to do anything in his

enclosure, whether it be cleaning his
exhibit in the morning, to treating him,

to feeding him, we always have to go off
his behaviour to dictate how we will

work around him.

Stuart to Chris Driver.

Chris, I'm just going into Naga's
exhibit to do his laser treatment this

morning. He's in a good spot, he doesn't
seem too active, so I'll let you know

when I'm finished with that procedure.

Copy that.

Some days we walk in there and he is
completely oblivious to us. He doesn't

raise an eyelid.

Other days I'll walk in through that
door and he's straight on to me, look

straight at me. I know that he's
stimulated. So we just have to be a

more careful working around him. It
doesn't mean that he wants to attack us.

means that he's in a heightened state of
awareness.

So we just enter the exhibit, get Naga
into position, and then start the

therapy.

Hey, big fella.

I mean, we are always precautious, but,
yeah, definitely we go off his behaviour

to dictate what sort of a mood he's in.

The first step is getting him into a
good position.

And like all animals at the zoo, Naga is
trained to follow his keeper's signals.

Here we go.

Now that we've got Naga up in the right
position to commence the laser therapy,

I'm going to start doing that on his
right shoulder.

Now, the laser therapy was decided to be
used because it's a very non -invasive

way of treating it.

We have to move the laser very slowly.
We move it at about one centimetre per

second.

What the laser does, I'm not a vet, but
it was explained that it repairs any

damaged cell in the area that is being
treated.

It doesn't seem to be really producing
any pain for him. The vets told us that

he would just feel a little bit of an
increase in temperature, a little bit of

warmth, and that's all he feels.

Good on you, mate.

The laser treatment with Naga went
fantastic today.

Not over it yet, are you? No.

You're nice and comfy in here.

He was quite relaxed and he stayed in
position for the entire treatment.

Since we've started the treatment, we've
seen a great improvement in his

mobility in the shoulder.

I hope that with the laser therapy for
Naga, by the end of it, we have

completely healed any issue that he had
with his shoulder and he uses it at 100

% effectiveness like he did from the
beginning.

Taronga Zoo's wildlife hospital is one
busy place.

They had time coming up. With thousands
of animals to attend to and emergencies

that often crop up.

It has to be run with a military -like
precision.

Just hang on to him and keep calm.

So when an animal is booked in for a
check -up, the keepers have to make sure

that the animal will make their
appointment.

And that includes even the most
difficult to train.

Hey, otters. How you going?

How you going?

Hello.

Talk otters?

Cool. Let's talk about otters. So the
Asian small -clawed otters are the

we have here at Taronga. Come down here.
Come down here.

And they're the smallest of the 13
species found around the world. They

live in family groups.

So you've got intern and satsi. Satsi is
the young one on the right. You've got

intern on the left. And one right at the
back is mum.

And you've got dad saying, all right,
let's go out. And mum and dad actually

bond for life.

Everybody ready? Ready to go outside?

And otters are very playful, very social
carnivores.

They're very, very hyperactive, always
going 100 miles an hour. They have

feet, which is perfect for swimming and
diving into the water.

And they actually are called small
clawed because they literally have very

claws. They have very, very small kind
of fingernails. Almost looks like if

someone chewed their fingernails a lot,
it's that tiny.

While they may be amongst the smallest
animals at the zoo, they do hold one of

the biggest records.

Yeah, so otters are known to have
probably the worst smelling poo here at

zoo. So we're going to grab the
essential oils.

What do we have today?

Peppermint and betel. Awesome.

Every time a guest was walking past on
the rainforest trail and walking past

otter exhibit, they do get that unique
otter smell.

Yeah, they are notorious for their food.

But even the smelliest animals need to
have a regular health check.

Katoot is due for his health check -up
and previously we just used to go in

there with nets and we had to kind of
restrain them and obviously very

for that otter, also stressful for that
family and also for the keepers as well.

Hello. You alright, Katoot?

So we are trying something that is quite
revolutionary for Taronga. Not quite

sure. Good boy. We're going to
voluntarily hand -inject an otter. But

that, you need the otter to stay still
long enough to receive an anaesthetic

injection. What we are looking for in
terms of the behaviour is for Kutut to

voluntarily go into a pipe.

and to accept a needle that I'll be
administering.

When we first started stationing, he was
probably in there for a second and out

he goes.

So it's a conditioning to stay in that
pipe for quite some time, just to get

prepared and then obviously take little
steps of that needle coming in. That's

it. Good boy, understood?

A few things that we have to condition,
particularly our otters, is to kind of

calm down and relax.

I love to kind of put in context,
they're like a three -year -old child on

Quarter all the time. So they're always
active, very energetic.

The attention focus is very, very quick.
So you have to keep up to them all the

time.

Katut is living up to his hyperactive
reputation and is not interested in the

training. Training itself, you know,
like us, we have our ups and downs and

do our other families as well.

You know, some days he's great and he's
really motivated in training and other

days he doesn't.

And that's fine. We just kind of take it
day by day and just prepare him for his

general anaesthetic.

Yeah, is it?

No, that's not it.

So he's giving me an indicator that he
wants to go out, so I'll let him back

out.

So, while today can only be described as
an otter failure, for Keeper Math, it's

always tomorrow.

It's all good. We could try again
sometime.

As 18 months' worth of construction for
Taronga's ambitious new African savannah

draws to a close... The guests can just
look out and see an uninterrupted view

of our beautiful savannah exhibit.

This is beautiful.

The giraffe, who will be the first to
move in, continue with their painfully

slow training in preparation for the
move.

Jim.

Hello, buddy. Station.

That's the boy. Nice work.

It's monotonous work.

Nice work. Months of intensive daily
training.

Good.

Very good.

And the giraffe are no longer bothered
by the trailer as the final dry runs

before the big day are being conducted.

We're trying to do this as often as we
can. On the day, there'll be three

giraffes we're moving. They'll be going
one at a time.

So what we want to do is get them used
to the trailer driving in and out as

as possible. So on the day, nothing's
out of ordinary for them.

The trailer's about to leave the exhibit
at the moment and head to a new

savannah. Every day that we move this
trailer or we work these drafts, it

like we're getting closer and closer to
the end goal. So the end goal shouldn't

be far away now.

As you can see, he doesn't really care.

So this is perfect.

But in saying that, you cannot judge
what's going to happen on the day.

going to be a giraffe in here on the
day.

They might react totally different. And
when they lose a member of their herd,

even if it's only for a couple of
minutes, they're still going to start to

think, what's that trailer? You're going
that trailer.

Where do you go?

Until they get reunited at the other
end, then they're all happy.

We're not just looking at where the
trailer's going. You've got to count

couple of feet on top of that trailer
when their head's up there. So we're not

just worrying that the trees are hitting
the trailer, we're worrying that

there's another two -footed giraffe on
top of that as well.

But while the front of house moves are
running smoothly for Jimmy and the

giraffe team... How is it?

..early the next day, senior vet Larry
receives a call about Nyota that could

put the whole move in jeopardy.

For all of our older animals, we monitor
their quality of life and their welfare

very, very closely as they get older.

Arthritis, dental disease, other
degenerative processes are happening and

you see when you're looking at the
animal doesn't indicate how bad the

are actually.

And unfortunately for Nyota, the sad
reality is her health.

is now in rapid decline.

Sadly, Nyota, our 28 -year -old giraffe,
which is pretty old for a giraffe, has

deteriorated suddenly.

Yesterday afternoon, she was very
unwell.

We've been monitoring her very closely.

That's it, darling.

Come on.

But yesterday afternoon, she really took
her turn for the worse. She's really

slowed down. She's very vague. Her
nostrils are flared. She just looks

unwell.

Given Nyota's advancing years, And this
dramatic development, it's very clear

some tough decisions need to be made.

And quickly.

Katoot, the short -clawed otter, needs a
health check.

And it's up to Keeper Maz to make sure
he's ready.

All right, otters. By training this
hyperactive animal to sit still long

to receive an anaesthetic injection.

Katoot. But it's been a frustrating few
weeks.

As each day, Mads has tried and tried
and

tried again to get Katut to stay still.

Might have to end it.

Yeah, they're not that happy.

Well, I'll just let him out and we can
just regroup and then try again.

All right, guys.

And with the vet, and operating theatre
books, finally, Maz has a breakthrough.

OK. Ka -toot. Because Ka -toot is
finally listening.

All right, can feed them.

Ka -toot, across.

Ka -toot.

Ka -toot, cut.

That's Ka -toot.

Nice.

Him allowing me to touch his body, it is
great to see he does trust me and

obviously I trust him as well at the
same time.

All right, finished.

And we're done.

So with everything in place, vet
Kimberly arrived with the anaesthetic

We've been working very, very hard to
get to this stage.

But yeah, it is awesome for his welfare
and for the group as well. So we don't

have to physically restrain an animal or
put them under any pressure of stress.

Matt, come here for a sec.

Do you want a small syringe with 0 .4 in
it or a thicker syringe? I don't know

what you've been practicing with.

Yeah, a small syringe is fine. One of
these? Yep.

All right. That's loaded. Ready to go?
Good to go. Cool. Perfect. See you soon.

And now it's all up to Mads and Katoot.

Wednesday, the short -beaked echidna is
about to join the rest of the echidnas

in the breeding pool.

All right, Liz.

It's a little Wednesday.

Before he can join the females, he needs
the all -clear from Vet Larry, who is

being assisted by US Vet Meredith.

We have porcupines that exist in the
United States and North America with

quills, somewhat similar, but nothing
quite like the echidna's body size or

their little protective abilities.

But this feisty little animal isn't too
keen on being a model patient.

We're just putting a little mask over
his beak so that we can induce the

anesthetic. A little bit shy.

A little Wednesday.

When they're threatened by a predator,
or even when people try and pick them

they curl up into this ball and they're
almost impenetrable.

You got it?

I don't think it was. It wasn't on.

No bugger.

Okay, now we're on.

They're very, very powerful little
animals.

They've got powerful claws and limbs to
break down and burrow and dig.

And obviously this shield of spines is
for protection.

So we're going to take some x -rays of
Wednesday because we're also doing a

little study looking at the development
of their skeleton because they're also

quite unusual.

They have a very unique... sort of
anatomy and physiology that's, again, a

mixture of mammals, birds and reptiles.
Their skeleton is pretty unique and

crazy. Their bones are all sorts of
weird and wonderful shapes.

So very, very unique and very cool
animal.

But since he will hopefully be breeding,
the focus of this check is on his

ability to perform.

Just depth, Liz, just reduce the depth a
little.

Yeah, so that's...

So we can see his bladder perfectly on
the image, but of course, like platypus,

echidnas have internal testicles.

They're called testicons, and we've got
a magnificent image of his testicles.

You might be able to see this bulge
here.

So when we start fiddling around here,
we might get a bit of a surprise.

Oh, he's not going to disappoint us, is
he?

Hello.

So this is an echidna's penis.

So it's a very, very bizarre structure.

You can see it's got four little heads
there. Almost look like little suckers.

And it doesn't actually work like a
penis in other mammal species in that

doesn't come through it. So it's just a
reproductive... Yeah, yeah, yeah.

But it's crazy, isn't it?

Remarkable in its size.

Okay,

we can wake him up.

It's good news for Wednesday as he's
cleared his exam and is off to join the

rest of the echidna breeding pool.

Wednesday is in perfect health. He's got
the all clear and good luck to him with

his future breeding.

And hopefully in the near future,
Wednesday can produce a little echidna

of his own.

Otter Keeper Mads has been training
hyperactive dad, Katoot, to receive an

anaesthetic injection.

After only one successful training run,
and with vet

Kimberley waiting patiently outside,
he's hoping that today, Katoot will play

ball.

And Katut did not disappoint.

Good job, buddy.

Great job. I'm so glad you got that
anesthetic because, like you said, we

have to delay it to another day.

The anesthetic we just did with Katut
went perfectly.

Maz, the keeper, was able to do the
anesthesia. The anesthesia was very

But with Katut well and truly under.

It's over to Kimberly and her team for
his health check.

So essentially we're just looking at
Kutut to make sure everything is working

okay. We'll get some blood, make sure
systemically he's looking fine.

We just have a good feel of the liver,
try to feel the kidneys, feel for any

abdominal masses.

We don't have too many problems in our
otters. Sometimes they have dental

problems, so we want to make sure the
teeth are okay.

So while we have them under anesthesia,
it's a good opportunity just to get that

off. So it doesn't develop into
something more.

It's a little cold, so we'll warm him up
a bit.

Good timing, actually. We're just
finishing.

He looks perfect.

He did have a bit of tartar, so Liz did
a great job cleaning his teeth.

Everything looks good.

3 .8, Kayla.

3 .8.

I'm really happy with him. He's had his
vaccination.

So I think we're all set.

Kutut is an otter that I do work closely
with. Him and I have a good

relationship and rapport.

So seeing him on the table and seeing
him training up to this point is a great

success. This is quite a historic moment
for us here at Taronga Zoo. First time

we ever voluntarily hand -injected an
otter. So this is an awesome day and I'm

very proud of Kutut and our otters here.

So yeah, couldn't have been a better
outcome.

The oldest giraffe at Taronga, Nyota,
has had a slow decline of health over

past few months.

But yesterday, she took a dramatic turn
for the worse, leaving Taronga Vet in an

unthinkable position.

Given that sudden deterioration in her
health, her advanced age, we've decided

we're going to euthanise her this
morning.

It's always a hard decision to euthanise
any animal. We always prefer to

euthanise an animal before they're
actually really suffering.

We'll fire a little dart into her and
she'll go to sleep and then we'll

euthanise her.

Giraffe anaesthesia is always
challenging, that's for sure. A very

animal. She weighs about 900 kilos. So,
you know, there's always a risk that

Nyota is going to fall awkwardly or
injure herself on her way down and we

want that to happen regardless of what
the outcome's going to be.

It's obvious from the emotion in Larry's
normally calm voice.

Just how much this is affecting everyone
at Taronga.

Larry to Gabe Vigona.

Go ahead, Larry.

Gabe, we're good to come down now. Are
you guys ready?

Yeah, we can be ready. We're just
waiting for you before we lock the other

away just so she's not on her own as
well.

Okay, we'll head down now.

There's so much shared history between
Nyota and Taronga staff.

I mean, it's sad.

Nyota's a pretty special animal. I've
been here 30 years, and she was born

in 1992, so I've known her her whole
life.

Her parents were a wonderful giraffe, a
male called Charity, and her mother was

called Hope.

So Hope and Charity were her parents,
and I knew them well as well.

She made the decision for us.

It's hard for everybody when you lose
any animal in the zoo. It was an animal

that's been here for such a long time
and is quite iconic, like a giraffe.

Yeah, it's a really hard day.

The other two are locked away.

So she's at the back pool fence.

OK, I'll just get the gun.

We're just about to start the procedure
for Noida. Are you able to please put

over an all -radios announcement?

I've worked with her closely for the
last three years.

These long -lived, iconic animals have
touched so many people, and because we

work so closely with them, there's so
many rich connections.

You're going to miss her.

Yeah, very much so. I'm going to miss
her. She's a beautiful animal, and we're

going to miss her a lot.

Giraffe keepers are about to start a
procedure on one of their giraffes. We

request...

It's a tough day. It's a hard day for
everyone.

I mean, she was loved by not just us,
but the rest of the zoo and the public.

it's a massive loss for us, but we're
definitely going to a better place.

Follow me.

I'll just load the dart in here.

The reality is...

If Taronga did not take this course of
action, Nyota would have no future

quality of life.

Sorry guys, we have to head away now.

So as heartbreaking as this is for
everyone, sadly, there's no other

At the minute's path, more and more of
her devastated Taronga family arrive to

say their goodbye.

I've worked with Mayota now for probably
13 years.

I have a photo on my locker of her when
she was born here.

She's such a strong character. She
really, really made her presence felt.

It is always very hard when you lose
someone.

Because that's what they are to us. They
are someone that you love.

But you have to recognize the signs when
it is time. Of course, in a wild

situation, there will be a wild end to
their life. So at least here, they're

going out with the people who love them
around them. And I think that she does

take comfort from our presence.

But I miss my friend Mayona very much.

We darted Nyota about 15 minutes ago
now, actually, and

we're still waiting for the drug to take
effect. I think she is affected, but

she hasn't moved at all since she was
darted, and she's very drowsy, but the

drug hasn't reached a level in her
system that it's enough to knock her

I suspect that maybe her circulation,
because she's not moving around, her

circulation's a bit sluggish, and it's
just not taking effect.

as quickly as you'd expect.

Just come around the back of her in case
she... Do we have another towel, guys?

Yep. Andy? It was a very peaceful ending
for her life and this is part of

working in a zoo.

Animals are born, animals die, animals
get very old in zoos and, you know, it's

a circle of life in a zoo and, you know,
she was a very healthy animal and I

think this is just her time.

So everyone, we've still got Jimmy and
Zarafa over there to take into

consideration. So we'll try and be as
quiet as possible.

Alright. The euthanasia of Nyota here is
going to have a big impact on us moving

the animals up to their new exhibit.

So we're going to have to put the move
on hold for a little bit. It's important

that we keep the welfare of the other
giraffe in mind.

They're really going to feel the loss of
Nyota from the herd.

Beautiful giraffe, and she was always
feisty, happy, naughty giraffe when she

was young.

So 28 years later, she died today.

Sorry.

The effects of the last few days will be
felt throughout Taronga for a long time

to come.

Events like this are always very hard
for the vet team, but particularly the

keepers. I mean, they spend a lot of
time with these animals.

There'll be a bit of grieving time for
the other giraffe, the giraffe team, of

course. They have to regroup and just
get that training happening again, so a

very sad day for them.

But you can't have death without life.

and there are still 5 ,000 more animals
at Taronga to care for.

That's all to touch.

As the African savannah sits waiting for
the animals to move in, the rest of the

zoo will continue to move forward.

And although Taronga may have lost
several animals this year, they've

whole lot more.

There is the pregnant endangered black
rhino out at Taronga's Weston Plain Zoo.

in Dubbo.

We are the only institution in Australia
that's breeding black rhinos. We're

currently one of two institutions that
have had the most success breeding this

species in the world.

And a few paddocks over, some young
giraffe calves are finding their way in

herd.

The baby bongo was a cause for great
celebration, shining a spotlight on one

of Taronga's many successful breeding
programs for critically endangered

animals. We are doing our best to
increase their numbers. Their numbers

really, really low in the wild. So what
we can do here is increase them,

increase the breeding program, start to
disperse them, get their genetics out

there and just create a bigger, bigger
bongo population.

And that's what we're doing.

And a whole host of baby primates are
adding critical numbers to declining

feces. I've never seen them in the wild.
I would love to go and see them.

Then there are the 1 ,400 wild animals
brought in by the public.

that get rehabilitated at Taronga each
year. We certainly have saved animals

that actually even look sicker than
this, so we'll definitely give it a go.

Injured animals that are treated, cared
for, and then released back into the

wild, all given a second chance by
Taronga's vets and nurses.

There he goes!

Woo -hoo!

Woo!

There are species that were once on the
brink of extinction.

We don't have any of these naturally
breeding in the wild. Now back in the

and thriving.

Look at him, he's so happy.

And with a team of dedicated
pathologists and scientists, they are

crusade to bring a halt to animal
smuggling.

And what we're doing is developing a non
-invasive test that can tell you with

100 % accuracy, has that animal been
bred in a captive environment or has it

been poached from the wild?

But all this hasn't happened overnight.

It's been 100 years in the making.

Being here at the zoo for over 70 years,
I think Esmeralda would have met more

people than any other animal here at the
zoo.

From the wildlife hospital to saving
lives in the wild.

This is a little human baby. I'm making
a huge mess with you, aren't I?

They are much more than a zoo.

Hey, it's Kimberly.

I'm currently down in Bairnsdale,
Victoria.

Helping out with wildlife rescue groups.

Yeah, we're both actually usually quite
stoic.

But we've been working such long hours
and so intensely with these patients

we're exhausted.

We're exhausted.

We just have to remember that we're
trying to do the best that we can for

animals.

And every single day, Their staff show
their commitment to secure a shared

future for wildlife and people.