A report on the 'Zoo and I' project

Bird Park

On the 15 of March 2011, The Leo Club Of SMK Assuntaorganized a voluntary service at Zoo Negara. The Zoo was located in Hulu Klang, Ampang, Selangor Darul Ehsan. The project was from 8.00am till 4.00pm. There were about 20 Leos who attended this project.

All Assuntarians were grouped with the Leos from La Salle, Klang to work together as a team. About 5 Leos were in charged of the Bird Park. The zoo keeper explained to the Leos their duties All the Leos were separate to their respective place. 

In the Bird park, we did some cleaning and cooked food ( blending carrots, chopping beef and chopping fishes) till 4 pm with breaks in between for breakfast and lunch.

Reported,

Leo Monica.

Bears & Otters

  Our team comprised of three girls and four boys. Before separating us, we were required to put on boots by our zookeepers. The girls were then given the duty of cleaning the bears’ dens. While enthusiastically cleaning a few of the dens, we managed to verbally interact with the bears. We also managed to see the bear that was recuperating from a breast cancer operation. After a one and a half hour break in the canteen, we returned to sweep the littered corridor of the bears’ dens. Even though it was only the three of us we managed to clean it up half an hour prior to our lunch break.

   At 12.30, we had a satisfying meal because we were literally starving. After that, we were then ordered to set up an information counter for the exhibition of the zoo guests. After the brief set up, we were free to alternate between feeding the famished otters and the lazy bears. We called out to each bear and threw bread stuffed with vitamins, as prepared by the zookeeper. The otters were very excited when we came with their raw fish. A few of the tourists even asked to be given the fish. Overall, I bet everyone found this a worthy experience as we managed to get so up-close and personal with some of the animals we never dared to approach.

Leo Melvina

Savannah-Group 1

As soon as we has reached the compounds of Zoo Negara, each of us was assigned a job for the day. The group I was put in consisted of 4 Leos and we were given the opportunity to work in the savannah. At the start of the day, we met our mentor for the day named Mr.Fitri who was exceptionally nice to us throughout the day. The first thing on our to do list was to get into the proper attire which included us putting on the rubber boots which was provided by the zoo. After slipping on the boots, we were further divided into pairs.

Later on, we followed Mr.Fitri to the rhinoceros enclosure where we were to assist him in cleaning up. The first thing we had to do was scoop up the dung of the rhinoceros which was quite an experience. We were also required to sweep the dried leaves off the pathway. Before leaving the rhinoceros enclosure, we had to scrub the water pools which were the containers which held the water for the rhinoceros to drink out of. After scrubbing to get the moss out, we had to fill it up with drinking water which was for the rhinoceros. Before letting the rhinoceros into their enclosure, Mr.Fitri applied some antiseptic onto their wounds to make sure they don’t inherit any illnesses. 

Following that, Mr.Fitri let us into the shed where the rhinoceros were kept during the night. We were then given the duty to clean up the dung and as well as the leftover food which was not consumed by the rhinoceros. We had to scoop the dung up with a spade and empty it into a bin and as well as placing the rhinoceros food which was a certain type of grass on a wheelbarrow to dispose of it. We had to clean up three separate sheds.

Up next, we were sent to the sheds where the antelopes, zebras and deer’s were kept. At the shed we had to sweep out the dung into the drain and as well as rake the dung together in other sheds. Most of the sheds had sand as the flooring and so we were given rakes to bring the dung into a pile so that it would be easier for the workers to clean up the shed later on. As for cleaning the sheds, we had to do a total of 8 sheds. 

After a short break, we were given the opportunity to help with the feeding. We were only allowed to feed the deer’s as the antelopes were slightly dangerous. The keeper even told us that two of their staff had even fractured their hand due to the horns of the antelopes. Before leaving, we helped to tie the leaves which were to be fed to the giraffe’s in place. Since the giraffe’s are tall animals, the food had to be hoisted up about 12 feet above the ground. We also got the chance to come up and close with the giraffe’s and feed them some leaves.

Lastly, we said our goodbyes to the keepers and thanked them for letting us help out. Then, we headed off to meet up with the rest of the Leos.

Leo Shivania

Savannah-Group 2

Grace, Shivania, Saliza and Loshni were the last 4 to be given their assignments. The were brought behind the scenes where they left their comfortable sneakers for rubber boots. They were then spilt into two groups. Loshni partnered Saliza and they both went to help Kakak Sham.

They first picked up the leaves on the floor in the giraffe's cage. Then, the swept the floor. After which, they took a short break whre they went to see the other animals. The animals kept in this area were a bit dangerous, thus they were never allowed to go loose. After their break, they went back to clean the giraffe cage with water.The area was huge and there was a lot of scrubbing to be done but it was  successful!

Saliza and Loshni finally met up with Grace and Shivania and they all went for a short break. They were all then made to sweep the road and rake leaves. At 2.00pm, they left for lunch.

Leo Loshni

Giraffes & Elephants

On the 15th of March 2011, the leo club of Assunta Secondary School held a joint project together with the Leo club of La Salle Klang. We organized a community service project as volunteers at the Zoo Negara located at Ampang. As soon as we reached there, the leos from both schools were separated into groups of 5. Our group which is the 1st group consist of 3 leos from SMK Assunta and 2 other leos from SMK La Salle Klang. We were brought by our Zoo Keeper, Encik Alias to the giraffe and elephant enclosure. There, we were separated again into 2 groups. 1 of the groups were assigned to clean the giraffe enclosure while the other group was taken to the elephant enclosure.

Basically both groups did the same thing which was sweeping the leaves on the ground, picking up the branches and left over food. Not only that, the groups were also assigned to scoop up the faeces of both animals. Next, we had to constantly feed the giraffes with carrot, yam and a type of leaf known as ‘Balik Angin’. We were also told to ensure that the visitors do not feed these animals with food without the zoo keeper’s permission. We ended our volunteering service at 4.00 pm sharp. We bid our goodbyes to the zoo keeper and thank them for teaching us. We definitely had a great experience and realised that being a zoo keeper is not an easy job for we were in their shoes for the day.

Leo Desiree