Zoo recalls animal antics

Tales of stampeding elephants and escaped llamas abounded at Dudley Zoo as hundreds of people from across the country celebrated the attraction’s 70th birthday.

People with a soft spot for the zoo came from all over the UK mark the the landmark anniversary. They were treated to drinks and nibbles before browsing through a fascinating exhibition charting its history, with a range of old photographs and anecdotes on display.

Visitors were also treated to a hog roast, before the event was topped off with a giant birthday cake.

Sylvia Hedges, aged 81, who now lives on Russells Hall Estate, had lived at the zoo from its opening in 1937, when her father Richard Kerwood began work there, having previously been at Oxford Zoo.

“I was one of nine children and we all worked here at some point,” she said. “I worked in the bird house, but is was never really my vocation. I have some great memories.

“I remember they used to give elephant rides in the courtyard, but one day we had a brass band playing. As soon as the band played the first note, the elephant just went running off. He jumped the fence and he was gone. I’m not even sure how they caught him to be honest, because I had run off.”

Mike Williams was sole curator at the zoo between 1970 and 1982. “I remember when we became the first ever zoo in the country to rear a chimpanzee,” he said.

“I was just looking in the cage one day and there it was, just lying there. It was named Coco and my wife came and took it back to the house and put it in the oven to make sure it stayed warm.”

Dave White, aged 57, worked as senior big cat keeper during the 1960s, but said he would regularly pop back during his days off after leaving to work for the ambulance service.  “I used to get a call saying ‘come and help us catch this llama’.

“One day I was feeding the leopards and I remember a couple of old ladies came up and started telling the other keeper how beautiful the cats were. He told them the reason they were so nice was because I used to brush their teeth and comb their hair every morning.

“I was like ‘you can’t tell them that’, but I don’t think he even told them he was joking and they must have walked off believing it.”