22 Secrets Zookeepers Will Never Tell You

    We deal with A LOT of poo.

    1. You spend so much time dealing with poo that it really doesn't phase you anymore.

    2. And you will wipe absolutely anything on your trousers.

    3. Working in the bat cave means you'll have to wash your hair that night.

    4. And giant ant eaters do the worst-smelling poos.

    5. We love it when it snows because it means we can't pick up poo because we can't see it.

    6. Meerkats might look adorable, but they can bite though leather gloves.

    7. Owls will probably attack you during breeding season.

    8. Penguins have serrated beaks: And will use them if you come too close during nesting season.

    9. But it's not all poo and getting bitten, we spend a lot of our time making food puzzles to keep our animals busy.

    10. And if an animal is unwell we'll help the vets look after it.

    11. We talk to our animals all the time.

    12. A good, working wheel barrow is absolutely essential for doing our job.

    13. And new rake day is better than Christmas.

    14. We hear "that's a funny looking animal" at least 10 times a day, and it doesn't get any funnier.

    15. If people tap on the glass while we're in an enclosure we'll pretend we can't hear them.

    16. And overhearing people get a sub-species' name wrong really annoys us.

    17. If people are making too much noise we will scream at them to be quiet.

    18. Sometimes we kind of want to take the baby animals home with us.

    19. We often name our animals based on the countries they're native to.

    20. But warty pigs tend to be named after punk rock stars.

    21. The best part of our job is being greeted by an animal that knows you and loves you.

    22. We spend more time with our animals than with our family and friends.

    BuzzFeed talked to Lucy Edwards, a keeper at Chester Zoo to learn all the zookeeper secrets.

    Find out even more zoo facts on The Secret Life of the Zoo, Tuesday 2nd February at 8pm on Channel 4.