Hertfordshire Zoo welcomed social media personalities GymSkin and Tommy Tokka for a wild day behind the scenes, as the pair swapped their usual surroundings for a taste of life at the zoo.
Visiting on Tuesday 11 August, the pair rolled up their sleeves and got stuck into a packed schedule of animal experiences, meeting some of the zoo’s incredible residents and discovering more about the work that goes into caring for them every day.
Their day began with the zoo’s zebra herd, where Gym Skin and Tommy helped the zookeeper team clean out the habitat before getting the chance to meet some of Hertfordshire Zoo’s newest arrivals – its five baby capybara pups.
The pair helped feed the adorable pups, who were born at the zoo in July, before coming face-to-face with one of the zoo’s royal pythons.
But the animal encounters didn’t stop there.
GymSkin and Tommy put their creativity to the test by making enrichment for the zoo’s sun bears, designed to encourage natural behaviours and provide mental and physical stimulation. They then headed over to Jaguar Jungle, where they had the unforgettable opportunity to help feed the zoo’s jaguars.
After a busy day working their way around the World of Animals, there was only one way to finish – with a trip aboard the Rex Express, taking them through Hertfordshire Zoo’s immersive World of Dinosaurs and past more than 40 life-size animatronic dinosaurs.
The visit was streamed live throughout the day, allowing GymSkin and Tommy’s online audiences to follow their zoo adventure as it happened. More than 11,000 people tuned in across the day to watch the pair get stuck into everything from cleaning zebras to feeding some of the zoo’s most impressive predators.
Their visit also caused plenty of excitement among guests at the zoo, with the pair taking time throughout the day to stop, chat and pose for photographs with visitors who recognised them.
Tyler Whitnall, Managing Director at Hertfordshire Zoo, said:
“It was fantastic to welcome Gym Skin and Tommy Tokka to Hertfordshire Zoo and give them the opportunity to experience just a small part of what our incredible zookeeper team does every day.
“They threw themselves into everything we gave them and were brilliant with our visitors throughout the day. Having more than 11,000 people watching the day live also gave us a great opportunity to showcase our animals, our team and the work that happens behind the scenes to a huge new audience.”
The visit forms part of Hertfordshire Zoo’s continued work with digital creators to introduce new audiences to the zoo, while using entertaining online content to showcase the importance of modern zoos, animal welfare, conservation and education.
