All language subtitles for Taronga s05e03 Raising Gracie.eng

VIRGINIA GAY (NARRATES):
You don't get named

one of the best zoos in the world
by accident.

And a view as magical as this one

is only gets you so far.

Good boy.
No.

This last year, Team Taronga
have been busier than ever.

Boom! Whoo!

With their two zoos,
now, bigger than ever.

Come on, handsome man.
Let's go.

So, this season,
we're taking you closer than ever.

(ELEPHANT TRUMPETS)

And as their colourful residents
get ready to make some noise.

(LION ROARS)

Oh, my goodness!

Let us show you exactly
who's who in this zoo.

Just always be watching
who's who, who's where.

(SEAL BARKS)

On this episode,
love at first sight.

She has been with me 24/7
for at least 4.5 months now.

The special bond
between Annii and amazing Gracie.

Even until you bet it now,
like, gets me, quite choked up.

Rare surgery...

I have personally 00:01:13,760
..for a colourful patient.

This is more of an emergency
than anything else.

And daylight robbery.

I think a brushturkey's
been back again.

The team restoring law
and order at Taronga.

We've
got to get a lid of some sort.

What do you reckon?

(THEME MUSIC)

In recent years,
due to significant habitat loss,

the koala has been doing it
pretty tough.

But Taronga Zoo is committed
to ensuring the survival

of this treasured Australian icon.

Alright.

Where
is she? Oh, there she is.

She's hiding 00:01:58,880
So, when this four week old Joey

was recently left abandoned
in the bush by its mother,

the staff moved heaven and earth
to make sure she lived.

It's not even 6am
in suburb in Sydney,

but for vet nurse Annii,
the day has already begun.

Gracie's
extremely impatient.

So,
once she's had a bottle,

she pacifies a little bit
and then I can remember...

Oi, oi, you know, it's coming,
just let's get the temperature.

Now, would you like to eat indoors
or outdoors this morning?

I
might go to the balcony.

Can
we go to the balcony?

Gracie, the koala joey,

stole Annii's heart
from the moment they met.

So,
Gracie was bought to us

from a beautiful nature reserve
in Canberra called Tidbinbilla.

It's
like a massive enclosure

where most of the wildlife
is literally free-ranging.

The keepers found Gracie
out of the pouch,

which was really unusual
because she was so little.

She was definitely
still pouch young.

Her mum
wasn't quite well enough.

Her
milk had dried up.

She
wasn't getting any food.

So, that's when Mum Annii
stepped up.

This baby koala,
now, five months old,

is still too young
to get by on her own.

But she's learning fast from Annie.

Sometimes
she's like me

with a schooner
on a Friday afternoon

after the very hot day,
and it's very quick.

Other times, 00:03:41,719
but normally about
five, ten minutes.

Gracie is bottle fed
four times a day,

and while she's outgrown the pouch,

she'd still be hitching
a lift with mum.

I
think you've had enough

because she's just playing
with it now.

It's like at this point now,
she'd be back riding.

So, that's why she's always
on the semi-surrogate,

me being her surrogate
mum, of course.

This
is the semi-surrogate,

but she always needs to be
hanging onto something.

When the decision was made
for her to be hand raised,

that was locking me
into a 24/7 contract,

to dedicate the rest
of my 12 months to Gracie.

Raising Gracie has been
an emotional ride for Annii,

but so worth it.

Seeing
her now, um, I'm just so...

I'm so
proud that she's turned into,

you
know, just such a strong,

sassy little girl compared
to the tiny little joey that was,

you know, in my hand
in the early stages.

And I tell you, it-it gave me about
40 ulcers and aged me a 100 years,

because every time
I looked in the pouch

in
those first eight weeks,

I felt sick because I was worried
that she wouldn't be with me.

Even talking about it now, like,
gets me, quite choked up

because she was 00:05:10,559
and you wanna do everything
you can to give them,

you know,
the best start in life.

Come
on, you little girl.

Oh, come on, honey.

Right.

Baby Gracie is Annii's
number one priority,

but she still has her day job.

Luckily, she can bring her along.

Ready
for a hard day at work?

You ready
for a hard day at work?

Down.

When it comes
to the amount of care and attention

every animal receives at the zoo,

there are no favourites.

Good girl.

The keepers and veterinary staff
all work hard to spot

and prevent any problem
before it occurs.

Could be benign,
could also be cancerous.

As long
as they're happy, I'm happy.

Yeah. I
wanna see an epitheliopathy.

The
other thing I want...

But if there's ever a problem
they can't solve themselves,

then, it's time to call in
a specialist.

Here at the zoo, we work
with a whole range of animals,

and we can't be specialists
in absolutely everything.

And we're very lucky
to have, um, Dr Cole,

who's
a veterinary ophthalmologist,

come to visit today, 00:06:26,999
We've
pulled out a few eye cases

that we've
been managing ourselves,

but
we want her expert opinion.

Oh, right.

First on Dr Sarah's list
is Little Nick's, the potoroo,

who hasn't been responding
to treatment for a sore eye.

For several months,
it sort of waxes and wanes.

Sometimes he, uh, actually has
an ulcer on his eye surface

and
is treated for that.

And then, at other times,
it-it appears like

he's
just got some scarring,

but both eyes, I think,
are a little bit cloudy.

Um,
they are, aren't they?

Does this one get picked
on or anything,

or is there any, sort of,
active sort of playing or...

Not that...

Not
that you're aware of?

..is reported. No.

There is some corneal changes,
particularly in the right eye.

Yep, uh, in this left eye,
there's this little corneal scar,

so,
it sort of fits in.

He's been having
on and off ulcerations,

and got
some scarring of the cornea.

The cornea is like
the window of the eye.

Any scarring or irritation there
can cause painful ulcers.

So, I'm just gonna stay
in the cornea...

Both eyes. 00:07:33,480
But Sarah needs to be sure.

It's just gonna show up 00:07:37,719
so, it's useful mainly
for ulcerations,

but it may show changes
in the tear film too.

So, it just gives us a good ability
to look at everything.

And
we use a blue cobalt light.

There's
no speckle on tape.

It's not too bad.

I mean, it's not truly ulcerated
at the moment.

So, you don't necessarily need
to give an antibiotic.

So, maybe we could do
some sort of misting.

Just like, you know,
at a private practice,

the vet might dispense
some medication

with
instructions for your dog.

So, we will do that
for the keepers with Nix,

and they'll follow
those instructions,

and we'll follow-up
in a few days' time.

It's the end of Nix's appointment,

but only the very start
of Dr Sarah's day.

We're
gonna head up the hill.

Next on her list,

a patient that would drive
any lizard lover green with envy.

With over 5,000 mouths
to feed at the zoo,

mealtime is a busy time.

Good boy!

But it's fair to say
Taronga has pretty much perfected

the art of home delivery.

Good boy!

Whether it's high fibre, low fat,

or somewhere in between,

there's a menu tailored
for every belly.

Whoa!

Large or small.

It's alright.

This is Myrtle 00:09:15,159
Really gorgeous species 00:09:18,999
that we have coming through
are very excited by.

Myrtle is hand fed three times a day

as she recovers
from a close encounter

with a cattle fence.

She actually was brought
into the wildlife hospital

about
two months ago,

and she was found tangled
up on barbed wire.

So, she had significant damage
to her membrane.

And although, the hospital here
did amazing work with her,

it was deemed that
she wasn't releasable

just because of the damage
that had occurred.

Since Myrtle can no longer forage
for food in the wild,

keeper Clay is giving her
all the nutrition she needs.

When I first met her
in the hospital,

I took
a syringe just like this.

She would never have seen
something like this before,

and she basically
came forward straight away

and
lapped up that mix.

So, to me, that suggested she was
maybe gonna do well here with us.

She's
getting this glider mix,

uh, which was developed 00:10:22,359
and it replicates some
of the important stuff

that she'd be getting in the wild,
so, nectar and pollen.

So, essentially,
I'm adjusting her diet

based on what her motivation
levels are like

and what
her health is looking like

and getting 00:10:39,319
that will all aid
in her progression.

Slapping
that up, loving it?

Meanwhile, over
in the red panda enclosure...

Come on, handsome man.
Let's go.

..the Taronga food train rolls
on as keeper Georgia

delivers her custom cuisine
to some very expectant animals.

Currently, our red pandas
eat lots of bamboo,

but they also eat lots of fruit
and what we call panda bars,

which is a bit of a panda mash
or a bit of pellets mixed together.

Good girl! Yeah.
There's a few.

These panda bars are dished out
into small feeders

scattered around the habitat.

Problem is it's not just the pandas
who are ready and waiting.

What our brushturkeys do,
they come around,

they go and see
the red pandas' food,

whether it's fruit 00:11:23,639
and
they go and steal it all.

Now, while Taronga Zoo loves
all creatures, great and small...

It's causing 00:11:31,719
that
we're not sure how much food

our red pandas
are actually taking in.

..this brazen daylight robbery

needs to be stopped and fast.

Coming up...

I think a brushturkey's
been back again.

A couple of absolute turkeys
cause trouble for Taronga's A Team.

We've had to figure out
how we can solve this problem.

But have they met their match?

Back to this drawing board.
Yep.

And a little basilisk
called Miguel...

They're a really cool
little green lizard.

..with an eye-watering injury.

We
need to do something.

This is more of an 00:12:08,000
Yeah.

When
you're ready, come on.

There are many, many happy,
hungry mouths

to feed at Taronga Zoo.

Come on, handsome man.
Let's go.

(GROWLS)

They're
coming out now.

Alright.
Here, she comes.

But in one particular habitat,

dinner time has become
a bit of a battleground.

I think a brushturkey's
been back again...

In the blue corner,
the brushturkey...

Come, bubby.
..and in the red corner...

Well, the red panda.

(BELL RINGS)

Can you come down?
Good girl.

Yummy.

Good job.

We currently have three red pandas
here at Taronga Zoo,

and red pandas come from either
the Himalayan or Chinese regions,

and we're having a bit of issues
with our brushturkeys.

This Aussie native isn't shy
when it comes to a free-feed.

You might think
just moving the feeders would help.

Think again.

We've tried putting them
up nice and high.

We've
tried putting them low.

We've tried putting them on
horizontal logs, on vertical logs,

in unusual places where the turkeys
hopefully can't reach.

So, we've had to figure out
how we can solve this problem,

still keeping our brushturkeys
in the area,

but making sure our pandas
get their full diet.

Oh, it's
coming back for another go.

So, who are you gonna call to help
pull these turkeys back into line?

There's only one answer,
the zoo's A Team.

Enrichment volunteers,
Fred and John.

Fred
used to be an engineer

and John used to be
an air traffic controller,

so, they're very used to doing
lots of critical thinking.

Yeah.

Don't
know about that.

This is gonna be quite 00:14:08,159
Um, the turkeys 00:14:11,639
but, hopefully, 00:14:12,959
We
know why it doesn't work.

(LAUGHS)

These are no good 00:14:18,879
are
just feeding themselves.

So,
we've got to get some ideas.

A lid of some sort.

Yep.
What do you reckon?

Yeah.
Try to get the lid to open.

And not stay open.

Yeah. Close.

If the lid is open,

the brushturkeys 00:14:39,600
Step one, a lid that opens.
Check.

So, it's gotta be
a lid that goes up.

And self closed.

And self closes.

And then closes. Check.

So, what are we gonna
make the lid off?

It'll have to be plastic.
Plastic.

The plastic we've got.
That's the only thing.

And
plastic with a weight

because it's got 00:15:00,239
Correct.

But
how do we hinge it?

That's
where the problem comes in.

Step two, a hinge.

Those brushturkeys
haven't got a chance.

Yep.

So, we're probably gonna
have to make a bracket

of some sort, 00:15:18,759
and then, 00:15:21,239
We-we make a prototype,
see how it works.

If it works, fine.
If it doesn't...

Back to the drawing board.
Yeah.

We are so lucky to have
our volunteers here.

They help us out
with so many things,

and they
play such an important role

and
use their expertise in a way

that benefits our animals
and their welfare.

It's all systems go
for Fred and John.

This should be interesting.

It's just
a short walk up the hill.

OK. Great.

Vet Frances and Dr Sarah,

an animal eye specialist,
are doing the rounds.

Next stop, the reptile house
to check on an eye watering problem.

So,
we're gonna meet Chris,

who's the keeper 00:16:07,679
There are several different species
of basilisk lizard.

The ones
we're dealing with today

are crested 00:16:15,239
They're a really cool
little green lizard

that
occurs in Central America.

Miguel arrived several months ago
from a zoo in the USA,

but this little lizard
is having trouble with his vision.

Our males, who we are hoping
to go on to breed from,

it's quite important
that they do have that vision

to be able to see
where their food is,

see
where their mate is,

and we like to think
that they'd like to see

where
we are as their keepers.

Chris has been giving Miguel,
a course of antibiotics.

So, one of its eyes, the iris,
changed from that yellow colour...

Yep.

..to
quite a deep orangey red.

So, the vessels at the top
are quite dilutive like

and that
just changed the colour.

The term we give that 00:17:07,639
It just means red iris effectively
because of all the vessels.

There certainly is an area
of corneal dystrophy,

you know, how long
that's been there,

and that might be 00:17:19,439
Actually, I'm quite worried,
about it.

Corneal dystrophy
is a genetic condition

that can weaken the eye,

and Miguel's is now straining
to stay intact.

Now, we have 00:17:32,759
for bacteria
to get into the eye.

And Dr Sarah can see
an even bigger problem.

The anterior
chamber's collapsed.

So, we've lost the fluid
or the chamber itself?

Lost the fluid.

The question is how big the hole is,
how easy that is to fix.

With a collapsed and leaking eye,

Miguel's sight could be
irreversibly lost.

I think vision will be quite
effective right now.

Because it's now bulging
slightly forward as we blink,

we almost get this
rough-rough surface,

so, it's causing the epithelium
to-to struggle to hear properly.

The antibiotics could still work,
but it's too soon to tell.

The last thing we need
is for this to become infected,

because that will mean that we have
to act pretty quickly on that eye.

It's really important 00:18:20,439
which
we're doing now.

So, the keepers have done
a really amazing job

by coming up with new solutions
to try and medicate the eye.

It's a little atomizer.
Oh, right.

Just said that they don't actually
have to touch the animal.

It's.
.. I'm gonna say hit and hit

rather than hit and miss,
because these guys are...

Sure.

..guns.

It's only Sarah's second patient
for the day,

but for the moment,
any others will have to wait.

When we've got open corneas,
we-we need to do something.

This is more of an emergency
than anything else.

Yeah.

(GROOVY MUSIC)

At Taronga Zoo,

today is Bring Your Child
to Work Day.

Another day, 00:19:05,920
And for vet nurse Annii,

who's recently taken on
the role of surrogate mum,

her little one just happens to be
the amazing Gracie,

a recently abandoned koala joey.

Looking after Gracie has
definitely been a labour of love.

She has been with me 24/7
for at least 4.5 months now.

So, I'm a full-time mum 00:19:29,400
And just like all working mums,

juggling a job
and a baby is a handful.

Alright. Let the fun and games
begin, Ms Grace.

Right.
Do you wanna have a climb?

Do
you wanna have a climb?

Oh, I get it, girl.

So, this is her jungle
gym for the day.

I try and like, 00:19:51,639
so,
she's gotta climb,

she's gotta learn
how to use her arms,

and little by little,
even grabbing onto the bars

is
helping with her hands.

So, it's an agility course, um,
and it's ticking all the boxes

as far as her-her physical
improvements go.

This jungle gym is a crucial tool

for teaching Gracie
all the motor skills she'll need

before she returns
to the wildlife sanctuary.

I'll get you some fresh breeze
after my meeting.

See you
at lunch, beautiful girl.

An adult koala's diet
is pretty much one thing,

eucalyptus leaves,

but they can be fussy.

Luckily for Gracie,
Taronga Zoo caters for all tastes.

You walk in,

and it's like an all
you can eat buffet for koalas,

which
is very exciting

because she has the range
of so many different things.

Like bringing up any young baby,

Annii makes sure
she has a constant supply

of Gracie's favourites.

So, her
favourites, oddly enough,

with all the stuff 00:21:08,999
her three favourites, uh, apple box,
uh, peppermint, and Robusta.

So many varieties,
and they're her top three.

So, my main, um,
focus now for Gracie

is
to get her to the point

where she's on a 100%
eucalyptus leave,

so, she won't be
on a milk diet anymore.

So, once Gracie gets
to the-the stage

where
she's about 2kg,

she'll be released back
to Timboon Villa Nature Reserve.

You're
going back to bed.

You're
going back to bed?

Gracie has been
putting on nearly 200g a week.

She's not big enough yet,
but it won't be long.

There's
so many smells, baby.

Hey? So many smells.

So, I'm going 00:22:01,919
because she needs to be hanging
onto something all the time.

So, this is her security blanket
when I'm not around.

So, I tear the teddy first,
get a waiter on it,

and then I put her
back on the teddy.

And
it's just less stressful

because if I put her straight
in that tub

she's
got nothing to hang on to.

I can't get in the tub with you,
you need to get back on your teddy.

Yeah, she would be quite stressed
just sitting in that tub

without having anything
to hang on to,

so, this is a routine
that she's very used to.

My goodness me!

1.29!

(CHUCKLES)

1.29!

Seems all of Annii's
love and care is working.

Pull my finger.

Gracie has put on 4kg
since Annii has been caring for her.

Hi, buddy.

So, it gives me a good indication
that whatever I'm doing is good.

She's putting on weight
literally each day now.

So, her leaf intake has
significantly increased,

which is great.

She's
still on four bottles a day,

but, yeah, keeping an eye
on her weight is super important

because if she was losing weight
for any reason at all,

I'd be flagging that straight
away with the vets,

but I'm really happy
with her progress.

We're on the right track,
little one, aren't we?

As each of Annii's busy days
draw to a close,

she knows that means
its one day closer

until Gracie goes back
to her own home.

(LAUGHS)

I'd
never drop my baby.

I don't
even wanna think about

when Gracie goes back
to Timboon Villa, but I...

Look, it's gonna be
a very bittersweet feeling.

It's gonna be way easier for her
than it is gonna be me.

I'll be the blabbering mess
and she'll be like, "See you, bye.

Thanks
for the eucalyptus."

(LAUGHS) Alright.

You
ready to go home?

Alright.

The anterior
chamber's collapsed.

Actually, I'm quite worried,
about it.

Two weeks ago,
visiting specialist, Sarah,

had a close look at Miguel

and discovered
this gorgeous green lizard

was at risk of losing his sight.

We've
lost the surface layer,

and that's a really important
barrier to prevent infection.

Yeah.

This is more of an emergency
than anything else.

Yeah.

We can put some of the medication
into the eye now.

Since Sarah's visit,
Taronga vet Frances...

Either
do it with a drip

or do it from the syringe
with a drip.

..has been overseeing
Miguel's twice daily treatment.

We have increased
the frequency of treatment

that I'd already started
on Sarah's advice,

and we have a couple of other drugs
that the lizard will take by mouth.

But how do you get a lizard
to swallow its medicine?

That's reptile keeper
Chris' department.

They're primarily insectivores,
but they will eat some vegetation,

some fruits and flowers
and some soft leaves,

but certainly 00:25:18,359
So, we've got 00:25:21,159
that we're gonna have 00:25:22,319
and
a little bit of pain relief

just in case he's experiencing
some discomfort.

It's always hit and miss
with animals,

but generally, 00:25:32,399
So, I've got a bit of confidence
about me today.

Chris has learned a trick or two

when it comes to coaxing Miguel
to open his mouth.

The
movement of that insect,

that really tempts them
into feeding.

Got him.
He took that.

Today, he did everything right,
and he wasn't too flighty around us.

He was pretty accepting to us
offering him food on a set of tongs.

Today's
the end of his course,

so, we'll just book him
in with the vets

and see what his recovery's like
and see what the next steps are.

Chris to Frances.

As Frances heads Miguel's way,

she's expecting to see

some big improvements
from the medication.

Otherwise, emergency
surgery may be the only option.

His left eye's looking
a bit washed out today.

Yeah. It's really lost
a little bit of colour, hey?

Yeah.

Oh,
well, off to the doctor.

Morning, Chris.

Good day. Thanks for coming up.
Kayla.

Morning.
Oh, that is...

So, he's
been maintaining weight.

He's
been feeding quite well.

So, his weight is tracking well,

but that's where
the good news stops.

The changes in the front
surface of the eye

do seem to be 00:26:46,279
When Dr Sarah came out
a couple of weeks ago,

Miguel had one eye
that was not looking great.

His eyes
deteriorated significantly.

Kayla,
he can go in the bag now.

It's the worst possible news.

The treatment hasn't worked at all.

We
wanna make sure that

we're doing the best
we possibly can for him

and that we have expert advice
on what's happening in his eyes.

So, the lizard is going
for a recheck of his eyes

with
the ophthalmologist.

Sarah's the expert and she's the
one who can hopefully help.

Animals and people can lose vision
in their eyes very quickly

as changes happen
within the eyeball itself.

So, in terms of trying to maintain
the animal's vision,

these
things can be an emergency.

And that's exactly
what this is as Frances and Kayla

urgently race Miguel across town

in a last ditch effort
to save his sight.

Can you come down?

The red panda enclosure
at Taronga Zoo

is under siege by a pesky resident

who's worked out there really is
such a thing as a free lunch.

One of our really awesome native
species is the brushturkey.

They're really cool,
they're really smart,

but they also can be
a little bit difficult to work

with
in terms of red pandas.

So, what our brushturkeys
do, they come around,

they go and see
the red panda's food,

and
they go and steal it all,

which means there's not 00:28:16,480
Taronga's A Team are on the case.

They're confident,

but they're not underestimating
their opponent.

I would hope that 00:28:27,639
but they have a sneaky
brain in them.

John and Fred have designed
a new feeder with a hinged lid that,

you guessed it, opens and closes.

It's called the red panda friendly
brushturkey proof fixed tree feeder.

At least,
that's what I'm calling it.

If this
one works, it'll be fine.

We can make them, 00:28:51,920
Hmm.

They're not the only ones
that get a say.

Game on. It's feeding time.

And as red panda keeper Georgia
loads up the new feeders,

she has an unwanted audience.

Hi, baby.

Hi, bud.

While Georgia is focused on
red pandas, Daiyu and Zeya...

Good boy.

Hi, baby girl.

..the brushturkeys have
already started to make their move.

The turkeys
have actually worked out

how to open this.

So,
they were pecking at it.

They ended up 00:29:33,839
they lifted it,

and they were able
to take the food out.

Not only that, 00:29:42,120
The turkeys win again.

Because the turkeys have
pretty much outsmarted us again,

it's back to the drawing board
for Fred and John.

So, our dynamic duo
are upping their game.

They're very resourceful
brushturkeys.

They
will find a way if they can.

So, what we're gonna have to do
is manufacture a new one

and also that the frame of it
will not come off the tree.

All that will be removed
is the shell of the coconut.

If
this doesn't work,

I think we will be able to outsmart
them eventually.

Sighting words, the battle
of the birds versus the blokes

just got personal.

Brushturkeys, they just create
so much work for us,

work that we could be doing
for other departments.

We have got 00:30:45,010
to stop the impinging food
from a lot of animals.

And they learn from each other
naturally like most animals do.

So, once one works out
how to resolve a problem,

it goes pretty quickly
how the others will follow.

So, our problem is to outthink
them and outwit them

and
come up with something that

will prevent them from accessing
the food of the animals,

particularly the red panda
in this case.

Miguel, the basilisk lizard
has a serious eye condition.

Kayla,
he can go in the bag now.

And despite constant care,
it's now an emergency.

So, he's being rushed
across town to the eye specialist.

Just a bit concerned
that he's a bit painful,

not eating
as reliably as he was.

And
we have that left eye,

looks like the iris is almost
bulging forward.

Miguel's been receiving
intensive treatment

for a small hole
in the front of his eye.

The iris is sort of bulged
forward like you say

and I think 00:31:51,519
We've got a little bit
of fluid swelling

and because of that
we need to consider surgery.

We have
to re-stabilise the eye.

The iris, which is the coloured
part of the eye,

is
trying to plug the hole,

so, we need to try and replace
that back into the eye.

It's gonna be fun.

With Miguel close
to losing sight in his left eye,

Sarah is considering
a radical option,

a surgical procedure to help seal
or graft his damaged eye.

But there's a catch.

When we talk about
ocular surgery in lizards,

grafting for corneas
is fairly reported,

and there are very few people,
not just in Australia,

but across the world who have
even done surgery on a lizard,

let
alone a basilisk.

So,
it's pretty unusual.

I have personally never done
a graft in a lizard

and
neither has my colleagues,

so, this will be a very exciting
day for all of us.

Good job, buddy.

So,
I've had to pull out

all of the smallest 00:32:56,639
Everything we do 00:32:59,399
Everything is very, very small,
but particularly on this lizard,

it's
even smaller than usual.

So, it will be,
definitely a challenge.

Looked
like he's relaxed a bit?

Yeah, definitely.

While Miguel is sedated,

he'll need the smallest
of tubes inserted in his airway

to help him breathe

during this incredibly
rare operation.

That
worked nicely, Fernando.

So far, so good.

What size tube...

Look at the size of the tube.
That's the one.

Geez.
It's tiny, isn't it?

I got
my smaller scissors out.

This is groundbreaking microsurgery.

Can you turn me to 0.
5m...

0.
5 litre of medical aid?

Alright.

That's just so it doesn't bite
down onto the tube.

Remember,
this isn't only a first for Miguel,

but also his surgeon, Sarah.

Kayla, you're gonna go
behind his crest.

We want the best outcome
for this lizard.

Our primary thing is to make sure
that those eyes are not painful

and we don't want the animal
to lose an eye,

so, it'll require
great technical skills

and, you know, 00:34:08,200
The stakes couldn't be higher.

Let's do it.

Coming up...

Quite
challenging, isn't it?

Will a surgical first...

The degree of difficulty
is definitely high today.

..save the day.

I'm
a little bit worried

just because 00:34:30,120
Inside Taronga Zoo's
red panda enclosure,

the time has come.

It's D-Day.

That's D for dinner.

Kaboo!

These fancy new food containers...

Come on, guys.

..created by zoo volunteers
Fred and John

are the next generation
in brushturkey busting design.

So,
over the recent few months,

we have seen 00:34:55,919
taking
the red pandas' food,

and we're trying to figure out
different solutions.

After a few failed attempts,
hopes are high.

Question is will the red pandas

actually be able
to crack the code...

Here it comes. Yep.
Yep. Yep.

..with these flash new feeders?

Oh, yeah.

Open straight up.
Yes.

Easy.
Easy-peasy. Yep.

Oh, good work.

Oh, that's-that's good
'cause she can get in there

and
the brushturkeys can't.

It's pushed their imagination
to the limit,

but Fred and John have
finally beaten

the wily brushturkey.

This is the design
we've come up with.

The material's a lot heavier
and more robust,

and we think this one
will probably last longer

than
the than the previous model

and will work better,
more importantly.

Much larger lid that covers
the whole of the coconut feeder,

so,
access is all the way in,

so, they can put as much food
in there as they like.

A bolt to slip this out, 00:36:08,810
and brings in a new bowl,
slips it back in.

Worked like a charm.

Yeah. Good.
Yeah.

She's enjoying that.

All good.

That
worked really well.

The
turkeys didn't get into it,

but the pandas opened it 00:36:24,159
so, it was perfect.

Fred
and John have done

such an awesome job
with these feeders.

It's fantastic.

The pandas are getting
their full amount of food,

and we don't have to worry
about those turkeys.

So, red pandas win the day.

Or to be fair...

And here we go.
Yeah.

And then it will work.
Yeah.

..let's give this one
to Fred and John.

But
you're not going to get any.

We've
got the best job in the world.

You guys have done
such an awesome job

and
no turkeys as well.

No brushturkeys.
It's fantastic.

That's the best.
Yeah.

That's the beyond end of it.
Yes.

So, they're working
really, really well.

So, I'm gonna be a bit of a pain
and ask for ten more if that's OK.

Yeah. Right.

Sorry, guys, but thank you.
The pandas are loving it now.

Wouldn't do it for everybody,
but we'll do it for you.

(LAUGHS) 00:37:15,520
With their patented
panda feeder production line

now up and running,
Fred and John's mission is complete.

And while these birds

might never be far
from a free snack,

this inventive duo
will always be ready and waiting.

The coconut feeder,
number one priority.

That's complete.

That's complete.
Next on there?

Right.

(INTENSE MUSIC)

So, his temp is 24.
1. Yeah.

We want
him between 27 and 29.

At the eye clinic for animals
in Northern Sydney, Miguel,

the Central American basilisk,

is being prepared
for incredibly rare microsurgery.

This small area here,
that's quite bad.

So, I was planning on grafting
a little bit around it.

Part of Miguel's left eye
has collapsed

and if Sarah can't repair it,

this little lizard will almost
certainly lose his vision.

The tool's gonna be 00:38:20,560
Dr Sarah has never performed
this operation before

or operated on such a small lizard.

Problem is a small lizard,
means an even smaller eye.

To
put it in perspective,

the microscope goes up
to 50 times magnification

and I was maxed out
at 50 times magnification.

So, very, very tiny.

This is
quite challenging, isn't it?

It's very, very, um, 00:38:48,919
The degree of difficulty
is definitely high today.

What I'm actually noticing is
there is a small hole appearing,

and there's a very slow
leak of the fluid

from inside the eye coming
out of the cornea.

What I'm effectively doing
is putting a thick jelly

to support the internal structures
of the eye,

otherwise
it would just collapse.

So, it's allowing me
to prepare the defect

without
the eye collapsing.

The surface of the eye
is so thin and damaged,

Sarah has to strengthen it first
before she can plug the hole.

'Cause
of the corneal hole,

we need to create
this little scaffold.

It's
gonna provide us

with a bit more thickness
to work with.

So, effectively,
I need to suture this in

and
it's quite challenging

when you're using
such tiny suture material.

The suture thread less
than 0.5mm wide

will keep the scaffold in place.

That's
a bit better, isn't it?

And with the eye now, more secure,

Sarah will use a graft
to repair the hole.

The harvesting of the graft
will be from his own eye,

so, the pink tissue
of the eye will be used

to plug
the hole that's there.

The graft is like a living band aid.

That thin tissue will
now sit over that

and
provide some blood vessels

and that's gonna help
with the healing.

But Sarah hits a snag.

I'm
a little bit worried.

The graft and the surface
of Miguel's eye

are both thinner than tissue paper
and just as fragile.

We've actually created
a small hole in the cornea,

um,
close to where the graft is

and the iris has started
to prolapsed out.

What I
think I'm gonna do is spread

the load of the suture
through the cornea

over two different points
instead of one single point.

It's
really, really challenging

just because of how tiny
everything is.

Even the smallest instruments

are a challenge
with such a tiny eye.

But after nearly three hours,
success.

I'm
just tying the suture here,

and that's just basically plugged
that hole and closed it up,

pushed
the iris back in.

So,
I'm really happy with that.

And for now,
everyone can breathe again.

That was fun.

That's one way to describe it,

but at least Miguel
is finally on the mend.

This
will just break.

Eventually,
all just...

The eyelids will just pull
it, break it down.

Well done.

Overall,
very happy with the result.

Yeah.
That was impressive.

I've
done hundreds and hundreds

of
grafts at this point,

but it's definitely the hardest
one I've ever done.

I think,
guys, we can wake him up.

In a little while,
when he's not so groggy,

Miguel will start heading back home
to Taronga Zoo.

Beautiful lizard.

We have
been working with basilisk

for a very long time here
at Taronga,

and we've never actually seen
this issue happen with them before.

So, we're really hoping
that he recovers well

over
the next couple of weeks.

Only time will tell.

At the Taronga Zoo reptile house,
specialist vet, Dr Sarah Cole,

has arrived to check
on her jolly green patient, Miguel.

Two weeks ago, she performed
emergency microsurgery

on Miguel's damaged left eye.

And after a fortnight
of devoted care,

it's the moment of truth

for reptile keeper Kayla
and the team.

So, Miguel does have
one eye stitched up.

It does look quite confronting
for us to see him like this,

but it's actually the best thing
for his welfare.

We're very confident
that the care that he received

was
up to our standard.

But Kayla has to first catch Miguel

before Sarah can see

if the operation
has actually worked.

Yeah,
I can't actually reach him.

Oh,
I just can't reach him.

I am just this close,
but he's just too far away.

Oh,
you have long arms.

This enclosure?
Ah, this enclosure.

He's in the furthest corner
on top of the waterfall.

The pros and cons
of this being built

for everyone
who's 6ft or longer.

So, it's long arms
and longer legs to the rescue.

Yay!

Just slacking.

Thank you.

Yay! Thank you.
(CHUCKLES)

I just was... 00:43:11,479
We'll look at the other eye first.
Yeah.

Back to business and Kayla has
a lot of Miguel updates

to share with Sarah.

Uh, so, he's going
really well, actually.

OK. Great.

He's been trying
to court the female.

He's
been eating really well.

Um, he's navigating 00:43:26,279
Good.

And he's a really nice
beautiful green colour.

He doesn't seem too bothered
kind of walking around the exhibit,

um, which is nice,

and he's been taking
his medication really well.

These are all good signs
that Miguel isn't in pain,

but what about that eye?

His anterior chamber's
really nicely inflated.

The
graft's in place.

The
sutures are there.

Miguel
is doing really great today.

There's
actually some blood vessels

that are growing in
to help with the healing,

which
is really, really positive.

From
post surgery perspective,

this is as good 00:43:59,879
Yay.

Not bad for a first time.

The eyelid sutures that 00:44:06,359
are actually gonna leave them
in for a little bit longer.

Lizards
heal a little bit slower.

Obviously, we can't get him
to wear an E-collar

or a cone of shame like
we would a dog or a cat.

So, it...

It's
a nice sort of protection

while everything's
sort of settling down.

Keep it up, bud.

Good job, Miguel.

Yay. Thank you.
Alright.

Miguel is finally on the mend.

And for Sarah and the team
at Taronga,

this now, lively little lizard
has made a pretty big impression.

It's been wonderful working
with the team from Taronga.

Been really exciting to sort of
share this case with them

and, yeah, we're all trying
to get the best outcome.

So, they've been
absolutely wonderful.

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