News Release

Wanted: junior wildlife keepers for holiday fun at Rainbow Springs

Rotorua, 3 July 2014 – Kids wanting to try their hand being a keeper of exotic animals in a wildlife park will soon have their chance at a unique new school holiday programme at Rotorua’s Rainbow Springs.

The Junior Keeper Programme offers kids aged between 7 – 16 years the special chance to go behind the scenes at Rainbow Springs in Rotorua learning hands-on skills in how to care for different animals and birds and seeing how the famous New Zealand wildlife park operates.

The programme is divided into three levels each offering different activities and experiences aimed at different age groups:

• Introductory Junior Keeper; for kids aged 7 - 9. Kids on this one day course will learn new skills to help solve puzzles and complete activities. They’ll learn how to handle and care for wildlife.

• Secondary Junior Keeper; for kids aged 10 - 12. This one day course covers the basics as well as some more advanced skills such as training and conditioning wildlife, learning about different environments and animal adaptations. It also includes going behind the scenes in some of the Rainbow Springs exhibits.

• Advanced Junior Keeper; for kids aged 13 - 16. This extended two-day course will include hands-on care of exotic reptiles putting the skills learned into practice. It also includes training of show birds as well as some ecology and behaviour theory.

Rainbow Springs Sales & Marketing Manager, Michelle Caldwell, says the new Junior Keeper Programme offers a unique chance for kids interesting in caring for animals to give it a try in a hands-on, educational environment, whether they’re thinking they might want to be keepers when they grow up, or just want to learn more about the animals.

“We wanted to do something really different and exciting with our school holiday programmes. And being a junior keeper for a day or two is a one-of-a-kind chance for kids to get really close to our animals and learn how to care for them – as well as understanding how a wildlife park like Rainbow Springs works.”

Each junior keeper class is run twice on separate days through the holidays. For full programme details and dates visit www.rainbowsprings.co.nz

ENDS

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