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Old Birmingham/Dudley Zoo Photographs

Adrian, Thanks for clearing that up about how Cuddles died. I was quite surprised to read that his death was connected to yobs as I always thought he had died from a disease or infection.
I don't know whether my School friends and I were ahead of our time but I remember us all being very upset when we saw the pool that Cuddles was kept in :( However I didn't know that Dudley Zoo had stepped in at short notice to give him a home.
Do you work at the zoo?
Polly :)
 
Cuddles died from an infection caused from a broken rib no one knows how this broken rib came about
but it was not through Yobs (as you put it) braking into the zoo.

Well let's hope it wasn't yob's and that cuddles ribs were broken in some more innocent way, then my faith in human kind can be restored..
 
Well let's hope it wasn't yob's and that cuddles ribs were broken in some more innocent way, then my faith in human kind can be restored..
I have just googled Cuddles at Dudley zoo and have found a couple zoo forums with people saying that he was ill when he was at Flamingo land with intestinal ulcers and internal bleeding they also say that while at Dudley he broke a rib, developed an abcess and died from an infection. I suppose people will always wonder how he broke his rib though.
Polly
 
Pollypops I don't work at the zoo but I visit there about every ten days as I look after my mother and I count this as my chill out time.
I talk to a lot of the keepers and have a very good history of the zoo species wise.
I would love to work at the zoo as I find everyone there very friendly and easy to speak to if I have a question they can't answer they
will always try and find the answer.
I know it's not the best looking zoo in Britain but the animals are treated brilliantly and always come first before human visitors which makes this zoo one
of the best in Britain.
 
That explains why you know so much about the zoo Adrian! It is a long time since I last visited but when my children were young they enjoyed it there so I used to visit it once or twice a year. I am glad to hear the animals are treated well - as an animal lover I get upset if I don't think animals are treated well.
Polly
 
I would like to thank everyone who replied to this thread the information and photographs have hlped me alot.
I would like to make another appeal for more information and photographs if people have them and I would love to here of your memories of the zoo or even better if you worked at the zoo
doing anything from cleaning to being keeper then please get in touch.
Iuse the internet to try and find the history of the zoo but it only concentrates on either the castle or the tecton buildings so any help from yourselves will be greatly recieved
thank you again in advance
 
1963ADRIAN;322878 I would like to make another appeal for more information and photographs if people have them and I would love to here of your memories of the zoo or even better if you worked at the zoo doing anything from cleaning to being keeper then please get in touch. Iuse the internet to try and find the history of the zoo but it only concentrates on either the castle or the tecton buildings so any help from yourselves will be greatly recieved thank you again in advance[/QUOTE said:
Adrian,
I started my Zoo Keeping career at Dudley Zoo in 1970 and spent most of my time there as the Big Cat Keeper, although I also worked with the giraffes and latterly in the Reptile House. I was there when the sealions were moved to make way for Cuddles the Orca and the Bottlenosed Dolphins. I have a lot of memories of the place although I moved south to Chessington Zoo in Surrey in 1972. Let me know what information you need and I'll see if I can provide it. I'll also attach a few photos from my time at the zoo.
View attachment 57617View attachment 57618View attachment 57619
 
I don't know if the following article plus photo that was with the article is of any interest
mike

dudley_zoo_preserved_building.jpg


dudley_zoo_1971A.jpg
 
Many thanks for your reply mikejee
I am still looking for photographs, guide books and any information on Dudley Zoo
It may seem to be not much to you but any little help or memory that you have of the
animals or attractions will be of great help to me
Can you help??
 
I am still looking for information on both Birmingham Zoo now called Birmingham Nature Centre and Dudley Zoo.
Any information would be gratefully recieved along with any photographs or information on guide books
Happy new Year to all
Adrian
 
Hi Adrian, have posted on another thread mentioning old Dudley Zoo pics but will post here too in case you miss the other one. I was a keeper at dudley 1978 to 1984 and have hundreds of pics from then, let me know if you're still looking for stuff, be more than happy to send some.

Cheers

Andy Zoo
 
I went t Dudley Zoo in the 60's. I don't like zoo's now but I see a need to show children what animals really look like though they are not in their natural surroundings but I suppose they do their best. Any rode up when I went the giraffes were called Geoffrey And Grace the elephant was having a bun break but it was expensive for a ride anyway. The zebras looked grubby, I gave the barbary sheep my ham batch. (silly me). I had a tweed suit with short trousers and my friends Suzanne and Jane got sick all over it in the car after eating marmite sandwiches. I liked the castle but I thought it was a bit spooky.Mum and dad bought me an orange felt sea lion with a platsic ball on his nose as a souvenir. Ask me what I did yesterday and I can't tell you though.
Nico
 
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