Zookeeper Chad lifts Australia’s isolation spirits with adorable videos of animals on Instagram

A heroic zoo manager whose bravery saved hundreds of animals from raging bushfires earlier this year is sharing adorable videos of lion cubs, miniature penguins and baby monkeys to spread joy during the coronavirus crisis.

Chad Staples is the director of Mogo Zoo, a wildlife park on the New South Wales south coast home to roughly 200 animals including giraffes, tigers, white rhinos, red pandas, snow leopards and the largest collection of primates in Australia.

Mr Staples captures their daily escapades on camera and shares the footage with his 62,900 Instagram followers, many of whom have thanked him for ‘warming their hearts’ as the country continues its stage three shutdown to slow the spread of COVID-19.

Current social distancing restrictions will remain in place for at least another four weeks, Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced after a national cabinet meeting late on Thursday afternoon.

Mr Staples famously saved dozens of the animals he considers ‘family’ from ‘apocalyptic’ bushfires by sheltering them in his house when raging infernos from the Clyde Mountain fire threatened to engulf the regional town of Mogo in late December.

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Chad Staples (pictured) and his fellow Mogo zookeepers fought bravely to protect the animals they consider ‘family’ from raging bushfires in December

He shared a video of a baby panda chewing his breakfast on April 3, giving animal lovers a glimpse inside feeding time at the zoo while they isolate at home.

‘These close ups are adorable. The sound of them munching on their food warms our hearts. Thank you for sharing these,’ a South Australian woman said.

In another clip from April 12, he zooms the camera lens close to a male lion cub called Chitwa as he plays tug-of-war with a towel.

Mr Staples also shared footage of Chitwa gently licking his forehead and tumbling affectionately on the grass with his mother, Phoenix.

The latest video posted on Saturday shows the zoo director feeding three lively tamarins, which are squirrel-sized monkeys native to South America.

Two tamarins perch on his thighs while a third clings to his right shoulder, gingerly picking peas, sweetcorn and tiny chunks of carrot from plastic food containers.

In one video, Mr Staples zooms the camera lens close to a male lion cub called Chitwa as he plays tug-of-war with a towel

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Animal lovers have thanked Mr Staples for ‘warming their hearts’ with adorable videos from the zoo as Australia continues its stage three shutdown to slow the spread of COVID-19

Australia’s famous Mogo Zoo is home to roughly 200 animals, including rare snow leopards, red pandas and the country’s largest collection of primates

Mr Staples became an overnight hero when he brought dozens of rare monkeys and pandas into the safety of his home as catastrophic fires encircled Mogo, north of Batemans Bay on the NSW far south coast, in late December.

In a perfectly planned rescue mission, a team of 15 zookeepers frantically watered the ground and put out spot fires, while making sure to keep the animals calm. 

‘It was like Armageddon, it was black as midnight with tinges of red,’ Mr Staples told ABC at the time.

Not a single one of the 200 animals in Mogo Zoo was injured thanks to the heroic efforts of Mr Staples and his keepers, who bravely fought to protect the creatures they consider ‘family’.