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1. Take afternoon tea with a giraffeYou’ll be able to see those famous eyelashes up close when one of Jamala’s resident giraffes unfurls its long, grey tongue to take the proffered carrot from your hand. Feeding the giraffes at 330pm from your balcony is one of the most popular encounters when you stay overnight at Jamala Wildlife Lodge. The six Giraffe Treehouses overlook a giraffe enclosure where Skye and Khamesi spend their days. The daily carrot feeding is not the only way to get up close to these hoofed mammals, expect their heads to pop up randomly outside your room as troughs filled with grass are placed at each balcony to encourage regular visits. Giraffes do spend up to 75 per cent of their day eating, after all.
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1. Take afternoon tea with a giraffe

You’ll be able to see those famous eyelashes up close when one of Jamala’s resident giraffes unfurls its long, grey tongue to take the proffered carrot from your hand. Feeding the giraffes at 330pm from your balcony is one of the most popular encounters when you stay overnight at Jamala Wildlife Lodge. The six Giraffe Treehouses overlook a giraffe enclosure where Skye and Khamesi spend their days. The daily carrot feeding is not the only way to get up close to these hoofed mammals, expect their heads to pop up randomly outside your room as troughs filled with grass are placed at each balcony to encourage regular visits. Giraffes do spend up to 75 per cent of their day eating, after all.

2. Meet the meerkatsWe’ve all seen them standing up straight keeping an eye out for potential predators, but these cute creatures are happy to take a break from sentry duty to share a snack with you. Visit Sergei, who came to the zoo from New Zealand, and his three sons born at the zoo under a breeding program for a spot of fly pupae. The furry animals, who belong to the mongoose family, will crawl all over your lap to get their fill of their favourite snack and will gladly take pats and scratches as they eat. These guys are well looked after at the zoo; they are fed six times a day and can retreat to their heated hollowed out rock bedroom when it gets chilly. Picture: Mercedes Maguire
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2. Meet the meerkats

We’ve all seen them standing up straight keeping an eye out for potential predators, but these cute creatures are happy to take a break from sentry duty to share a snack with you. Visit Sergei, who came to the zoo from New Zealand, and his three sons born at the zoo under a breeding program for a spot of fly pupae. The furry animals, who belong to the mongoose family, will crawl all over your lap to get their fill of their favourite snack and will gladly take pats and scratches as they eat. These guys are well looked after at the zoo; they are fed six times a day and can retreat to their heated hollowed out rock bedroom when it gets chilly. Picture: Mercedes Maguire

3. Chill out with cheetahsIt doesn’t seem logical to walk through the gate where the cheetahs roam, but this is exactly what you will do if you choose an encounter with these wild cats built for speed - but not before you go through a safety briefing. There’ll be one ranger for every cheetah and you are not allowed to approach the cats unless they are laying or sitting, always making sure to stay higher than them. If you’re lucky, you’ll get a pat, but even being in close proximity to see them, run, play and groom each other and hear them purr is special. There are seven cheetahs at the zoo, split into four enclosures and our guide explains their numbers have dropped from 100,000 in the wild a century ago to just 6000 today. Only one cheetah has been bred at the zoo so far, Solo, who is taken on a harnessed walk throughout the zoo each day. Picture: Mercedes Maguire
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3. Chill out with cheetahs

It doesn’t seem logical to walk through the gate where the cheetahs roam, but this is exactly what you will do if you choose an encounter with these wild cats built for speed - but not before you go through a safety briefing. There’ll be one ranger for every cheetah and you are not allowed to approach the cats unless they are laying or sitting, always making sure to stay higher than them. If you’re lucky, you’ll get a pat, but even being in close proximity to see them, run, play and groom each other and hear them purr is special. There are seven cheetahs at the zoo, split into four enclosures and our guide explains their numbers have dropped from 100,000 in the wild a century ago to just 6000 today. Only one cheetah has been bred at the zoo so far, Solo, who is taken on a harnessed walk throughout the zoo each day. Picture: Mercedes Maguire

4. Spoon-feed a sun bearArataki approaches the wire fence and takes a seat upright when he sees us approach with his bowl of food. The mixture he is so excited by is a dried dog food moistened with fluids and yes, it’s his favourite! The sun bear was born in captivity in New Zealand (he’s named after the popular kiwi honey brand) and was introduced to Otay at the National Zoo who had been rescued from poachers in Asia by Mary Hutton of Free the Bears. They bonded and produced a daughter, named Mary after Otay’s savior, making the zoo the second in Australia to successfully breed sun bears in captivity. As sun bears like to forage for their food, keepers hide their vegetables, including cooked pumpkin, around their enclosure for them to find.
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4. Spoon-feed a sun bear

Arataki approaches the wire fence and takes a seat upright when he sees us approach with his bowl of food. The mixture he is so excited by is a dried dog food moistened with fluids and yes, it’s his favourite! The sun bear was born in captivity in New Zealand (he’s named after the popular kiwi honey brand) and was introduced to Otay at the National Zoo who had been rescued from poachers in Asia by Mary Hutton of Free the Bears. They bonded and produced a daughter, named Mary after Otay’s savior, making the zoo the second in Australia to successfully breed sun bears in captivity. As sun bears like to forage for their food, keepers hide their vegetables, including cooked pumpkin, around their enclosure for them to find.

5. Going walkiesIf you join one of the guides on their morning walk, you can have a variety of up-close encounters. Chances are you will walk past the zoo’s resident dingoes, who will approach to sniff your feet and legs as they pass. Although they are dog-like, they evolved differently to canines (they have twisting wrists for example, and can open doors!) and are not native to Australia, but are believed to have arrived about 400 years ago via a land bridge when waters were low. You will also get to have a pat with a rhino as it sidles up against the metal fence; they love to have their tough, wrinkled skin scratched and patted.
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5. Going walkies

If you join one of the guides on their morning walk, you can have a variety of up-close encounters. Chances are you will walk past the zoo’s resident dingoes, who will approach to sniff your feet and legs as they pass. Although they are dog-like, they evolved differently to canines (they have twisting wrists for example, and can open doors!) and are not native to Australia, but are believed to have arrived about 400 years ago via a land bridge when waters were low. You will also get to have a pat with a rhino as it sidles up against the metal fence; they love to have their tough, wrinkled skin scratched and patted.

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Original URL: https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/lifestyle/top-5-animal-encounters-at-jamala-wildlife-lodge/image-gallery/6b02745928c2ea32b667fbc9424c63a5