Kimba and Holden are doing what most Riverina people wish they could, embarking on a three-week holiday to the Gold Coast.
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Altina Wildlife Park’s male white lions will be sunning themselves under the rays of the Queensland sun as part of a winter school holiday program at Dreamworld.
“It’s a bit of a scenery change for them it’s something different and they will come back after the school holidays,” senior animal keeper Rebecca Surian said.
“We were approached by Dreamworld to see we had a couple of boys to go up to Dreamworld for a little bit of a holiday for a school holidays promotion, all the zoos try to help each other, so we thought why not?” manager and director Gloria Altin said.
Dreamworld previously had white lions on loan from the National Zoo, which they found to be very popular among its patrons.
“With the co-operation from Altina, we have a couple more for a little while,” Tiger Island supervisor Simon Murray said.
The loan unfolded when Dreamworld Life Sciences manager Al Mucci is a member of the Zoo and Aquarium Association, and he used his contacts at the organisation to help make the trip a possibility.
Altina animal keeper Stacey Hanrahan has chaperoned Kimba and Holden on their winter getaway.
The duo was introduced and exposed to their extra large cat carriers during feeding and play time over the past few weeks.
Ms Hanrahan explained how for two weeks prior the duo were introduced to the extra large cat carriers, feeding took place in the boxes, and incorporating playtime helped make their containers feel like home.
The park sees the trip as an opportunity to showcase its conservation, doubling as a great adventure for the brothers,
“It is a really big reward for us as zoo keepers and mum as a manager to be part of these conservation programs,” Mrs Surian said.
“To help out so many species and breed so many animals that aren’t very common in the wild as well as in captivity.
“There is only 300 white lions left in the world. Its very cool to be able to breed them even though it wasn’t expected and then to be able to help out another zoo.”