At Perth Zoo families can get pretty close to the animals, but how would you like to get within touching distance.

Little Chef and I enjoyed a “Close Encounter” at Perth Zoo. A Close Encounter experience takes a day out to the Zoo to a whole new level! You head behind the scenes to meet some rare and amazing animals up close. There are many to different “eye to eye” experiences to choose from.

We experienced the Bush Buddies Eye to Eye, which is just an additional $10 per person on top of the regular zoo entry fee. Our intimate group was met by friendly Zoo Keeper Claire, who led us to a behind the scenes bush habitat where we got to meet four very special animals.

First, we met a Western Grey Kangaroo, called Nolga. She came to Perth Zoo as an orphan after her mother was hit by a car near Mandurah. As she was so young, she needed a lot of care, which meant all the extra TLC made her very comfortable with humans. Every effort was made to introduce her to the zoo’s mob of Western Grey Kangaroo’s, but she would follow visitors and the keepers on their daily rounds.

Realising that Nolga thrived on human interaction, she made the move to the Zoo’s Discovery and Learning yard, where we met her. The children and adults were encouraged to slowly approach her and give her a gentle stroke, minding her very long tail!

We then met a sleepy echidna. Claire popped on her gloves, to protect her from the spikes and got the echidna from her box.

She seemed to enjoy basking in the sunshine for a few moments, before waddling back to hide in a hollow log.

Next, we got the opportunity to feel Herschel the scaly Shingleback lizard.

We also fed Alia, the cute quokka, with some native leaves.

I learnt that Rottnest isn’t the only place in WA you can meet a quokka! There is also a small number of Quokkas found in WA’s great southern region.

Bush Buddies has no age limit and lasts for about 15 minutes, which suits younger children’s short attention spans. Strollers are to be left in a secure spot at the gate. Other “Eye to Eye” experiences are available with Giraffes, Lemurs, the Elephants, and more.

Bush Buddies is held on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays at 12.15pm. Find out more on Close Encounter experiences at Perth Zoo here.

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About Amanda Carlin

Amanda Carlin has her own blog - The Chef, His Wife and Their Perth-fect Life. The Chef's Wife LOVES to eat out in our beautiful city and discover new spots to dine. Amanda and Chef love tapas or something a little fancy for date night and with their son "Little Chef" in tow there's plenty of family friendly options too.

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