It's quite a few years since we visited the Western Plains Zoo at Dubbo, so we were interested to find out what, if anything had changed.
With only a few days of our holidays remaining and the knowledge that there would be at least two more overnight stays before we arrived back at Alice Springs, we decided to have a lay-over day at Dubbo so we could revisit the zoo. Driving for 8-10 h per day is boring and wears one out, so a rest every so often is necessary, especially since the trip between Mildura (our next stop) and north through South Australia and back into the Territory is fairly ordinary. Especially when you've done it (the latter) dozens of times.
According to the Dubbo tourism site:
The City is a thriving regional home to some 40,000 people who have health, education, retail and professional services at their finger tips…and time on their hands. It’s the best of both worlds: city and country. There’s plenty of work ... great opportunities ... and the time to enjoy it all.
There are hundreds, if not thousands of regional towns throughout Australia that could be equally described. They are nice places with friendly people where life can be very comfortable. Having the Western Plains Zoo just outside the town is a bonus, especially for tourism.
The Western Plains Zoo is owned and managed by Taronga Zoo which is in Sydney.
Many of the unique African animals are present, there are some Asian animals and of course some Australian animals, all located in their own areas with nice roads and walkways wending among them. I perhaps like the meercats most as they are the animal most likely to make a lovely domestic pet (I think!). They seem to be a great example of synergy within a community ... everyone working together for the common good. Even in the safety of the Western Plains Zoo, one of the clan always finds a high spot and stands watch to protect the others from attack. They take this duty in turns and there is never a time when there is nobody watching out for the enemy.
The animal at the top, for anyone who hasn't seen one before, is a hairy-nosed wombat (unique to Australia).
If time permits, do look up the Western Plains Zoo link ... there is some interesting stuff there ... for anyone interested in animals that is.
Enjoy!
Robin
