©GeraldineBanksJanuary2025
Letitia, the PR lady had been busy, she sat a the table with Cross and James, who listened to her plans for the Great Pet, Exotic Animal and Livestock Show to be held at the House. They had all agreed on a date six months from now.
Letitia had listened to everything James had told her and realised that the preparations would be significant to house all the animals and their carers. It had been done before , but everyone admitted that the Duke had been the driving force and he was an exceptional administrator. Letitia knew it was a big responsibility.
Cross and James were pleased that Letitia had taken on the role of Project Manager as well as a PR person, and had actually produced a plan that everyone could work to. Tedi wandered in and out of the meetings, he knew it was all very important and that everything seemed to be going well , but he got bored easily and he really wanted to be outside with the other dogs or perhaps sitting in the hallway with Trinnie, there was a sunny spot they knew that they both liked to lie in together and snooze away the afternoon.
Cross controlled the finances, Tedi’s paw mark was unique and was the signoff for any expense. So Cross would prepare everything each day and Tedi would approve it. So the six months of preparation for the show went very quickly and as time went by everything began to fit into place.
The first exhibitors, a selection of Megafauna arrived in July a month before the official show which was confirmed as running from Friday the 8th August , to Sunday the 11th August. The Megafauna were the large animals from the Southern Hemisphere, such as elephants, giraffes, hippopotamuses and rhinoceroses. Letitia ( who now everyone called Letti for short ) liked the word Megafauna, she had found it in Wikipedia and knew it included big species that had died out such as dinosaurs, but she liked the idea of a sign saying Megafauna, so the Megafauna area was designated in the Park, even though it wouldn’t have any dinosaurs . The small reptile section in the main house would have to suffice for dinosaur lovers.
These Megafauna animals came from zoos across the UK, their keepers had thought it a great opportunity for their animals to have a bit more freedom to roam around the beautiful estate and also to obtain publicity for their zoos and their various breeding programmes.
The keepers advised on the enclosures required and they picked the spots for them to be seen by the public and also for them to enjoy their surroundings. The hippopotamuses were able to swim in the lake and have mud baths, while an inflatable barrier stopped them from escaping into the main part of the lake. Wildlife could still fly into the hippos enclosure, but they soon learned that it was probably best not to bother the rather grumpy creatures with big mouths and teeth.
There had been a lot of groundworks dug, large ditches mainly that stopped the rhinos from escaping, with strong fencing. The elephants and giraffes shared an enclosure quite near the big house, with two large temporary outbuildings where the elephants and giraffes were fed and watered separately and slept. They were from different zoos, so no one knew if they would get on , but they seemed to and their keepers were happy with the arrangement.
Letti had done an amazing job planning it all. Insurance was very important and Cross and Letti had decided on the Security and Public Liability Insurance which in truth had been very expensive. Again this was something Tedi was not very interested in.
When the animals began to arrive Tedi was fascinated. The first morning he got up and inspected the enclosures with Cross; Tedi was amazed. The Elephants and Giraffes were so big, as he watched them walk off the gigantic trucks he was awestruck.
He had made friends with all the workmen digging holes , but when he saw the rhino being released into their enclosure and saw them running around the field and chasing each other he realised why the large ditches were needed. They were very powerful animals.
Tedi for his part was more interested in the smaller animals , he particularly liked the small monkeys and the marmosets. They liked him too, they did silly tricks to get his attention and threw pieces of fruit at him so he would look up at them, he in turn realised that they wanted him to do little zoomies in front of their exhibit, this made them howl with laughter which amused Tedi. The small primates were housed in the main house along with the snakes and spiders which he didn’t show much interest in and in truth was a bit suspicious of. That was Ben’s area, who had been given the job to look after them.
Letti had the details of every exotic animal on show and it’s location and it’s needs. Tedi, had the freedom to go around and visit each one which he did. He was particularly fascinated by the Giant Snails, who were much bigger than the snails in the garden and he loved the way when Ben Needham put a cuttlefish shell in the enclosure that one of the snails would move on top of it and would suck up the minerals into it’s own body.
Tedi when he was tired after a busy day, watched fascinated as he could see the white bits going through the snail’s body to be used to form new layers of shell. That explained how their shells grew so big. Trinnie, wasn’t impressed and thought it was disgusting, but Tedi could spend hours just sitting watching them.
The House was transformed. All the exhibitors from abroad were given accommodation in the house or in the grounds.
Mr Needham, his wife and his son Ben, volunteered to put some of the exotic exhibitors up in their house beside the fountain. Ben was very knowledgeable and handy when it came to arranging the exhibits for the animals who required special heating and lighting , and environmental conditions in the various vivarium’s and tanks that had been set up around the main house.
It was a full-time job making sure that all the lizards, snakes , frogs and insects were safe. Ben was very good and enjoyed the company at home of the other collectors and enthusiasts and he was able to show his collection to the visitors which pleased him mightily.
It all came together very well, they even found space for the big cats which they borrowed from a zoo. It had been decided, much to Tedi’s relief, that the lions, tigers and leopards would only stay for the actual show and arrive a week before to settle in. Tedi wouldn’t have to spend any time near their enclosure and that as soon a the show was over they would be going home. Tedi smelt the cats from a distance as soon as they had arrived and to him they smelt of danger and he wanted to keep away from them.
thenotsomightyom 