Animals hold such fascination for so many babies and toddlers. It seems that little people respond more strongly to animal faces early on than to human ones - perhaps due to their less complex facial expressions. It's interesting to read that babies and their animal counterparts have evolved similarly proportioned facial features (large eyes, small noses and mouths, rounded cheeks) to hold a universal appeal, thus ensuring that the vulnerable members of any species are protected!
Orla adores animals, so we have been on a number of outings to indulge her passion. We visited Penang Bird Park, meeting peacocks, parakeets and jungle fowl... She loved gently stroking the backs of the tiny Scops Owls to make them 'dance' and bob, and thought that the ostrich was hilarious. That photo is a firm favourite in her album, and she has even created her own 'sign' to use when she sees one!
Taiping Zoo was another great hit. The advantage it has over the Bird Park is that the enclosures are much larger and more open, affording a better view and more comfortable environments for the animals. Orla was fascinated to see animals seen previously only in picture books or on her World Animals DVD - elephants, tigers and crocodiles drew enthusiastic signing and appropriate trumpetting, growling and snapping sounds, while the giraffes drew an awed and delighted "Wow!... Wow!"
You don't need to fork out for tickets for zoos and wildlife parks, however, to indulge your child's love of feathered, finned and furry friends. We are lucky to have a fantastic pet store here in Georgetown, filled with several floors of pets and aquaria. The tanks are filled with a rainbow of amazing marine and freshwater fish and there is a large pool where we can feed huge orange, white and golden koi carp. There are clean, bright tanks and cages holding blue macaws, reptiles, spiders, prairie dogs and ferrets, alongside the more common cats, dogs, hamsters and rabbits. On rainy afternoons, it's not uncommon to find half a dozen mummies and little people peering into glass tanks filled with mini 'Nemo' clownfish or cooing over baby hedgehogs curled up in warm straw beds...
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