“I was j-j-just …” spluttered Bob.

“Spit it out, boy!” boomed Sir Basil. The man’s voice echoed around his zoo.

“I was just trying to help the animals, sir.”

“Well, you are NOT helping!” The zoo owner’s face was red with rage. “Making my fish pull funny faces. Encouraging a monkey to squeeze his own nose as if it was a hooter. Now you’re teaching an animal who isn’t supposed to moo to Whatever next? Are you going to teach a frog to ?”

“Yes, sir. That’s exactly what I was going to do. The pig-nosed frog.”

This only enraged Sir Basil further. “I don’t want you in my zoo ever again!”

“B-b-but, sir …”

“Let me see your ticket, boy.”

Bob panicked. “An elephant ate it!”

Sir Basil’s already narrow eyes narrowed.

“A likely story! So you didn’t even pay to get into my zoo? Right. I’m calling the police!”

“DON’T!” someone shouted.

Bob and Sir Basil turned round. Winston the zookeeper was standing just a few paces away, a bucket of fish in his hand.

“How dare you shout at me?” bellowed the owner.

“I’m sorry, sir,” spluttered Winston. He was nervous of Sir Basil, as was everyone who worked at the zoo. “But I had to explain. There’s no need to call the police.”

“Why not? This nasty little runt has sneaked into MY zoo without paying.”

The boy looked up at the zookeeper. He didn’t know what to say or do.

“Mr Bob didn’t sneak in,” replied Winston.

“Then would you care to explain how he got in here without a ticket?”

There was silence for a moment before the zookeeper mumbled, “I let the boy in for free.”

“YOU ARE FIRED!” bellowed Sir Basil. “I want you both out of my zoo this instant!”

“Please, please, please don’t sack him, sir!” pleaded the boy. “Winston loves these animals.”

“I don’t care.

The friends shared a despairing look. Then Winston and Bob made their way towards the front gate as the crowds of visitors looked sadly on.

“I am so sorry,” said the boy.

“It wasn’t your fault, Mr Bob,” replied the ex-zookeeper.

Bob bowed his head, as he held on to the old man’s hand.

All around the zoo, the animals stopped and watched.

came a sound.

The boy looked up. It was the proboscis monkey honking his hooter.

He did it again.

The dugong let out a ginormous

The echidna put up his spikes.

The elephant seal trumpeted through his trunk.

The snapping turtle snapped again and again and again.

The Komodo dragon roared the biggest dinosaur roar she could. It would have frightened a Tyrannosaurus rex.

The pangolin rolled up into a pine cone and bowled herself around her enclosure, knocking down everything in sight.

The hooded seal blew up his nose.

The marabou stork dingle-dangled his dingly-dangly neck.

The warthog snorted.

The cone-nosed tapir put her cone-nose as high as she could in the air.

The aye-aye made her eyes as bright as she could.

The umbrellabird trilled and twirled

The spotted handfish started clicking his fins together as if they were fingers.

The hamadryas baboon her bright red bottom.

The sloth, however, remained perfectly still.

As for the blobfish, he swam up out of the water with all his might and performed the most incredible jump. At the highest point, he stopped still in the air for a moment and let out a ginormous …

… before splashing back down into his tank with a massive

The sound of all the animals protesting was deafening.

boomed Sir Basil.

“It’s the animals, sir. They’re revolting!” replied Winston.