For my birthday I was told we were off to the mountains to see snow leopards, bears and red pandas. I thought I was in for a trip to the Himalayas, but after a 20 minute drive we arrived at the Welsh Mountain Zoo in nearby Colwyn Bay. My treat was to be zoo keeper for a day and my first job was to feed the bears.

For their breakfast they like fresh and dried fruit and nuts with a special dried bear food mix. Looking at it, I realised it was a bit like my breakfast—apart from I use muesli. The animal mix actually looked a bit similar, except that it’s made out of corn, soya, eggs and vitamins. So it’s high in protein to satisfy a hungry bear.

Me making the bear’s breakfast

I learned a lot about the animals in the zoo. The bears were rescued from circuses in Eastern Europe and now enjoy a quiet retirement with their own den and wooded enclosure.

Me making the bear’s breakfast

To keep the animals active, we hid their breakfast in various places so they had to forage to find it. I have also been doing the same recently by picking blackberries during my walk. Like the bears this helps keep me more alive and alert.

Me foraging for my breakfast berries

During the day at the zoo, I realised that all the animals are on a really good diet! This is not surprising because the keepers want them to be healthy, happy and active. Also vet bills are really expensive, plus people don’t want to see sick animals. The keepers wouldn’t think of giving them cheap white bread, sugary drinks or too much meat. That stuff is for humans!

It’s ironic that the zoo animals eat more healthily than most people, and follow a lot of my ‘Keith on Food’ guidelines. When I was young, my mother used to say, ‘Don’t eat like an animal’. But it seems that that has changed and we would be better off eating their diet than ours.

Below is my quiz to check how bearable you are right now.

How Bearable are You? Quiz

Do you:

1. Sleep deeply and wake up hungry and grumpy
2. Like walking in the woods
3. Eat honey with nuts and fresh fruit
4. Enjoy bear hugs
5. Watching fish in the river
6. Have a good sense of smell
7. Standing up and making a lot of noise.
8. Having your own den
9. Taking your cubs tracking
10. Eat Keith’s Bear Breakfast.

Answers

Mostly yes: You are a very bearable person, keep it up!
Mostly no: You are totally unbearable, start by eating some of Keith’s Bear Breakfast right now.

Here is the Bear Breakfast recipe, it is part of Keith’s Zoo Diet for Humans.

Add water and soak overnight

Mix in the tahini, kefir and fresh berries

Add hot milk

Enjoy