It was a good day at work - until a tiger ate the GoPro
Monday, 1 August 2016
It was a good day at work - until a tiger ate the GoPro.
It sounds like one of those colourful excuses that a five-year-old made up: 'Sorry miss, but the dog ate my homework.'
But I swear that's what actually happened.
Allow me to provide some context - the photographer and I were getting footage for a story we were doing on Auckland Zoo's Sumatran tigers for International Tiger Day.
**READ MORE:
* This dog is a better photographer than you
* International Tiger Day celebrated at Auckland Zoo**
The plan was to get some amazing video footage of the tigers as well as some insight into the plight of their brothers and sisters in the wild.
The plan backfired - and a $700 GoPro was turned into shrapnel.
It all started with a tour around the enclosure with the tigers safely locked out back. We were shown their favourite sleeping places and things to play with.
We set up one GoPro to get a birds-eye view of the enclosure and attached the other to a chain around a bundle of smelly old blankets.
Once the tigers were released, Molek, the 18-year-old mother of boisterous Berani, made a beeline for her favourite toy - the blankets.
She dragged the sheep-like bundle back into her bamboo lair and that was the last anyone ever saw of the second GoPro.
Hours later - with tiger one and two safely locked out back again - the keepers went in to retrieve the GoPros.
That's when we got the text from Auckland Zoo spokeswoman Jane Healy.
'Hey Nicole we have the GoPros. Unfortunately the tigers mangled one attached to the chained blanket. Part of the card is split in half.'
Well, crap.
Trying to soften the blow, Healy said: 'It's really special though - it had tiger hair in it and everything!'
We'd even laughed off the zoo's disclaimer saying the zoo would not be liable for any GoPro damage caused by the tigers. We had protective casing - what could go wrong?
That was when I had to have the last conversation I thought I'd ever have with my editor.
'Sorry boss, the tiger ate the GoPro.'
And that's the story of how a 100kg cat, with the jaw power similar to that of a polar bear or silverback gorilla, gave me the most unbelievable excuse for destroying work property of all time.
Stuff is auctioning the mangled GoPro on TradeMe, with proceeds going to Auckland Zoo's conservation fund for 21st Century Tiger, an organisation fighting to bring the critically endangered Sumatran tigers back from the brink of extinction.
The winner of the auction will also receive an exclusive 'tiger meet and greet' experience for up to four people at the Auckland Zoo. This group will get an exclusive look into the daily life of the zoo's Sumatran tigers, as well as one-on-one time with the keepers who work with the cats on a daily basis.