Meerkat’s Out of the Bag! Cheeky Creatures Revealed for Edinburgh Children’s Hospital

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Meerkat’s Out of the Bag! Cheeky Creatures Revealed for Edinburgh Children’s Hospital - RZSS

a child squatting down next to a glassed enclosure holding meerkats — Rosa Carter, RHCYP patient, aged 4 (Chris Watt Photography)

Children at an Edinburgh hospital will soon be learning important conservation lessons from some very unusual teachers - a mob of meerkats based in an outdoor classroom within the grounds.

The first programme of its kind outside of Australia, the meerkats from The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland's (RZSS) Edinburgh Zoo will reside at NHS Lothian’s Royal Hospital for Children and Young People (RHCYP) and be at the heart of an extensive learning and discovery experience.

Thanks to a partnership between Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Charity (ECHC), NHS Lothian and RZSS, the inquisitive creatures will give young patients, particularly those staying long term, the opportunity to learn all about nature and the environment.

Edinburgh Zoo currently delivers a weekly programme of educational activities at the RHCYP, including projects on penguins, pandas and tigers, all of which encourage children to think about their place in the world and the importance of wildlife within it.

The meerkat enclosure will replicate their natural habitat and zookeepers from Edinburgh Zoo will care for them and provide meerkat educational sessions while on site.

Roslyn Neely, CEO of ECHC, said: “Some children are too unwell or have been in hospital for so long that they don’t have the opportunity to engage with the outdoors, or interact with animals. Many of the children who visit the hospital care passionately about nature and the environment. Our programme will allow them to learn from experts while getting up close to the best teachers of all – the meerkats themselves. The wellbeing benefits of engaging with animals and using nature in the healing process are well documented, and there’s great excitement within the hospital in anticipation of our furry friends arriving.”