Andi Knoll rolls up his sleeves at Tierwelt Herberstein

Andi Knoll, the popular ORF host, heads to a different workplace in Austria every Friday as part of his Ö3 morning show and broadcasts live from that location.

On Friday, June 21, 2019, Andi Knoll made his first trip to Eastern Styria— Knoll pitched in at Tierwelt Herberstein. Specifically, he worked in our zoological department and lent a hand to our animal caretakers. Our animal care apprentice Sarah, animal caretaker Christian, and area manager Tammo introduced Andi to the secrets of our permanent animal residents, and over 2 million Ö3 listeners tuned in during numerous live segments on the air.

At 9 a.m., Andi Knoll started his day at the Gelada House on the African continent and was introduced to his first tasks: There, he cleaned out the monkey enclosure, spread sawdust, fed the geladas oatmeal mixed with mealworms—hidden in an egg carton—and helped our veterinarian and zoological director, Dr. Reinhard Pichler, administer an antibiotic to an injured monkey.

A visit with our majestic lions was also a must. While our lion couple, Amira and Caesar, posed on their rock, our lion grandpa Simba awoke from his long slumber and stretched right before Andi’s eyes—just in time for World Yoga Day on June 21.

The next stop was at the petting zoo. Our alpacas went for a bath—not at nearby Stubenberg Lake, though—but were showered by Andi Knoll. With sunny weather and temperatures over 30 degrees, it was a welcome change for the shaggy Andean animals.

We continued on with the Hoftrac. After a brief instruction session from Bernie Hohengassner, Andi rolled up his sleeves and “served” our camels some freshly cut branches.

With a crate of fresh, juicy Styrian apples—from the “Apfelland,” of course — Andi headed on to our exotic animals, the final stop during the live broadcast. The show wrapped up at the South America House, where the broadcast took place not in a rainforest setting, but out in the open air. Only the sloths and macaws were indoors; all the other South American residents—the coatis and tapirs—were out and about outdoors.

There’s no question that Andi Knoll enjoyed our South American animals the most: “I could die happy—I got to meet one of the coolest animals in the world, the tapir. And while I do think I have the best job in the world, being an animal keeper is a tie for first place. So here’s my tip of the day: become an animal caretaker—it’s good for the heart and the soul,” the Ö3 host gushed about his job, having found a new favorite animal in the tapir.

And who knows—maybe Andi Knoll will come visit us again. At the latest when his new favorite animals have offspring :-)