It is the zoo's annual inspection day, and this year it is serious. With the threat of closure looming for any enclosure that is not up to scratch, all of the zoo's animals scrub up to look their best and impress. The penguins are polished, the baboons are buffed and the tigers are tidied as the zoo inspector does his rounds and scores their presentation. Everything is looking good until evil genius monkey Brutus hatches an explosive plan to sabotage the inspection and get Jurgen kicked out of the zoo forever.
Is the zoo getting rich from selling the animals' poo? After overhearing that zoo poo is valuable, self-obsessed gorilla Jurgen is convinced the zoo's poo is being sold behind his back. To stop anyone cashing in, he calls a poo strike - no-one is allowed to poo in the zoo. But as time passes, it becomes more and more difficult for the animals not to give in to the urge, and when a mystery poo is discovered, the 'No Poo Zoo' is gripped by a puzzling case of 'poodunnit'.
A mystery illness leaves Topaz the kangaroo without a hop and the vets scratching their heads. When Topaz is taken for treatment, rumours begin to spread around the zoo that it could be 'Uncle Nigel's Hoppitystophop' - a horrible condition that causes kangaroos to lose their ability to hop. Jealous of all the attention on Topaz, hapless gorilla and self-appointed leader of the zoo, Jurgen conjures up an illness in need of treatment of his own. Diagnosed by fellow gorilla Geoffrey as 'attention-seeker-itis'- will he and Topaz ever recover?
Neil the wimpy lion is under pressure from his overbearing mother-in-law to man up and get buff like the previous alpha-male lion Maximus. To prove he too can be a powerful, dominant male, Neil seeks out ways to improve his physique. Impressed by Jurgen's muscles, he decides to copy the gorilla and go vegetarian. The new veggie diet, however, doesn't go down too well for carnivore Neil - he misses his meat with a side order of meat, and despite his best efforts to kill some carrots, his mother-in-law still isn't impressed. Poor Neil.
After being hand-reared, Yoyo the penguin is confused - he thinks he is a human. Thanks to his identity crisis he doesn't fit into either the human or penguin world, and just when it looks like things can't get much worse, all his feathers start falling out. Cast away as an ugly misfit, all hope seems lost, but what appears a curse turns out to be a blessing in disguise when Yoyo returns to Penguin Beach completely transformed.
Mysterious monsters are rumoured to be lurking in Flamingo Lagoon and keeper Pete Smallbones is on a mission to prove to the zoo that the monsters are real. The keepers and animals all think that Pete is making it up, until Sid the seagull mysteriously disappears. Could Pete be telling the truth? Meanwhile, over on gorilla island, Jurgen and the boys are having to deal with an invasion of their own as Komodo rabbits and strangen rodents start appearing in their enclosure.
It's the day of the zoo's annual stocktake. As all the animals get ready to be counted, a group of tiny frogs take the opportunity to escape to Paris. Meanwhile, Jurgen has misinterpreted the stocktake - thinking the counts are scores out of ten. The four gorillas 'scored' only four in the previous stocktake, so he imposes a strict training regime to get the gorillas into shape for a higher score this year. His workout plan gets cut short however, when a rumour surfaces that the escapee amphibians may actually be deadly. Will the zoo ever be safe again?
Who is the most popular animal at the zoo? There's only one way to find out - by counting which cuddly toy sells the most in the gift shop of course! To find the winner, all of the zoo animals go head to head in an ultimate talent contest - the tapirs sing, the orangutans use their circus skills and the baboons try their hand at stand-up comedy. Everyone's sales are up except the gorillas, so in a last ditch attempt to boost their popularity, Geoffrey plays his enchanting 'nose-flute' - but it will it be enough to impress the public, or will an unsuspecting animal win the popularity contest?
Naomi the grey gibbon and Gambira the orangutan share and island but famously don't get on. Naomi likes everything to be clean and tidy, while Gambira is messy with poor personal hygiene. Everyday they shout and chase each other - until one day Naomi mysteriously disappears. At first, Gambira can't believe her luck - she finally has the place to herself without her bossy roommate, but then Jurgen the gorilla decides he's moving in and Gambira begins to miss her old island buddy. Was Naomi really that bad?
With their constant yelling and arguing, the baboons are giving the entire zoo a headache. The constant commotion is keeping Jenny the lion awake, making Mani the rhino's ears ring and it's stopping Gorilla Jurgen from reading his 'book'. With all the zoo's animals at breaking point, the pressure is mounting on baboon keeper Kate to keep her pesky primates happy and quiet. Most of her presents and tricks backfire spectacularly, making the bothersome baboons even more noisy, but finally she stumbles on something unexpected that keeps them very quiet indeed.
The arrival of two new lion cubs at the zoo has whipped all the residents into a frenzy of cuteness. All that is, except their terrified father Neil and jealous gorilla Jurgen. While Neil is terrified that he doesn't have what it takes to be a good dad to his two newborn cubs, Jurgen is worried the super-cute cubs will take the public's attention away from him. While Neil grapples which what it takes to be a dad, Jurgen is busy thinking up ways to win back the publics affections by getting 'cute'.
The army is called in to help with some major renovations around the zoo. Jurgen the gorilla, self-appointed leader, immediately assumes the extra muscle power is to help build his new luxury gymnasium, complete with hot tub and juice bar. But miniature megalomaniac monkey, Brutus, has other plans for the army - he wants their help to build his 'Death-ray of World Domination' - but will either of their demands be met?
The flamingos are moving to a new enclosure which inspires silverback gorilla Jurgen to think about upgrading his already massive enclosure, too. As he visits all the other animals to see what facilities they have on offer, the keepers have their work cut out wrangling flapping, flamboyant flamingos and transporting them across the zoo before it opens. With the flamingos moved out, the ducks set to work renaming Flamingo Lagoon, Duck Lagoon - but can they deter Jurgen from wanting to move in with them?
In this special episode, silverback gorilla Jurgen introduces us to the human faces of the zoo, talking us through all the fascinating jobs done by the keepers and the vets. Or at least that's what he's supposed to do... His most valuable insights about the humans is that they have 'dangly arms', say hello a lot and can count. But luckily Geoffrey steps in with some useful information about the expert keeping and veterinary staff that look after the animals.
The hunt is on for a new mascot. A popular, photogenic animal to publicise the zoo. Jurgen the gorilla obviously thinks it should be him, but the series narrator wants to meet all the residents, before deciding who the prestigious 'Face of the Zoo' will be. With senior head keeper, Matt away at dancercise classes, Jurgen steps in as a 'knowledgeable guide' to introduce each of the animals - giving his less than accurate opinions along the way.
Who is the most dangerous animal at the zoo? Is it the zebra, the tortoise or the big cats? With keepers having to wear hard hats, ear protection and face visors around the birds, the rumour is that they are the most dangerous. Risky residents include the wattled crane, fish owl and lorikeet, but silverback gorilla Jurgen is unconvinced - until he has a ferocious run-in with Ivan the speckled pigeon, who really doesn't like being called tiny.
Everyone in the zoo has a name except the newest arrival, a baby male giraffe. He'd like to choose his own name, but no one will listen. His overbearing dad wants him to have a strong and powerful name like Tiberius or Mungo. Jurgen the Gorilla has suggested Jurgen and the keepers have even worse suggestions including Poo, Dolly and Shingami. But just as the little giraffe's name is about to be plucked from a hat, a new name miraculously makes it into the running... How did it get there? And could it mean the giraffe might get the name he wants after all?
Rumours are spreading around the zoo that a mystery animal is due to arrive. But who could it be? All the animals are in on the game of 'Guess Zoo' and as more and more clues are unearthed Geoffrey begins to suspect that the new arrival is a silverback to replace Jurgen. While the zoo animals continue to speculate, the keepers are busy building the new home for whoever is moving in. As the new animal arrives at the zoo gates, tensions rise. Will keepers Matt and Craig have finished the new animal's home? And will Geoffrey be proved right, are Jurgen's days numbered
Male zebra Stripy McButtface has a problem with his feet - his overgrown hooves mean he can't run to herd his females. The only solution is to allow the vets to trim his hooves but he hates having his feet checked. Meanwhile, as his herd of females start looking elsewhere for a male to chase them around, the zoo's vets are out on their rounds conducting foot checks on all of the other animals - penguins, ducks, elephants and giraffes. Eventually they call in John the beautician to give Stripy a giant zebra pedicure, and with his feet fixed, he can finally run after his herd as he should
The zoo's animals love learning new tricks - Clara the seal can jump, Cheryl the cheetah can touch a ball with her nose and Duchess the elephant can hold her legs in the air. Football-obsessed otters Willie and Wilby, however, aren't interested in learning anything. Neither is self-appointed leader Jurgen, who refuses to learn any new tricks. While dedicated keeper Lee tries his best to get the otters' attention, the gorillas are trying their hardest to find out why Jurgen is so against learning anything. It's all a mystery until Hank finally reveals the embarrassing 'trick' Jurgen's been hiding since he was a boy.
The zoo stinks, and all fingers are pointed at tapirs Terry and Penelope, who are prone to plopping in their pool. Carlos the capybara shares their enclosure and is in a constant state of fury at their unhygienic ways. It soon becomes clear, however, that it's not just the tapirs causing the stink. All the zoo's residents need to scrub up. But can they clean up and stem the stench before the all-important arrival of the public?
Every day the vets do their daily rounds treating animals around the zoo. The trouble is, the animals all hate the vets and hide whenever they visit. As head vet Ghislaine spends the entire day trying to lure the tortoises out from under a bush, Christa attempts to examine a penguin's ankle and Jo tires to treat a capybara - it's clear they are very unpopular. Silverback gorilla Jurgen spots an opportunity to use his 'popularity' and become the zoo's doctor. He is convinced Dr Jurgen's clinic will be more popular than the vets, but can he convince anyone to be treated by him instead?
Having forgotten his birthday three years in a row, Jurgen is convinced that gorillas Geoffrey and Dave and the keepers are throwing him a huge surprise birthday party. Hank has baked a cake and the keepers have wrapped over 50 presents but the party doesn't turn out quite as he expected when Jurgen discovers he shares his birthday with another animal at the zoo
A new baby giraffe is struggling to live up to his overbearing father's expectations of what a son should be. But will he eventually pluck up the courage to prove to his dad he has what it takes, and step out into the big bad zoo? With the little giraffe already feeling the pressure, it's time for his father to be tested - he needs to see the vet about his feet - and vets turns to be his big fear. With the father scared of vets and the baby scared of the outside world, can they support each other to face their fears, and realise that perhaps it's not so bad after all
It's time for the zoo's new tiger cub to meet his massive, meat-munching, food-obsessed dad. As rumours of the big event spread around the zoo, its residents gather to watch the showdown. Self-appointed leader and lifestyle guru Jurgen offers some sage advice to the tiny tiger cub, until he too gets spooked by the prospect of facing such a big predator. With only his courage to drawn on, will the diminutive cub find his inner tiger in time?
It's the hottest day of the year and the zoo's keepers are busy delivering ice lollies to keep the animals cool. The baboons, elephants, and lions are all loving their icy treats, but Gorilla Island seems to have been mysteriously missed off the keeper's ice lolly list. Silverback Jurgen is getting seriously hot under the collar at the oversight until an unexpected rubbish bin turns up and it is keepers Matt and Craig's turn to get hot and bothered.
When news breaks that senior head keeper Matt is leaving the zoo, the search begins for the new boss. Self-appointed leader Jurgen thinks it should be him and begins his campaign to get the job. But he is not alone in thinking he was what it takes to run the zoo. Woody the baboon makes an application - highlighting his calm and reasonable nature, while Duchess, as the oldest member of the zoo, feels she has the required experience and wisdom. All the animals lose interest in the vacancy, however, when they find out the main job of being keeper is cleaning and picking up poo. So who will get the job? And do they want it anymore?
It's seven years since Jurgen arrived at the zoo and each year he celebrates his anniversary, or 'zooniversary', by putting on a show, whether the zoo animals like it or not. This year he is planning a live music concert - the bunting is up, the fireworks are ready and Dave has been practicing his guitar riffs. But in a strange coincidence, Jurgen discovers that he shares his zooniversary with Carl the chameleon, who prefers a much quieter party to remember his arrival. Will either get the celebration they hope for?