A long-held dream comes true at the aquarium! Ending the "Your Dreams Come True!” project.

The "Dream Project" was the centerpiece of the "Closing Project" launched at the Suma Aqualife Park Kobe in preparation for the closing of the aquarium at the end of May. The five dreams were selected from among more than 1,000 "dreams to be fulfilled at the Aquarium.”
A 12-year-old girl made her dream come true: "I want to experience being a tortoise keeper." She fell in love with the tortoises at first sight, “Their eyes are so cute,” she would say, and is currently raising two Hermann's tortoises at home. On this day, she experienced the work of a tortoise keeper with the staff in charge of raising sea turtles and tortoises.
After changing into boots and a uniform with the aquarium's logo, they started by preparing food. Then they weighed grass, which is also used to feed cows and rabbits, and prepared Chinese cabbage for rehydration. Suma Aqualife Park Kobe keeps four African spurred tortoises.
After leading the tortoises from their burrows to a feeding area called "Turtle Mountain" and having them explain the characteristics of the four tortoises and how to recognize them, the participants were challenged to weigh the tortoises once a month before feeding them. The tortoises are weighed by turning their shells over so that they do not move on the scale. It is quite hard work to turn over the tortoises, which weigh about 30kg for the smallest and over 60kg for the largest.
After weighing the tortoises, they fed them, cleaned their shells, and cleaned their burrows and feeding areas. It is a physically demanding job, but the girl was very happy to get up close and personal with the turtles she had longed to see.
Even after the hands-on experience was over, it was impressive to see her eagerly asking questions with notes in hand, such as "I want to know the signs of illness," and "What should I do to become a keeper in the future?"