BARROW Borough Council is set to agree progress is being made at a zoo despite a number of worrying welfare findings and seven incidents involving animal contact with the public during a 14-day period after a shock inspection.

The council's licensing regulatory committee will meet today (Thursday October 5) to consider whether South Lakes Safari Zoo, which is operating under new bosses, is complying with its licence conditions.

Next week's meeting follows an unannounced inspection on August 3 which also looked at the management structure and finances of the new Cumbria Zoo Company Ltd.

Cumbria Zoo Company Ltd, headed by Karen Brewer, was granted a four-year licence to run the Dalton attraction in May.

The new management was brought in after zoo founder David Gill was found to be "not fit" to run the attraction in January.

During last month's inspection, by council-appointed vet advisor Dr Matthew Brash and the authority's environmental health bosses Anne Chapman and Graham Barker, a number of concerns were raised.

The inspection report states that since being granted the licence, the zoo has appointed an animal director, Andreas Kaufmann, and that areas of the zoo where animals could come into contact with members of the public had been reduced.

However, in August 2017, seven incidents involving contact between animals and visitors were reported within a 14-day period.

Despite praising zoo-keepers for doing a "good job" in educating the public about safety, inspectors witnessed a number of contact incidents including one which involved a lemur climbing into a pram. The animal had to be removed by two zoo-keepers.

The report states there is still "considerable contact between lemurs and the public".

Other animal contact incidents during a lemur feeding session involved a visitor's glove being pulled off when a lemur grabbed their hand when trying to snatch a grape and a lemur jumping onto a member of the public when being chased by another lemur.

Squirrel monkeys had also jumped on members of the public and Mr Kaufmann told inspectors he would continue to introduce changes to improve safety.

An ageing nyala, which was completely blind and had been separated from its herd, had deteriorated after developing stereotypic behaviour and was euthanised the day after the inspection.

Inspectors found prairie dogs had "extended their territory" and had been digging holes next to the fence which separates the zoo from Mr Gill's house.

Because of concerns about the lack of security between Mr Gill's neighbouring home and the zoo enclosures, the attraction is not currently allowed to import or export any animals under the Animal and Plant Health Agency's regulatory BALAI directive.

Although this had been set to be reinstated, in an update from Mr Kaufmann to the council on Monday September 25, he confirmed a diagnosis of chlamydia among the zoo's peacock population meant the BALAI status had not yet been approved.

Despite the concerns flagged up by the inspection team following last month's visit, licensing officers have recommended that the committee acknowledges that the requirements of the licence are being complied with.

Next Thursday's meeting will be held at Barrow Town Hall at 2pm.