'I spend Christmas with elephants'

When it comes time to celebrate, there's nowhere Luke Reavley, General Manager of Australia Zoo, would rather be than with the animals he counts as part of his family.

- 

Growing up, I loved animals. I was born in the UK and lived there for 12 years before moving to Australia with my family. As a kid, I was constantly nagging my parents for a pet, always bringing an injured bird into the house, or building a frog pond.

I was obsessed with The Crocodile Hunter, and loved learning about wildlife from Steve and Terri Irwin.

When I was maybe six years old, I found a frog in our backyard. Not knowing any better, I figured he'd need a swim. I filled up the bathtub with water and let him go in there. I can still remember the look on my mum's face when she saw it. Unlike me, the rest of my family aren't really into wildlife, especially my mum, who's scared of EVERYTHING!

My love for wildlife only grew when I moved to Australia. With more critters here, I was in heaven. When I was 13, I started caring for injured lizards through a rescue group, and never looked back.

I always knew I wanted to work with animals, I just didn't know in what capacity. When Steve Irwin passed away, I visited Australia Zoo to pay my respects. During my visit, I was chatting to a wombat keeper, and she suggested I do work experience. Despite living a 90-minute drive away and not having a car, I was in. I went along for work experience and I'm still here nearly 20 years later.

I vividly remember my first day. It was Australia Day 2007. John Williamson was performing in the Crocoseum. I felt like I'd joined something bigger than me – a purpose and mission for the greater good. I couldn't have been happier.