Australia Zoo has felt the strain of the coronavirus lockdown after the wildlife park was forced to close for 78 days.
WATCH: Terri Irwin’s first emotional TV interview after Steve’s death
In an episode of Crikey! It’s the Irwins, Terri, 55, gave a rare insight into the financial struggles faced by the Irwin family during the closure.
“I can’t even come close to paying bills; we are having to stand down staff and it’s very emotional,” Terri said during the episode.
“I’m the pilot of a big plane and the plane is going down, and I’m handing out all the parachutes I’ve got.”
On a typical day, the zoo spends about $78,000 a week on feeding the animals and half its income on wages, totalling a mammoth $400,000 a week.
But without visitors, the Irwin family were forced to cut jobs and operate with just a skeleton staff to keep all the animals fed and watered.
During the zoo’s closure, it appeared the Irwins had turned to other money-making ventures to keep their business afloat.
In addition to a clothing range, a browse through the Australia Zoo shop revealed that Bindi launched her own homewares products, including a brightly patterned ‘Bee the Change’ cushion cover (RRP $34.95).
In celebration of her 2020 wedding, Bindi and new husband Chandler also released a limited-edition candle commemorating their big day (RRP $49.95).
Meanwhile newlyweds Bindi and Chandler had to put their honeymoon plans on the backburner for the good of the family business.
“We had originally planned to do a road trip for our honeymoon,” Bindi admitted.
“It’s really scary trying to make do with a limited number of staff, and to take care of 1,200 animals.”
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