Gil and Donna’s early years were spent in Melbourne (Dandenong Ranges) Victoria.
Gil at the age of twenty-two, did a stint in the mines at Weipa, Far North Queensland and really enjoyed the climate and the atmosphere. As the years went by, Gil kept thinking that he would like to once more live in Far North Queensland and talked Donna into a move to Mossman. They made the move north in 1994 with daughter Bianca, dogs, birds and the mother-in-law.

The land that the bed and breakfast and the zoo now occupies was bought in 1999 with no real thought of what to do with it but after much goading from friends, Gil and Donna decided to build a bed and breakfast with its own bird park. The land when purchased was a old disused cane farm. The small bird park has now evolved into a zoo with over 140 species of Australian native birds, mammals and reptiles set in ten acres of lush tropical gardens. At present they have four bed and breakfast style rooms with a further six motel style rooms coming into service in the near future.

Life today is a far cry for Gil, who had an industrial waste company in Melbourne and for Donna, who taught techniques in ceramics and hand-painting. Their daughter, Bianca has since returned to Melbourne to further her education. Since work began on the bed and breakfast and the zoo, Donna and Gil have planted over 2000 trees and many hundreds of shrubs, bulbs and palms. Their idea of having a bed and breakfast inside a zoo has paid off as their visitors and guests will agree as they keep coming back to stay and send their family and friends to visit as well.