Like many parents, Terry and Sheila Thorpe were dreading their final family farewell, seeing their loved ones leave home and be scattered across the country.

The couple could still see their charges, stopping in for occasional visits to their new homes, but the whole family will never be together again.

This is no ordinary domestic departing, however.

Terry and Sheila, both 66, are saying goodbye not to grown-up children but 900 feathered and furry companions.

The couple opened Gatwick Zoo 29 years ago but closed its doors for the last time on Sunday.

They cannot afford to keep the zoo going any longer and plan to retire to Scotland.

But first has been the heartbreaking task of finding new homes for the 900 birds and animals they have come to love - ranging from monkeys, wallabies, otters and meerkats to penguins, emus and flamingos.

They have ensured each animal will be going to good homes.

Some are going to Chessington Zoo while others are travelling as far as Colchester, Edinburgh and Leeds Castle.

The 11.4-acre zoo and its inhabitants have been like a family, not just for animal-loving Terry and Sheila but also many of the 70,000 visitors a year.

This was illustrated by the reactions of people who came to make one final visit after hearing the zoo was about to close.

Terry said: "The past few weeks have been very good. We have had strong crowds each day.

"We've had many visitors who hadn't been back for many years but who remembered coming as children or bringing their children way back.

"They wanted to come along for one last look and have been pleasantly surprised by the fun they have had.

"Perhaps had they attended more frequently in the past, we would have been able to keep going longer."

About 250 people came on Sunday and a farewell party in the evening was attended by 70 past and present members of staff, including head keeper Sue Harvey and catering and retail manager Vikki Measures.

Terry said: "There were lots of tears flowing. It's going to be very sad seeing the animals go over the course of this month."

The creatures he will miss most are the 40 monkeys, especially anold favourite called Margaret.

He said: "She has been with us 27 years and is the grand old dame of the zoo. She is a delightful, gentle monkey, despite her size.

"Margaret has produced many babies over the years.

"To witness a monkey giving birth is something I will always remember. It's very moving.

"Or to watch a chick emerge from its eggshell then develop very quickly over a couple of months into something as beautiful as a macaw is very special too.

"These animals have given us tremendous pleasure."

Other notable inhabitants included Gus the homboldt penguin, who appeared in BBC television programme promotions one Christmas, an airline commercial and The Big Breakfast on Channel 4.

Then there was Bambi, a baby deer, who refused to stand still while appearing in a film with Kirk Douglas.

A group of nuns will remember its visit to the zoo.

The nuns complained after a parrot began squawking obscenities at a party of children they were escorting.

Many of Terry's favourite monkeys will be going to Chessington, making it easier for the couple to visit before they move north of the border.

Terry and Sheila aim to settle in south-west Scotland, where they intend to keep in close contact with nature.

He said: "New Galloway, where we are going, is renowned for its red squirrels and otters and the birdlife there is phenomenal.

"We shall not have any captive animals but we will encounter some wonderful wildlife."

Gatwick Zoo, meanwhile, will be replaced by 17 houses, including four which would be low-cost, on 2.8 acres of the site.

Another 1.5 acres will be transferred to the Windmill Trust, which restored and moved the listed Lowfield Heath windmill to a corner of the zoo in 1989.

The rest of the land will remain open space for light agricultural use, such as grazing animals.

Terry said: "Before we opened the zoo 30 years ago, the area was made up of just flat fields for grazing cattle.

"It seems right it's now going back that way."

For the animals who are coming and the animals who are going, the end of an era at Gatwick Zoo is a new beginning.