A struggling zoo keeper fears his animals could starve or face slaughter during the coronavirus pandemic.
Andy Cowell, founder of the Fenn Bell Conservation Project, houses 120 animals and 40 different species - which cost £2,500 a week to run.
However, since the lockdown the 51-year-old has depended on a combination of his own money and donations to keep his fishing cats, coatis, marmoset monkeys and other animals fed.
But he says he's falling perilously short of the food bill, and has had to make plans that are unthinkable to any animal lover.
Andy, who owns the zoo and adjacent pub in St Mary Hoo, Kent, said: "I've had so many sleepless nights over the last few weeks, trying to come up with a way to keep the zoo running without visitor donations, ticket sales or the pub and restaurant open.
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"We've had to make a plan and may have to make the difficult decision to euthanise some of the animals to give the rest a chance.
"It's that or they starve."
He said that according to his last-resort plan, racoons would be euthanised first.
Andy added: "Racoons are classed as invasive species here in the UK, so unfortunately they would have to go first. But it's not something I ever wish to do.
"Other zoos have stayed quiet during this crisis, but I have broken ranks and asked for help. I am not prepared to sit here and watch everything go down the pan. It will not beat us. I don't want to be sitting there at the end having to say I've put down some of my animals because of the coronavirus."
Andy is thankful to Sainsbury's who have donated food, but said its donations does not cater for the specific dietary needs of its animals which include lemurs, monkeys and binturongs.
The conservationist said: "I hate begging, I really do, but we will run out of money. I appreciate people are dying and my heart goes out to everyone struggling in these hard times, but the animals we keep here, they didn't ask for this situation.
He added: "Small zoos in local communities are struggling, and the coronavirus will ruin them. I feel like the government has forgotten about us, the big zoos will have grants and funding, but smaller places rely on public donations."
Andy has ploughed at least £6,000 of his own money to feed the animals, and is also receiving donations on a GoFundMe page which is currently around £4000 below its £10,000 target.
Many individuals and some businesses have donated generously, but Andy said he would rather a little bit from many than a few people "stretching" themselves.
The zoo owner made an emergency plea on Facebook recently highlighting his predicament.
He said: "Around 18,000 saw the post, and I just thought, if each of those people gave a pound, just a pound then we'd have enough money to last us until June at least.
"We don't want masses of money from a few people. If many could give a little, then just maybe we could make this through to the other side."
Andy has owned the Fenn Bell Inn and zoo for five years, investing most of his money in the initiative.
His team, which includes his wife, Kelly, and daughter, Sydnee, collaborates with colleges to help train animal management students, as well as schools to foster the next generation of "zookeepers and conservation warriors."
If his zoo survives lockdown, he hopes to develop a new conservation area to breed and release rare animals such as red squirrels back into the wild.
Andy's pleas echo a number of wildlife and conservation centres across the country which are desperate for donations to see them through the Covid-19 lockdown.
He added: "Regardless of what we manage to raise, if we reopen when all of this is over, we'll open on the first weekend for free, to say thank you to everyone who's helped and donated."
