But Smeagol, a baby lemur at Chessington Zoo, is so picky he had to have a special festive feast whipped up for him by children's chef Annabel Karmel.

Rather like a difficult child, the five-month old bundle of fluff refuses to eat his vegetables.

Zoo keepers have tried to tempt him with a variety of treats but so far the youngster has turned his nose up at almost everything on offer.

Now Karmel has been drafted in to ensure he eats his Christmas dinner. "He's quite fussy, like most kids are," the 49-year-old said. "He doesn't like vegetables but he likes fruit. The trouble with him is that he is fickle - one day he likes something and the next day he won't eat it."

Keepers at the zoo in Surrey became concerned after the ring tailed lemur refused to eat the food put down for him.

It is important he is well nourished because lemurs grow more in their first year than at any other time and Smeagol has to double in size before he is fully grown.

Karmel, who cooks for her own pet dogs - a two-year-old golden retriever named Oscar and a one-year-old Samoyed called Hamilton - said the way to entice a fussy eater was to make something which "looked fun".

The mother of three, who has written 20 books on cooking for children, combined a selection of fresh and dried fruits and fashioned them into a reindeer shape for the choosy lemur.

When she presented Smeagol with her creation, he leapt on his festive meal. Karmel's approach means he will get sufficient nourishment to grow into a strong adult.