THE biggest pumpkin ever seen at the Royal Easter Show had Taronga Zoo’s elephants acting like hungry kids in a candy store this morning.

The 728kg vegetable was delivered to the zoo with other prize-winning pumpkins from the show as a special treat for the animals.

It was the zoo’s Asian elephant herd, which includes Pak Boon and her daughter Tukta as well as Porntip and her son Pathi Harn, that got to tuck into the whopper.

Elephant keeper Steve Westnedge said the group was bursting with excitement the moment they spotted their big orange surprise coming.

media_camera The elephants were inquisitive at first.

media_camera There was no stopping that trunk.

“They were trumpeting and roaring and hollering as soon as it came into the paddock, just like little kids,” Mr Westnedge said.

“They were in the barn as we brought it in on a front end loader so no doubt the anticipation was mounting inside.

“As soon as we let them out of the barn, they wanted to know what it was all about and had a quick look.

“Then it was on. It took them about 10 seconds to rip in.”

Pak Boon, who weighs 3300kg, and four-year-old Tukta were the first to let loose on the helpless pumpkin.

media_camera The spectacle drew quite a crowd.

media_camera It felt as though Christmas had all come at once for this little guy.

“Pak Boon and Tukta were quick to instigate the destruction,” Mr Westnedge said.

“Pak Boon attacked it a little bit with her foot to start with and then got her head down low and went for it with her trunk.

“They were still working on getting all the flesh out an hour later, just like kids at Christmas time — spending just as much time playing with the packaging as the stuff inside.”

An elephant’s diet consists mostly of grass and an adult can devour between 60kg and 100kg in one day.

“We do give them some fruit and vegetables throughout the day but this is a massive sweet treat for them,” Mr Westnedge said.

“But they will be fine, they won’t be bouncing off the walls or anything.

media_camera What a treat.

media_camera This is obviously the messy eater of the herd.

Mr Westnedge, who said he had “the best job in the world”, admitted he would have a fair amount of orange-tinged work cut out for him tomorrow.

“What goes in has to come out and it takes about 24 hours for them to digest,” he said.

“So yes, that will be tomorrow’s job.”

The record-breaking pumpkin had enjoyed pride of place in the Royal Easter Show’s Flower and Garden Pavilion until the show closed on Wednesday.

The pumpkins would normally be recycled as green waste but show chief executive Michael Collins said he was thrilled to see them satisfy some of the zoo’s mightiest appetites instead.

media_camera The elephants loved every minute of it.