LisaAnnOKane
Tampa, FL
Female, 32
During my zookeeping and environmental education career, I have interacted and worked with a variety of animals, including brown bears, wolverines, red foxes, moose, camels, mountain goats, dolphins, sea lions, raccoons, porcupines, snakes, raptors and ravens. I am also a young adult author, and my debut novel ESSENCE was released in June 2014 by Strange Chemistry Books. Ask me anything!
Hi MRaines! Your sister actually won't get to pick which animal she majors in; instead, she will receive an understanding of the biology, physiology and natural history of many types of animals. This way, she will be very well-rounded when she graduates.
This is very helpful, because she will probably have to "work her way up" to a shift with her dream animals. Most of "glamorous" animal shifts are very competitive, so zookeepers often have to put in their time before they can secure these positions!
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Excellent question, Jade, and so sorry for the delay in answering!
Fairy penguins primarily eat fish, squid and krill in the wild, so this diet can be replicated fairly easy in a zoo environment. An adult penguin generally consumes between 5.5 and 8.5 ounces of food per day, and zoos often rotate through a variety of low-fat fish and high-fat fish, as well as squid and krill when available. Multi-vitamins are also often provided, as well as vitamin E and thiamin supplements.
Hand-feeding is generally recommended with these animals, as individuals tend to compete for diets, and it is very difficult to monitor consumption otherwise. Feeding time is also a great opportunity for training and enrichment!
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Hi Kelsie! Repetitive behaviors like pacing are easy ones to watch for in penguins. Changes in appetite are usually fairly prevalent as well, and many penguins will actually pluck their own feathers (usually from their bellies) when they are stressed.
Hope this is helpful!
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Hi DJ, this is such a broad question that I would recommend actually researching this elsewhere. I wouldn't even know where to start--except to say we should always think about the big picture when we make decisions that affect the entire planet. Best of luck to you!
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Awe, thank you so much for sharing this clip! I had never seen it before, and it was wonderful. I particular loved it when the apes hugged when they finally ventured out into the yard. So emotional!
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Dogs definitely have a great sense of smell, but you're right. There are many other members of the animal kingdom whose senses of smell is just as good, if not better. Therefore, trainability is certainly a huge factor in our decision to use dogs as service animals.
Some other powerful sniffers are horses, cows, mice, rats and opossums (just to name a few). And the reputed best sniffer in the world is the African elephant. Definitely don't want those tramping down the airport security lines!
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Hi Lydia, and so sorry for the delay in my response. With any animal, zookeepers are responsible for providing a safe and secure environment, mental and physical stimulation, a healthy diet, proper veterinary care, and opportunities for the animal to engage in natural behaviors like digging, swimming, nesting, etc. For pandas, this would include providing a habitat similar to their natural habitat, environmental enrichment specifically designed to solicit problem solving and natural responses, and a well-balanced diet that replicates the nutritional needs the animal would receive in the wild.
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