Keeper Tom Sica introduces Zahari to a group.
Hey, did you hear that the San Diego Zoo’s Backstage Pass program has “earned its stripes”? That’s right! Our family now includes a zebra; her name is Zahari. We usually just call her Zari. She is a beautiful little Grant’s zebra, which is the smallest of the plains zebra species. When full grown, Zari should be around 48 inches tall (1.2 meters) at the withers and close to 500 pounds (226 kilograms). But right now she is still a youngster at only 16 months old and does not quite tip the scale at 400 pounds (184 kilograms).
Do not think zebras are just horses with a fancy paint job. That would be like saying a leopard is just a big house cat! Zebras are exotic animals that are trained to be comfortable around people. We never consider them to be tame. Zebras are notorious for being difficult to train, but Zari is proving to be the exception to that thought.
We were fortunate to begin her training as soon as she arrived in at the Zoo. All new animals have a quarantine period at the Zoo hospital. The talented hospital keepers immediately started teaching Zari to wear a halter, be touched all over for grooming, and allow her feet to be picked up. Zari became especially attached to Lead Hospital Keeper Tom Sica. When she was cleared from quarantine, Tom was able to make her transition to her behind-the-scenes home an easy one. It takes a “herd” to raise a zebra. And although Tom remains her “dad,” she now has lots of aunties, too!
You might see the “herd” out for a stroll on Zoo grounds; we try to get Zari out for a walk every day. But your best opportunity to get an up-close-and-personal visit is to join us at Backstage Pass. Come and earn your stripes!
Louella Miller is an animal trainer at the San Diego Zoo. Read her previous post, Two-toed Sloth Training.
Louella thanks for another great posting about a special and unusual animal. I loved your post about the Two-toed Sloth too. Both postings have given me a new appreciation for these two species that one doesn’t normally get “close” to. Where did Zari come from, and how old was she when she arrived? It sounds like it must have been recently. We had the privilege of seeing a days old Zebra in the herd at WAP in early January 2010. It was staying close to mom, but the others were interested in it being nearby.
Margaret
How exciting to get to see such a young baby zebra! Our zebra, Zari, came to the Zoo in June of 2009. She was around 8 months old. She was born on a 600-acre facility in Texas. She was not hand reared. She ran free with the herd until being weaned. Considering this, she is doing very nicely with her training program. Hope you will have the opportunity to see our amazing zebra some day.
Hi there this is a great story, Zebras are in fact wild! This girl looks like she will be a great embassador for the zoo and a good example of what you can train a zebra to do. Zari was a great little girl when I had her. She came from one of my pure breed Grant zebras. She was a doll as a baby very willing and smart! Its good to see she has such a loving home and a great village! Take Care Dominique ZebrasRus
i love zebras and longneckers!!!!!!