Zoo InternQuest

When keepers are feeding more than one animal at the same time, they use markers to mark each animal in the litter. This process is called litter marking, an important step to avoid over feeding by being very clear about which individual has been fed. The markers are non-toxic posing no harm to the newborns if the residue is ingested.

Almost every newborn, regardless of its species, requires warmth to survive. This incubator does just that: keep the newborn warm and cozy. This mimics the warmth the mother would have provided for its baby.

Ms. Weibel explains the process of making formula that is fed to the newborns at in the NACU. The formula is made according to the gastric capacity of the animal, which is the amount of food the neonate can ingest. This is obtained by taking the animal’s weight in kilos and multiplying it by fifty. Through this, you can also figure out your own gastric capacity!

Making formula is much like mixing cake batter. Here interns Victoria and Cam whisk and strain the formula to obtain a smooth consistency. This is crucial because if the formula remains clumpy, it could cause the baby mammal to aspirate.

Formula must be bottled and dated with its expiration date and time. Once the formula has expired, it must be immediately discarded. If two types of formulas were mixed together in one bottle, the formula with the earlier expiration date determines length of time the formula can remain in the refrigerator.

Ms. Weibel shows us the different types of formula used for Zoo animals. Combining the formulas Esbilac and Enfamil is ideal for nursing primates, bears, and gazelles. If an animal is not fed the right formula it could develop stomach or intestinal problems.

Tinka, the Parma wallaby was found as a tiny joey on the floor of her exhibit. Miraculously, NACU keepers were able to restore her back to health. This means that the keepers worked around the clock to save her.

Intern Victoria holds a pouch that is designed to mimic the pouch of a marsupial. The fabric is extremely soft and keeps the baby warm. The pouch is also seamless to prevent the newborn from ingesting any loose fabric.

Isa, the fossa, demonstrates his affection towards Ms. Weibel who helped to raise him in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Only found in Madagascar, fossas have lost 94% of their original habitat. Consumers– be aware of where your products come from to make sure you don’t contribute to the loss of their habitat!

Charlene, Photo Team
Week six, Winter Session 2013

When out in the field, it would be extremely challenging to identify individual animals without a form of identification. This is why every hoof stock animal has “ear notches” as diagramed in the picture. The location of each notch represents a certain number, which then allows the keepers to identify the animal based on the numbers the ear notches yield.

Interns Carly, Charlene, and Victoria get comfy on the truck before we head out into the field. Little do they know that they are in for a HUGE adventure out there!

Before going out into the field, our task was to strip acacia branches of their leaves. Giraffes enjoy acacia leaves very much, consuming about seventy-five pounds of foliage a day!

Interns Jade and Marcel are enjoying their last week of Zoo InternQuest. They look excited for the treat in store for them!

We found out that Indian Rhinos love apples very much! While we were feeding them, we could touch their skin and horns. Many people do not know that a rhino’s horn is the same substance as our finger nails.

The Safari Park is home to many giraffes, the tallest living land animal, growing up to sixteen to twenty feet tall! Each giraffe’s pattern of spots acts like its own unique fingerprint.

On February 25th, 2013, the Safari Park had a new addition of baby Southern White Rhinoceros. The baby rhino, Kayode, is enjoying his new life here with the other rhinos and animals in the field. He has quite the personality, that one!

It is not very hard to feed giraffes considering their tongues are eighteen to twenty inches long! Intern Jade, or rather our modern day Pocahontas, enjoys her experience with the giraffes ⎯ what a fun way to finish up the day!

Abby, Photo Team
Week six, Winter Session 2013

Whether a baby ends up at the NACU due to poor health, maternal neglect, maternal death, or too much competition for food, the NACU staff provides them with a head start in the right direction. Ms. Weibel carefully measures out ingredients to make the baby animal formula. She must ensure that the ingredients and proportions are exactly what the Zoo nutritionist order to keep the baby in good health. Ms. Weibel administers medication to animals who might be sick, keeping careful record of what is done. Caring for animals in the NACU is not always predictable and easygoing. There are many variables that can add extra steps to Ms. Weibel’s day. For example, if an animal is brought to the NACU and is underweight, it might require more monitoring and medical treatment than other nursery animals.

Eating is just as important for animals as it is for people. The most important part of a NACU animals’ feeding is giving the animal the proper formulas. Since formulas for each Zoo animal aren’t commercially available, the Zoo nutritionists have the task of developing formulas using preexisting human and animal formulas. Once a formula has been developed, making the nipple is next on the list. How do keepers make a nipple for every shape and size of animal that comes through the NACU’s doors? By taking pre-made nipples that do not have holes, Ms. Weibel can use a heated sewing needle attached to a string and make a hole. Varying the width of the string allows for different hole sizes; the nipples are then tested to make sure it will allow the animal to feed properly.

Remember when your math teacher told you, “This is important, you may need it later in life”? Ms. Weibel’s career uses a lot of math. After a formula and nipple have been designed for an animal, Ms. Weibel calculates is the gastric capacity of the animal, which can be found by multiplying the weight in kilos by 50.  “Gastric capacity” is the measure of how much food an animal can eat at a time. Overfeeding an animal can be dangerous, so animals at the NACU are fed volumes of formula slightly below their gastric capacity.

After our tour of the NACU facility we were able to meet Isa, a fossa, who was cared for by Ms. Weibel. Isa went through the NACU as a baby because he was not getting the attention he needed from his mother. Isa is evidence that all the care and work that goes into taking care of animals at the NACU pays off. While watching Isa climb poles and jump from pedestal to pedestal, I was amazed that at one point in his life he needed Ms. Weibel. She helped him to become a very happy, healthy, energetic resident of the San Diego Zoo.

Marcel, Real World Team
Week six, Winter Session 2013

Zoo animals are normally raised by their animal parents on exhibit, but sometimes animals are injured or neglected by their parents and end up in the NACU. Ms. Weibel, acting “mom” for these Zoo babies, starts her day by checking on all the animals in the NACU and taking their weight and temperature. She must then make the perfect formula for each of the animal’s specific dietary needs. Formulas are made from existing commercial products. For example, Esbilac, the formula used for puppies before they are able to transition to solid food, is used for bears. Enfamil, the formula used for human infants, is used for primates. Most formulas are a combination of the two. Each animal has a special recipe created by the Nutritionists at the Zoo. Along with preparation and feeding, NACU keepers are also responsible for giving the animals their medicine, keeping records of the animals’ behavior and health, and sterilizing all of the equipment used throughout the day.

Ms. Weibel emphasized how every day is unique. Each animal is in a different situation and requires specific care. Tinka, for example, a wallaby joey, weighed only 70 grams when she was abandoned by her mother. Ms. Weibel came in and raised Tinka until she was healthy and ready to be moved back to her exhibit. Some people may not like the unpredictability each day offers, but this variation is Mrs. Weibel’s favorite part.  She enjoys the challenge that comes with working with dozens of different species of mammals and being responsible for them.

Along with having quick math skills and being detail-oriented, patience is a key requirement for becoming a NACU Keeper. Ms. Weibel completed her education at Iowa State University with a major in species communication and a minor in zoology. Even though she knew she wanted to work with animals, the exact position she wanted wasn’t clear to her. This led her to an internship at a zoo in Minnesota. She then worked for the Education Department at the San Diego Zoo. After studying spotted hyenas in Kenya, she began working in the Mammal Department at the Safari Park and became a keeper at the Zoo’s NACU in 1995.

Just like any mother, Ms. Weibel is always concerned with the animals’ future. Once babies are ready to leave the NACU, keepers sometimes monitor and train them in their “howdy” pen within the Zoo. A “howdy” pen is an enclosure that is next to a regular exhibit, allowing the animal to become comfortable with the keepers and the new surroundings. These pens allow the animal to interact with the other animals in the exhibit while still having access to a protected area. Eventually, the keepers’ goal is for the baby to join the rest of the group. When this happens, the NACU team, like a group of proud “moms,” can see the reward of their hard work.

Whether she is feeding, cleaning, or providing non-stop care for the animals in the NACU, Ms. Weibel ultimately assumes the position as a temporary mother for the young animals. Although it is not an easy job, nothing beats being a mom.

Victoria, Career Team
Week six, Winter 2013

Tinka, as keepers named this marsupial, was cold, hairless, and embryonic. Her weight was just under two ounces. Keepers guessed that the mother was unable to provide sufficient nutrients (due to her illness) and might have ejected the baby from her pouch.

As a first step of action, the NACU keepers, including Senior Keeper Kim Weibel, kept Tinka in a soft cloth, an environment much like her mother’s pouch. This would not only comfort the joey, but also provide a place for development (as months of crucial growth for marsupials occurs within their mother’s pouch). They created the surrogate pouch out of fleece and flannel, suspending it within an incubator to keep it warm and humid.
Ms. Weibel and her team ordered three special types of Biolac formula from Australia used to hand-rear young marsupials. They began feeding Tinka the protein-rich Biolac 100 every two hours to stimulate development and muscle growth. Soon Tinka started showing signs of improvement; one ear began to stand erect, and peach fuzz began to grow around her face.

Tinka’s diet soon began to change. The keepers gradually introduced Biolac 150 and 200, which were loaded with carbohydrates to stimulate even more growth. She began to gain considerable leg and tail muscle. Keepers at the NACU compared her weight with that of another zoo’s hand-reared wallaby. She was nearly up to normal weight standards for her age! As she began to eat solid foods, Tinka grew out of her once-spacious pouch and had to be fitted with a larger one. To Ms. Weibel and the nursery staff, these significant changes demonstrated her readiness to graduate from the NACU.

Leaving the nursery was a step-by-step process. Keepers gave Tinka time out of the pouch in a playpen in the nursery and sun time in a vacant yard by the wallaby exhibit. This was part of the socialization process to rejoin the family of wallabies. An off-exhibit space was cleared for Tinka behind the enclosure. Soon she began to spend time away from the nursery keepers during the day- with an adult female wallaby! She would always return to the NACU overnight.

On December 26th, Tinka spent her first night in this space alone. When NACU keepers checked on her in the morning, she was perfectly happy, comfortable, and stress-free. As she continued to bond with the single adult female, she eased her way into meeting the rest of the Parma wallabies at the Zoo. She officially graduated from the nursery on February 19th, 2012 and moved in full-time with the rest of the group. According to Ms. Weibel, returning an animal to its home and family group is the most rewarding part of her job.

Tinka’s survival was a success for the Zoo and for Parma wallabies as a species. Parma wallabies are endangered throughout Australia and New Guinea. They were actually thought to be extinct before a population was found on an island near Auckland, New Zealand in 1965. This discovery started a captive breeding program for the species in Australia, hoping to repopulate and reintroduce the species back into the wild. Luckily, although the Parma wallaby remains rare, the population is thought to be slowly increasing, so long as further habitat destruction does not take place. Raising endangered species like the Parma wallaby at the Zoo helps to grow the captive population, allowing more potential for the species to someday be re-released into the wild.

Currently, Tinka is thriving and getting along fabulously with the other females on exhibit. You can see these cute, fuzzy wallabies at the San Diego Zoo across from the 4-D Theatre at the west end of Skyfari. Look for Tinka, and remember her miraculous story of survival and those who helped her along the way.

Carly Jo, Conservation Team
Week Six, Winter Session 2013

As a Senior Mammal Keeper, Ms. Pillsbury’s day starts out with a morning meeting. She and the rest of the regular staff discuss and plan the day’s itinerary. An animal can make their check up list for a variety of reasons, including if it was observed having some physical problem, if it just gave birth or if it was just born, or if it is scheduled for some sort of medication or translocation. Ms. Pillsbury’s job in particular focuses on the animals at the north end of the Safari Park, including the Arabian oryx. These Arabian oryx, in addition to many of her other charges, are a part of a Species Survival Program (SSP). SSPs match up breeding pairs of animals to produce the most genetic diversity possible in captive populations. They also try to reintroduce animals to their natural habitats around the world. There are SSPs for over 300 different species, including the Arabian oryx. An SSP often requires animals to be sent to other zoos for breeding, and so these animals are quarantined before and after their transfer to prevent the possible spread of illnesses between zoos.

The Zoo has aided the reintroduction of the Arabian oryx to protected areas in Saudi Arabia and Oman since the 1980s, but the animals have encountered some unanticipated obstacles. As they were extinct in the wild only a few decades ago, the Arabian oryx is still quite rare in the Middle East. They are so rare, in fact, that they are considered valuable and a prize to own. Wealthy individuals have been hiring hunters to essentially kidnap the reintroduced oryx out of the wild for their private menageries. This and other factors have lead to a serious decline in their populations, but the Zoo and its counterparts in the SSP are determined. As of 2010, there have been 342 successful Arabian oryx births at the Safari Park, and the Zoo’s herd shows no sign of slowing down thanks to the SSP!

Speaking of births, my fellow interns and I got to watch the exciting rescue of a newborn waterbuck! On our way into the field, we saw the still-wet calf and his mother in one niche of the field exhibit. On our way back around, however, the mother waterbuck was a distance away, and instead there were several rhinos and another keeper truck right next to the newborn. The other keeper told us that one of the rhinos was being very aggressive, and had actually picked up the baby waterbuck. She was trying to gently push them away with the truck, but was being outmaneuvered by the rhinos. We parked our truck right next to the newborn, protecting it so that the other keeper could focus on the rhinos. In the end, she had to herd the whole group of nearby rhinos to another part of the exhibit with her truck. The waterbuck, safe and unharmed, curled up against the wall for a nap.

Hearing about the Arabian oryx’s story and watching the drama of the baby waterbuck and the rhinos play out right before my eyes made me realize that the people at the Zoo and Safari Park do much more than just feed the animals under their care. Day in and day out, they are actively writing the history of conservation through their caring actions. In the long term, the Arabian oryx is in its natural habitat thanks to their efforts. If you want to see the short-term effects of their everyday conservation work, you can go to the Park and see the baby waterbuck!

Cameron, Conservation Team
Week Six, Winter Session 2013

While the little raggiana is the first chick to hatch at the APC this year, many other eggs have hatched on exhibit at the Zoo. Most of the eggs laid at the Zoo hatch on their own and are raised by their feathered parents. However, sometimes eggs must be “pulled” from their nests. This is generally a rare practice, and usually occurs only when the Zoo’s staff have reason to believe that the egg is in some sort of danger. For example, several of the male kiwi are very inexperienced at looking after an egg and have been known to accidentally step on and crush them. In such cases, the eggs are pulled and sent to be hatched and raised at the APC. There they are cared for in special incubators until they are ready to hatch, at which point they are moved to different hatching incubators. When they open their eyes, Ms. Knutson and her fellow keepers all don sheer coverings, known as “ghosts,” during feedings, to keep the young birds form imprinting on humans. As they grow up, they are gradually transitioned from incubators to outdoor enclosures, and finally to their exhibits.

Ms. Knutson and her colleagues also care for the “dirty chicks” brought to the APC (designated as “dirty” because they come from exhibits in the Zoo and may have parasites). Sometimes, a storm will knock a chick from its nest or a parent will be neglectful or aggressive towards a chick. When it becomes dangerous for an already-hatched chick to stay in its exhibit, the chick will be sent to the APC for rearing. The keepers at the APC raise these chicks the same as they do the ones that hatch out in the Zoo, with one major exception: because the dirty chicks hatched outside the APC and have been exposed to any number of potentially harmful bacteria, they must be kept in a separate room from the chicks born into the very controlled, sterile environment of the APC. Ms. Knutson says that they usually see only about three of four dirty chicks a year, but that last year they raised an incredible 44 dirty chicks due to an unusual number of rough storms. Even in the mostly-contained environment of the Zoo, the risk of a predator attacking a chick on grounds is too great to chance. The APC provides a safe, clean environment for rearing.

In addition to telling us about her work, Ms. Knutson reinforced what we’d heard several weeks ago from Ms. Colleen Wisinsky who works at the San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research on a project to save the endangered cactus wren. Native plants are critical to every facet of an ecosystem, but birds in particular depend on them for survival. Thick, low shrubbery offers places to hide, roost, and nest, as do tall trees. However, specific native species of birds (such as the cactus wren) often depend on specific species of native plants (such as the cactus). It’s hard for the average individual to contribute to the future of the raggiana bird of paradise, but we can easily help out our local fauna by taking time to spread a little more local flora.

The keepers dedicate long hours to help birds at the APC but you can help your local birds by not dedicating long hours to ridding your garden of organic detritus (such as leaves, twigs and grass clippings). Sometimes, what you don’t do can be as important as what you do. Wild birds often use the leaves and twigs that fall from the plants in our backyards to build their own homes. When you rake it all up and throw it away, the birds must find new resources with which to build their nests. I’ve seen several nests around my neighborhood that have bits of plastic and paper trash woven into them. Going all-natural with your garden is a good policy for all involved: the plants get nutrients from their decomposing leaf litter, the birds get nest materials, and you get more free time for other activities!

Be it in the Avian Propagation Center at the San Diego Zoo or in your own garden at home, there are dozens of ways to lend a helping hand to the birds that are so critical to our world’s ecosystems. As the saying goes, “think globally, but act locally.” For you, “local” action can start right in your own backyard!

Cameron, Real World Team
Week four, Winter Session 2013

Elephants at the San Diego Zoo eat an average of 125 pounds of food daily, which is made up almost entirely of hay. An elephant’s diet is so large that it takes three to five people to provide their food throughout the day.

Mr. Ringer demonstrates how zookeepers use whiteboards to keep track of information, such as weight, for each elephant. Elephants at the Zoo are usually weighed once per month.

Mr. Ringer described elephants as being kind of like giant toddlers. If you left a toddler with a pile of food, they would eat it all in a matter of minutes. The same applies to elephants. To prevent this, zookeepers put the elephants’ hay inside food puzzles so they can eat feed moderately throughout the day.

When most people hear the term catwalk, they think of models and fashion shows. At the San Diego Zoo, the catwalk is the balcony overlooking the elephant exhibit. Zookeepers like Mr. Ringer use the catwalk to observe the elephants below them.

Ron Ringer is a Lead Elephant Keeper at the San Diego Zoo and has been working with elephants for the past 30 years. He is a member of the Elephant Managers Association and often interacts with the public in order to inform people about elephants and their exhibit at the Zoo, as well as important conservation measures prevent their extinction in the wild.

Feeding the elephants at the Zoo is a normal activity for Lead Elephant Keeper Steve Hebert. During our visit, he took the time to show us the proper way to feed them. Here he is giving Devi, one of the Asian elephants, a piece of lettuce.

Mr. Ringer explained that many elephants in the wild are poached for their tusks. Almost 40,000 elephants per year are killed because of the ivory trade and human conflicts. One way we can help prevent this from happening is to pledge to never purchase items that contain ivory.

Victoria, Photo Team
Week Five, Winter Season 2013

Taking care of the elephants at the Zoo is a big task. In the course of a day a keeper has to clean the exhibit, put out food, provide enrichment, give special medical attention depending on the individual, and much more. “If you want to be a keeper you [have to] love shovels and rakes,” says Mr. Ringer. Even though keepers have lots of interactions with guests at the training and pedicure area, they also have to keep the exhibits clean for the animals. Along with maintenance and guest education, keepers are responsible for administering medication to different animals that need it. Smitty is one such animal. Smitty is an older elephant at the Zoo that has arthritis. In order to make Smitty as happy and as comfortable as possible, keepers administer powdered ibuprofen twice daily as part of her routine. How might you get an elephant to take its medicine? The answer is simple: you convince the elephant that it’s a treat. Not only is Smitty’s medicine apple-flavored, but it can also be put into treats that the elephants enjoy, such as hollowed out cantaloupes or peanut butter. Keepers have to think creatively in order to find the best methods to deliver care in a way the animals enjoy and can benefit from.

One of the hardest personal challenges Mr. Ringer has experienced as a keeper was switching to protected contact with the elephants. Protected contact was put in place as a safety method for keepers. Protected contact means that the animal and the keeper are never in the same area without some form of physical barrier. If an elephant has procedures done, ranging from health management of their feet to drawing blood or administering medicine, it is all done with limited contact. For Mr. Ringer it took three years to adjust to the this new method of handling elephants. Before protected contact, keepers’ interactions with the elephants in their enclosures allowed them to become a matriarch-like figure to the elephants. Adapting to protected contact meant Mr. Ringer had to get used to the new way the elephants would respond to instruction. They would do some behaviors when requested and others they would omit or avoid. In the words of Mr. Ringer, it was like telling a child to eat their vegetables before eating their dessert- but from a block away. In the beginning they would not always do what was asked. However, the benefits of protected contact greatly outweigh these challenges.

In addition to training, communication is key for keepers. Whether engaging guests in conversations, letting other keepers know where they are working, or keeping logs on the animals, zookeepers communicate in a variety of ways each day. In the Elephant Care Center, there is a white board where the elephant keepers write down their location so other keepers know where they are working and keep the appropriate doors closed. There is also a board with elephant foot hygiene information so keepers know when an elephant needs its next foot treatment. Boards are not the only way keepers can communicate with one another; keepers also use daily diaries, known as red books, to share important information. The current communication challenge is the creation of a universal training language for elephant keepers nationwide. If a keeper would like an elephant to lift its foot to do a medical evaluation, a keeper in one zoo may ask for the elephant to “lift,” whereas another keeper at a different zoo may say to an elephant  “up.” If we are able to create a universal training language for elephant keepers throughout the nation, it would make it a lot easier for elephants and keepers that get transferred between zoos to understand each other.

Being a keeper is a full time job, especially with six elephants. The animals under Mr. Ringer’s care become like family. In the words of Mr. Ringer, “I got here when [Devi] was 11 years old, I got to see her go through her teens and early adulthood. She’s 36 now.” In some instances, when keepers get to watch the animals grow and thrive under their care, they grow close with the animals. A keeper helps their animals in everyway they can, whether it be taking a blood sample to make sure the animal is healthy, or educating the public on their importance. Mr. Ringer hopes every visitor to the Zoo will understand just how amazing elephants are.

Marcel, Careers Team
Week five, Winter Session 2013