Have you ever been to the elephant exhibit at the Zoo and wondered what all those balls and odd shaped objects hanging in the enclosure were? Or how about that 300 lb. metal ball with holes in it? Well, as I learned from senior mammal keeper Tim Davis, these are enrichment items for the elephants. Another way of looking at enrichment items, which range from fruit frozen in ice to hidden new foods, is that they are toys that make the animals work and think. In the case of the elephants, they just happen to be an oversized version of dog toys that the owner can hide food in.

Along with the enrichment, Mr. Davis is responsible for seeing that the animals in his keep get enough of the proper food. Each animal has a specific diet laid out by a nutritionist. A red-ruffed lemur, for example, eats a pre-mixed leaf eater food, red apple, greens, a variety of steamed roots, a variety of raw vegetables, fruit, and a tamarind pod every day. The food preparation areas Mr. Davis showed us seemed more like a well-stocked kitchen than the silos of hay and grain I was expecting. Of course there were containers full of different feed pellets with varying protein and fiber quantities, and buckets of alfalfa along with the very surprising bags of Iams cat food. I say surprising because much of the food there was the very same stuff I could go and buy at the grocery store. Never again will I doubt the quality of my own cat’s store-bought food.

To ensure that the animals are getting enough food and are in good overall health, they are weighed often and sometimes have blood samples taken. To allow a keeper to take blood or even trim their feet, a camel may need a sedative, an elephant - extensive training, which given the size and nature of those animals is understandable. I was shocked and amused to learn that a Baird’s Tapir sometimes doesn’t need more than a good scratch on the belly to relax it enough to allow for a checkup or pedicure.

The Zoo also tries to ensure both the temporary and long-term health of their animals. After all, how effective can any conservation effort be if the animals aren’t alive and kicking? This is accomplished in one way by quarantining and observing new animals that come to the Zoo. These preventative measures were also apparent when we went to the koala exhibit and had to dip our feet in disinfectant before entering the building.

In the koala exhibit we were introduced to the team area lead, Chris Hamlin. From the viewing windows, the Zoo would appear to only have a handful of koalas. From the inside of the building, however, I was able to see that the Zoo has over 30 koalas. They also have around 30 out on education or breeding loans in the United States and Europe. This loan program was started in the 1980s and all money raised is sent directly back to Australia to help conservation efforts there. That along with little things such as giving the koalas indigenous names impressed me with how focused the Zoo is on helping to preserve the natural habitat and culture of Australia.

Breeding programs, such as the koalas, may be the most noticeable part of any zoo’s conservation effort. My experience at the Zoo has shown me the animal keeper’s job is one that requires brute strength and attention to detail. Each job is just as important as the other, whether a keeper is picking up droppings and shoveling hay or recording data on the movements of koalas.

Contributed by Mariah – Zoo InternQuest Conservation Team

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